September was not a bad month for reading, clocking up 13 books. I think my reading was more diverse from a format/style point of view as I read:
- 5 classic crime mysteries
- 1 mystery play
- 1 graphic novel
- 1 short story collection
- 4 mysteries by modern authors
- 1 children’s book
Nevertheless, there was one clear winner for Book of the Month in September and the author is a favourite of my blog, namely Martin Edwards and his latest Rachel Savernake mystery, Hemlock Bay (2024). Martin offers his readers a tantalising multi-strand mystery which has a lot of possibilities as to which way it might turn next. If you love classic crime fiction then this book might be a good fit for you, as the mystery, and the series as a whole, makes strong nods towards this period of detective fiction writing.
Another book which deserves a recommendation is Lee Goldberg’s Mr Monk is a Mess (2012), as this too sees characters and plot elevate one another. I have often thought, and sometimes said, that the best mysteries are not ones which focus solely on characters or only prioritise plot. To write the best kind of mystery you need to use your characters to drive your plot, and your plot needs to be a reflection of how those characters would react or behave. Yet the type of plot you create also has an impact on how your characters develop, based on the situations they find themselves in.
Moving on to the poll results. Earlier in September I reviewed Mark Aldridge’s new book: Agatha Christie’s Marple: Expert in Wickedness (2024) and I set up a poll in this review asking you which section of Christie’s work you find the most re-readable, as Lucy Foley in her foreword to Mark’s book had argued that the Marple mysteries claimed this accolade. But what did you guys think? Here are the results below:
Hercule Poirot novels and short stories: 53
Miss Marple novels and short stories: 53
Christie’s standalone mysteries: 11
Harley Quinn short stories: 6
Tommy and Tuppence Beresford novels and short stories: 4
Christie’s novels written as Mary Westmacott: 1
Parker Pyne short stories: 0
In some ways the results do not surprise me too much. I knew Marple and Poirot would be the most popular options. However, the symmetry of the results for the top two is quite remarkable and would also please Hercule Poirot himself. It was nice to get votes from around the world including the UK, USA, Australia, Canada, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Ireland, India, Netherlands, New Zealand, Belarus, Swiss Confederation, Columbia, Portugal, Sweden, Singapore and Turkey. Regarding the USA, voters took part from 15 different states, with California contributing the most votes, so well done!
Looking ahead, I am still in something of a reviewing backlog. I have five novels to review: 4 classic crime fiction (though very diverse in style) and 1 modern detective story. I’m not in a reading slump at the moment, but fatigue is certainly limiting my reading time and making me feel less excited about what to read next. But hopefully this will pass soon.
What books are you enjoying in October?
Finally, classic crime advent calendars are still available to purchase, until the end of November, so don’t forget to buy yours (if you live in the UK).