It is that time of year again when alas I get one year older, but I also get to eat cake, open presents, welcome new additions to my TBR pile, and generally have a day where I don’t feel like I have to be productive. One highlight was opening the front door to my mum, who was laden with presents (always a good start) and holding a ribbon attached to an inflatable chicken which was standing by her shoes, in the way a dog might. My cat looked a little askance at the unexpected visitor, but Hermione the chicken is now at home in my study.
As the title suggests, this post is all about sharing what new mystery-themed gifts I received for my birthday. In the main these gifts were books, but the exception was this Agatha Christie vase, which I plan to use as a bookend.
Moving on to the books, knowing my tastes well, the selection is predominantly older mysteries. First up we have Murder Among Friends (1946) and Unreasonable Doubt (1958) by Elizabeth Ferrars.
I have read six mysteries by Ferrars this year and I still have plenty to go at in my TBR pile. From alliterative point of view, I like the idea of doing a #FerrarsFebruary next year, but I fear no one would want to take part and that I could just end up boring you all immensely.
Another pair of books that I received for my birthday were: The Case of the Counterfeit Eye (1935) and The Case of the Half-Wakened Wife (1945) by Ere Stanley Gardner.
Having looked at the blurbs for both, both plots sound quite intriguing, so I might have to bump at least one of them up my TBR pile reading list.
My gifts also dived into Japanese detective fiction with The Little Sparrow Murders (1957/59) by Seishi Yokomizo. I have been told/read somewhere that this story is one which should appeal to Agatha Christie fans.
The only modern mystery I received was The 12 Murders of Christmas (2024) by Sarah Dunnakey. I had seen this advertised online, never entirely sure if it was a story or a puzzle book.
However, upon inspection it turns out to be both, as at various stages in the novel, the reader is invited to solve some puzzles. I am curious to see how this effects the reading experience. Given the yuletide setting this seems like a good book to read next month.
Finally, the remaining two book additions are non-fiction. The first is Sally Cline’s After Agatha Women Write Crime (2022).
For some reason this book did not make it on to my radar at the time it was published, and I am interested to see which female mystery authors are mentioned, and which are left out. With this kind of publication, I am a bit anxious about the level of generalisations I will encounter (online reviews suggest it is an issue), but it is encouraging at least that Charlotte Armstrong is mentioned in the index, a writer I very much enjoy.
The last book is Under cover of Darkness: Murders in Blackout London (2024) by Amy Helen Bell, which I bought with a book token that I received.
I had seen the book advertised in the Dean Street Press Facebook group and it caught my attention. From the sample I was able to read online, it sounds like the work will be coming at this period of history in an interesting way, so I am definitely looking forward to giving it a read.
I don’t know which of my new books I will read first. Currently I am reading Mabel Seeley’s The Chuckling Fingers (1941). Also coming up on the blog soon will be reviews for The Leaden Bubble (1949) by H.C. Branson and The Missing Heiress (1952) by Bernice Carey.