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Book Review: Dorothy Sayers’ Hangman's Holiday
by
Dorothy Sayers
It is part of the Lord Peter Wimsey, series and is a vintage mystery in a Kindle edition that was published by Open Road Media on July 31, 2012 and has 260 pages.
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Other books in this series include [books_series]
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Thrones Dominations, Whose Body?, Clouds of Witness, Unnatural Death, Lord Peter Views the Body, The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, Strong Poison, The Five Red Herrings, Murder Must Advertise, The Nine Tailors, Gaudy Night, Busman's Honeymoon
An omnibus of thirteen stories: four are part of the Lord Peter Wimsey vintage mystery series, six feature Montague Egg, and the last two are independent stories, all taking place in the England of the early 20th century.
The Series
Lord Peter Wimsey Stories
“The Image in the Mirror”
“The Incredible Elopement of Lord Peter Wimsey”
”The Queen’s Square”
“The Necklace of Pearls”
Montague Egg Stories
“The Poisoned Dow ’08”
“Sleuths on the Scent”
“Murder in the Morning”
“One Too Many”
“Murder at Pentecost”
“Maher-Shalal-Hashbaz”
Other Stories
“The Man Who Knew How”
“The Fountain Plays”
The Stories
Lord Peter Wimsey, the second son of a duke, became fascinated with solving crimes after he did intelligence work during World War I. Mervyn Bunter is his personal man of all things. Chief-Inspector Parker of Scotland Yard is a friend as is the Honorable Freddy Arbuthnot.
Montague Egg is a very observant travelling representative of Plummet & Rose, Wines and Spirits in Piccadilly who has an aphorism for every situation.
”The Image in the Mirror”
This was a pip! It all starts with a Mr Duckworthy fascinated by science fiction and the fourth dimension, playing into his concerns about his other self. And the fact that all his organs are on the wrong side!
Worse, he’s having blackouts where he’s done things he doesn’t remember.
It’s fascinating how Wimsey solved this one! It does pay to have a liberal education, imparting a desire to know about all sorts of things.
The Characters
Robert Duckworthy works for Crichton’s in their packing department. Hetty and Alfred Duckworthy had been his parents. Susan Brown had been his mother’s stern sister, who had married Brown. Emily Dart had been another sister, unmarried. Miss Jessie Haynes was strangled. Mrs Harbottle is an aged lady who kept a small green-grocery and knew Duckworthy’s mother.
”The Incredible Elopement of Lord Peter Wimsey”
A sick, sad tale of irrational jealousy in which Lord Peter plays a wizard and manipulates the religious fervor of the population.
The Characters
Professor Langley is interested in ethnology and frequently visits the Pyrenees. Juan is a Spanish conjurer helping Lord Peter. Micky is a lemur.
Dr Standish Wetherall has retired from his practice in New York (he is the son of Hiram Wetherall, an automative magnate) and brought his ill wife, the formerly gorgeous Alice, to hide her. Martha and Tomaso are servants.
Dominique. Widow Etcheverry has a bold son.
”The Queen’s Square”
It’s a Christmas party with some ingenious costumes in some vivid colors.
This time it’s Bunter who provides the crucial clue.
The Characters
Lady Deverill is throwing a costume party with a theme of games. Sir Charles is her husband. Mark Sambourne is the Jack of Diamonds. Lady Hermione Creethorpe is the Queen of Clubs. Mrs Wrayburn is a backgammon board. Giles Pomfret came as a billiard table. Nina Hartford’s costume as water-polo is much envied for its coolness. Gerda Bellingham, the Red Queen, is married to Frank. The fast Charmian Grayle is the White Queen who has been flirting with Tony Lee (the White King), Harry Vibart, Frank Bellingham, and Jim Playfair. Joan Carstairs, Dr Pattison, and the Dowager Duchess of Denver (Peter’s mother and the Queen of Spades) are more guests.
Devrill’s servants include Watson and William Hoggarty, who is the gardener. The vicar commands the waits, musicians. Ephrain Dodd is the sexton. Sir Roger de Coverley is the name of an English and Scottish country dance.
Superintendent Johnson investigates.
”The Necklace of Pearls”
It’s a Christmas party with a slew of shaky relatives and friends that results in the theft of a pearl necklace. Another tricky solve by Lord Peter.
The Characters
Sir Septimus Shale lets his wife walk all over him, except at Christmas. John Shale is his brother; he and his wife have a son and daughter, Henry and Betty, who carries mysterious white powders around. Oswald Truegood is Betty’s fiancé with a liking for Epsom and Newmarket. George Comphrey is a cousin of Lady Shale’s; Richard and Beryl Dennison are distant relatives with a reputation for fast living on who-knows-what income. Lavinia Prescott is a friend of George’s while the dissipated Joyce Trivett is a friend of Henry’s and twists him round her finger. Margharita. William Norgate is Sir Septimus’ secretary; Miss Tompkins is Lady Shale’s secretary.
”The Poisoned Dow ’08”
It’s a case of vengeance via port, and it’s Montague Egg’s knowledge that solves this murder.
The Characters
Lord Borrodale, a hard judge, bought a case of Dow 1908 port last spring. Miss Waynfleet is his niece and his heiress. Craven is his butler; James is the footman.
PC Podgers is assisting.
”Sleuths on the Scent”
It’s an assorted party of people discussing a police request for information. It serves a purpose for it susses out the murderer, although Sayers was vague on who exactly they uncovered. I suspect I’d need to re-read the story carefully to figure it out.
The Characters
Henry Bastable is the usual representative for the beat, and Montague Egg is substituting for him.
The Pig and Pewter is an inn at Mugbury, and Mr Egg will not recommend it. George is its landlord.
Sergeant Jukes is from Drabblesford. He, Mr Faggott, and Mr Redwood, who is a representative for Fragonard & Co., are part of the party in the bar-parlour. Gert is with Arthur Bunce, a motorcyclist. There’s also the Disagreeable Man (who writes detective stories).
Alice Steward was murdered at Nottingham. Gerald Beeton had visited her. Taylor of Harrogate Bros. has a good word for Egg.
”Murder in the Morning”
It’s a case of murder with an assortment of witnesses . . . and a clock. You’ll be left to draw your own conclusions.
The Characters
Humphrey Pinchbeck is a solitary soul with money. Theodore Barton, a professional poet, is Pinchbeck’s nephew.
Detective-Inspector Ramage is investigating the murder. Bowles is a baker. Mrs Chapman is from Hatchford Mill. Millicent Adela Queek, a spinster, is an art mistress where Miss Wagstaffe is the head-mistress.
”One Too Many”
A financier whose company is discovered to be on the rocks has disappeared, and while the police know when, they can’t figure out where. It’ll take the observant (tricksy) Montague Egg to figure it out. Luckily for the cops, he was on that train.
The Characters
Simon Grant, a financier, is with Consolidated Nitro-Phosphates, a non-company. Grant’s secretary chews his nails. Sir Hicklebury Bowles, a sporting baronet, shared Grant’s train carriage.
Lord Buddlethorp is a pillar of financial rectitude. Solomon Grundy had purchased tickets for the Mail. Professor Amblefoot teaches calculus at London University. Dr Schleicher is a foreigner from Kew. Messrs Morrison has a pimply clerk.
Chief Inspector Peacock is in charge of the disappearance.
”Murder at Pentecost”
It opens with a speech on religion and proceeds to a discussion of proper terminology about Oxford and its culture. Followed by a statement that the murdered Master is “one of Nature’s worst mistakes”.
The Characters
Flathers wears a commoner’s gown. Radcott is pleased to be moving out next term. Pentecost is a college at Oxford whose Master, Dr Greeby, has been murdered. Mr Temple, a Greek scholar, used to be a Fellow and likes to lay claim to doing any nearby murder. Mr Dabbs is a porter. Professor Staines. Dr Moyle is the Bodley’s Librarian.
”Maher-Shalal-Hashbaz“
The poor puss escaped up a tree and it’s Egg to the rescue. Truly a necessity for young Jean as she must sell her cat.
I’m not sure how Old Proctor owned the house but there’s a landlord.
The Characters
Young Jean Maitland’s stepmother, Maggie, is threatening to get rid of Maher-Shalal-Hashbaz, the cat.
John Doe is advertising for a working cat. Flossie is his wife. Turns out George lives there instead as the house’s caretaker. Mr Timbs is the landlord. The Proctors had been the last tenants. Old Mr Proctor, an invalid, owned the house. His nephew and wife lived with him. Mrs Crabbe used to do the cleaning.
”The Man Who Knew How”
Pender is reading on the train, after all, who doesn’t read on the train? But there’s the other passenger, the man who knows how to commit a murder and get away with it.
Hoo, boy, a scary one. Probably a good idea not to trick people.
The Characters
E. Pender had been in banking until he came into some money. Old Mr Skimmings is a neighbor of Pender’s. “Smith” had been the other passenger who keeps cropping up at murder scenes. Buckley had been a great crime reporter.
John Brittlesea is an engineer and the head of Brittlesea’s Engingeering Works in Rugby. Mrs John Brittlesea discovered her husband in the bath.
George Joseph Smith, Palmer, Gesina Gottfried, and Armstrong were all serial killers.
”The Fountain Plays”
It’s a bad story of a man who stoops to blackmail, upping the ante. Worse is when the other is caught out in his plans.
The Characters
The widowed Mr Spiller does like designing his garden; he has a nice little villa, the Pleasaunce. Betty is his daughter. Masters is his well-trained butler and chauffeur. Ronald Proudfoot is Betty’s fiancé.
Mrs Digby is a widow who lives in a nearby cottage. The too common Sam Gooch wonders at the cost of running that fountain.
Inspector Frampton was quite intelligent.
The Cover and Title
The cover is consistent with previous ones in a light colonial blue background with a thin red border at top and bottom. The graphic is the torso of a double-breasted suit jacket in a green, cream, and brown glen plaid and white button-down shirt punctuated by a deep blue tie. At the top is the series info in black and the author’s name at the bottom in a deep blue. Lord Peter’s monocle swings up on the left to frame the title in white. Below the author’s name is a colophon for the publisher.
I’m not sure about the title, although I suspect there may be a few murderers in this omnibus in which it will be a Hangman’s Holiday.
