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The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club
by
Dorothy Sayers
amateur sleuth, vintage mystery in a Kindle edition that was published by Open Road Media on March 1, 2019 and has 413 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Thrones Dominations, Whose Body?, Clouds of Witness, Unnatural Death, Lord Peter Views the Body, Strong Poison, The Five Red Herrings, Book Review: Dorothy Sayers’ Hangman's Holiday, Murder Must Advertise, The Nine Tailors, Gaudy Night, Busman's Honeymoon
Fifth in the Lord Peter Wimsey vintage mystery series and revolving around an amateur sleuth in the England of the 1920s. It’s all about the timing of General Fentiman’s and Lady Dormer’s deaths.
My Take
It’s damned hard coming home from war, and part of the focus of this tale is the trials of being a disabled veteran. I do feel for Fentiman and his inability to hold a job.
It’s a convoluted story about time of death, wills, fraud, and murder all seen through third person global subjective point-of-view.
There isn’t much of a look into Peter’s life except for Bunter’s expertise. Nor is there much between Wimsey and Parker, other than that embarrassing moment when Peter suddenly see Parker as a cop. The brief peek we get into artists’ lives was interesting while the betrayal was a nasty surprise. Not what I was expecting . . .
The theme is greed and infests both side of the argument. There isn’t a lot of action, as it’s mostly talking and investigating with a peek into peoples’ lives and characters.
A good read with insight into the time period’s culture and mores.
The Story
Old General Fentiman has died in his chair at his club. Peacefully. In his sleep. Now there’s a question of when he really died for an inheritance hangs in the balance.
It’s a puzzle since the great man’s knee swung freely when the rest of him was stiff with rigor mortis.
The Characters
Lord Peter Wimsey is a second son with a fascination for mysteries. Mervyn Bunter is his valet/butler/photographer who takes care of anything Lord Peter needs. Mr Murbles, the solicitor for the Wimsey and Fentiman families, lives at Staple Inn.
Detective-Inspector Charles Parker is with Scotland Yard and is one of Wimsey’s best friends. Mr Collins is an expert at handwriting analysis. Dykes seems to be a constable. Detective Maddison. Sir James Lubbock is a well-known analyst. Saunders and Dr Horner are Lubbock’s assistants.
Captain George Fentiman is a wounded veteran and Wimsey’s friend; Sheila is his overworked wife, and who had started up tea-shop that went belly-up. Mrs Crickett is their housekeeper. Joe and Primrose Munns appear to be the landlords of Fentiman’s place. Cummins is a nosy neighbor.
General Arthur Fentiman, long disgusted with his brother-in-law, is George’s ancient grandfather. Major Robert Fentiman, George’s brother, is staying in the Club; Woodward is Robert’s man. Colonel Frobisher is Robert Fentiman’s superior. Felicity, Lady Dormer, is the general’s sister. She shocked her family by marrying a prosperous manufacturer of buttons, Dormer, who became Sir Henry Dormer, Bart. The belligerent Miss Ann Dorland, a poor distant relative and okay painter, lives/lived with Lady Dormer as her ward. Pritchard had been the Dormers’ family solicitor. Mrs Mitcham is Lady Dormer’s housekeeper. Nellie is the housemaid. Nurse Armstrong had been tending Lady Dormer and goes on to a nursing home in Great Wimpole Street. William is the footman.
The Bellona Club is . . .
. . . a gentlemen’s club. Captain Culyer is the secretary of the club. Fred and James are some of the employees. Rogers is the commissionaire at the club. Matthews was sick, and Weston was on the door that morning. Briggs had retired when he inherited his uncle’s fish shop. Babcock is the wine steward.
Members of the club include Dick “Tin-Tummy” Challoner, who is another vet. Wetheridge. Colonel Marchbanks’ son was killed at Hill 60. Grainger is unlikely to last the winter. Dr Walter Penberthy, a retired Army surgeon with a consulting room in Harley Street, attends many of the members. Anstruther is single.
Marjorie Phelps is an artist with insight on Ann Dorland. Bobby Hobart is a ghastly painter but still well liked. The Rushworths prefer science; Naomi is their daughter and engaged to Penberthy. He, Professor Sligo, and Dr Voronoff (he’s anxious to start a clinic) know all about glands. The bad-tempered Olga Shlitzer and her husband had a terrible argument and have separated but not physically. Ulric Fiennes is a sculptor and the third party in this argument. Father Whittington is a slum padre. Ambrose Ledbury is a powerful painter and a professional heart-breaker who left for Poland with Natasha. Komski is another artist with a lost-dog manner that disappears once he has you.
Dougal MacStewart is from an old Scottish family who forces his acquaintance (and money) on people. Jerry is a nickname for the Germans. Merrit’s is the undertaker. Mr Oliver had the general to spend the night. Swain and Hinkins are taxi drivers. Sleuth Incorporated comes in handy. Postlethwaite is an accused, retired manufacturer. Salcome “Sally” Hardy is a reporter with the Daily Yell. Barton is with the Banner. Waffles Newton. Jimmy Rowe is a bartender at the Dragon.
The Cover and Title
The cover has a deep orange background with a bust of a person in a black suit jacket with contrasting lapels, a white shirt with black buttons and a black and white polka-dotted bow tie and a white kerchief in his pocket. A monocle swings out from the left and up to frame the title.The series information is at the top in black. The rest of the text is in white with the title just above the neckline and the author’s name at the bottom.
The title is true enough, for there is The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club.
