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Miss Seeton By Appointment
by
Hampton Charles
It is part of the Miss Seeton #6 series and is a cozy mystery in a Kindle edition on September 1, 1990 and has 183 pages.
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Other books in this series include [books_series]
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Advantage Miss Seeton, Miss Seeton at the Helm
Sixth in the overall Miss Seeton series BUT the first with a different author. The series still revolves around the staunchly naive Miss Emily D Seeton, a retired art teacher with a gift for psychic caricature. Miss Seeton, By Appointment was first published 1 September 1990 and is set in the late 1960s, early 1970s in England.
My Take
Yes, Miss Seeton can be a bit much when you’re speaking with her. She follows her own twisty maze of thought and good luck to you. She always sees, hmmm, or “sees”, the most positive side of anything, which stands her in good stead, if no one else, lol. Ya gotta love her though. She sees into the real you and she cares.
Speaking of “speaking”, Charles is using third person global subjective protagonist point-of-view from many perspectives — we’re privy to the thoughts and emotions of a number of characters.
Miss Seeton has been doing yoga since the start of the series, and I’m starting to wonder if I should take it up . . . I will say her exercises have provided some fun moments in the stories.
Charles made a few missteps. One is in his implying that Ranger and Anne aren’t married when Miss Seeton bought them a wedding gift in Miss Seeton Sings, 4, and Carvic states that they’re married in Odds on Miss Seeton, 5. As for Charles not writing Miss Seeton’s usual rambling dialogue in a few places, well, I can understand that rambling about that much can be daunting, but still. I had to re-read dialogue in several scenes to be sure it really was Miss Seeton speaking.
It is too funny how the powers-that-be see Miss Seeton as both a miracle worker and a “weapon of mass destruction”, lol. They view her “psychic” ability with awe and yet are “fascinated” at the idea of turning her loose. She does have the habit of stirring things up, helped along by other people’s own interpretations. I have to laugh at how the bad guys and the good guys misinterpret this aged spinster who can’t possibly move this well and are torn between her naiveté and/or her sinister thinking.
I gotta say the residents of Plummergen sound like a microcosm of our current world with some who are ardent supporters of Miss Seeton and others who see her as anything negative they can conjure up out of their own filthy mindedness.
It is a busy world in Miss Seeton, By Appointment what with Miss Seeton off to meet the queen; the charity event being put on by the villagers in aid of the Plummergen Church Organ Fund; Nigel’s latest romance; and, the unexpected friendship popping up among Sir George, Ferencz, and Sir Wormelow — that description of Wormelow as the “elderly English toff” cracked me up.
I do wonder at Charles’ attitude toward those upperclasses as I read his approach with Sir George. In previous stories, Sir George comes across as an intelligent man who sees beneath the surface and now here’s Charles making General George sound like one of those idiots from a P.G. Wodehouse tale?! His is not the only character Charles screws around with as when Miss Seeton purposely made use of her umbrella handle! Yes, I was shocked . . . and laughing.
Szabo is very much the self-made (and re-made) man and is the one to save the day by remembering his army days. I don’t have a problem with this latter bit, but I do have issues with yanking about with the characters of previously established characters.
There’s a touch of the real world in that Miss Seeton has worried about making ends meet, but Carvic has been taking care of that,between Scotland Yard and the part time teaching in Plummergen with a headmaster willing to stand up to MissEss’ naysayers.
I am enjoying Mel’s all-in evolution since we first met her in Miss Seeton Draws the Line, 2.
There are enough bad guys in here to make things interesting — always thinking they can get away with anything . . . but they haven’t yet met the Battling Brolly! — with most of the characters good people who try to help each other.
Hmm, I wonder if one of the future stories will eventually explain away the crossed fingers . . .? Has it anything to do with Tony Blunt?
The Story
It’s Miss Seeton off to meet the queen at a royal garden party! Fortunately, Sir George and his lady are also invited, so Miss Seeton has a port in the storm, just as she’ll harbor poor Marigold during the fashion shoot at Rytham Hall.
But while Miss Seeton is viewing shrunken heads and other royal treasures with Sir Wormelow Tump, a plan is being hatched by a titled crook to steal valuables of a different kind — a fabulous set of Lalique jewelry.
The Characters
Plummergen is . . .
. . . the Kentish village where Miss Emily D Seeton, a.k.a. MissEss and the Battling Brolly, can usually be found in the cottage, Sweetbriars, she inherited from her godmother. A retired art teacher, she’s on paid retainer with Scotland Yard these days. Martha Bloomer does for Miss Seeton and has a good heart. Martha’s husband, Stan, takes care of the garden, does odd jobs, and tends the hens for their and Miss Seeton’s good. Dr Wright runs a private nursing home and clinic and is Anne’s father. Police Constable Potter is the local copper. The George and Dragon is the local inn. Mr Jessyp is the school headmaster. Bert is the every-third-week postman. The Nuts are legally known as Mrs Norah “Bunny” Blaine and Miss Erica Nuttel who are renowned for their nasty gossip and busybodiness. Mr Stillwell runs the hardware and general store. The dotty Reverend Arthur Treeves is the local vicar who has lost his faith but continues to perform. His sister, Miss Molly Treeves, keeps him in hand. The reverend does envy his bishop, Rick. Mr Baxter from Brettenden runs a taxi.
Rytham Hall is . . .
. . . the country house of Sir George Colveden, a retired major general and the justice of the peace. Lady Colveden, Meg, is his wife and very practical. Nigel is their romantic, supportive son, always falling in love, who’s training to be a farmer. Freddie is a fishing friend of Sir George’s.
Marigold Naseby, a.k.a. Wendy Smith, is the new It girl, for she’s won the contest to model a collection of clothes for Mode fashion magazine with Cedric Benbow, a renowned portrait and fashion photographer. Miss Seeton went to art school with Cedric, only back then he was Clive Bennett. Liz is a freelance make-up artist. Terry is Wendy’s younger brother. June, a student nurse, is her best mate; Mr Christodoulou is their landlord? Mr Turnbull had been Wendy’s very nice manager at Woolworth’s. Harry Manning is the freelance press, society, and fashion photographer who helped Wendy get her start. Kevin is a fellow photographer with whom Harry shares a studio. Lynn is a more free-spirited model. Smithers, a retired soldier, is with Securicor, a security service engaged by Mode. Albertine.
Mel Forby is a journalist who works for the Daily Negative — Amelita Forby is her byline — whom we first met in Miss Seeton Draws the Line, 2. Some of her colleagues include Peter Morgan, Jason Lombard, and Sue. Thrudd Banner is the journalist we met in Miss Seeton Sings, 4.
Sir Wormelow “Wonky” Tump is the custodian of the Royal Collection of Objets de Vertu at Buckingham Palace. The urbane Ferencz Szabo emigrated from Hungary and taught himself to be more English than the English as Frank Taylor (with a preference for the tweedy), who was an acting sergeant in the Royal Army Service Corps until he achieved success with Szabo’s Gallery.
Scotland Yard works . . .
. . . closely with Chief Inspector Chris Brinton of the Kent police, who is friends with Delphick. Detective Constable Foxon is quite colorful when he goes undercover for Brinton. Chief Superintendent “the Oracle” Delphick continues to worry about Miss Seeton. Detective Sergeant Bob Ranger is Delphick’s gentle giant of a partner who is married/not married to (Odds on Miss Seeton, 5) young Anne Knight. A new author to a series really should have read up on the past ones to know who’s doing what and with whom! Sir Hubert Everleigh is the assistant commissioner (crime). The paranoid Roland Fenn is the deputy assistant commissioner in charge of Special Branch. I’m not sure which part of government Inspector Adrian Harlow fits into, but he does take one for the team, poor guy.
Sir Sebastian Prothero is a bad egg, a captain forced to resign from the Guard. He thinks he’s a criminal mastermind. Fiona had been the seventeen-year-old daughter of the adjutant to Colonel Henry. Alfie, Uncle George, and Slicer are all part of Prothero’s story. Reg Cobb owns the Mondial Club.
Tilly Trumpingham wore a frock that reeked of mothballs. Miss Marlborough had been the history mistress. Old Carfax, the property tycoon with a slew of ex-wives, owns Melbury Manor. The White Swan inn is in Canterbury. Guests at the royal garden party include James Callaghan, MP; the Archbishop of Canterbury; the director general of the BBC; the president of the Royal Academy; and, Lady Casson. Royals include the queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, and Princess Alexandra. Douglas Greatorex (his father was a chauffeur) took the shrunken head to school one time.
The Cover and Title
The cover reflects its times with the lurid gradient of deep lilac in the front of Buckingham Palace strengthening into a deeper purple and then fading to red to deep pink at the bottom. The series info is in a deep purple at the top with the title and the author’s name a’slant in white in the bottom half. Surrounding it are icons from the story in shades of yellow. There’s a tiny testimonial in white just below the palace on the left.
The title is a reflection of that Buckingham Palace invitation in the immediate story as well as Scotland Yard’s overall plan, to make use of Miss Seeton, By Appointment.
