Three British Library Crime Classics

Jumping Jenny by Anthony Berkley starts with a costume party where the guests are dressed as famous murderers and their victims. It takes a bit for the reader (or this one at any rate) to sort out who each person is in reality and in costume. One guest, Ena Stratton, is liked by no one and does her best to cause chaos and unpleasantness for the other guests. Soon, she is swinging from the decorative gallows erected for the party. Amauter detective, Roger Sheringham, believes he knows who is responsible for the crime and thinks Ena got what was coming to her. He does his best to confuse the police and muddy the waters.

This was not my favorite of the British Library Crime Classics. Ena Stratton is depicted as an unpleasant woman and a mentally ill woman. Somehow, that became something deserving of death. I have major issues with that. I know this is supposed to be simply a fun work of fiction but the callousness in its depiction of mental illness and people’s response to it was something I found upsetting.

“You don’t know my wife, Sheringham,” David Stratton said ruefully. “In these moods of hers she simply isn’t reponsible. I wouldn’t put anything past her.”

“You mean, she might walk into the pond at Westerford and pretend to drown herself?” said Ronald.

“For all one knows, she might actually drown herself.”

“Then for heaven’s sake, man,” said Ronald fervently, “let her. Don’t raise one little finger to stop her from such a blessed action.”

“I won’t,” David Stratton said candidly. “But I’ve got to cover myself.”

“How?”

“By warning the police that there’s a woman loose who isn’t responsible for her actions.”

Ena Stratton was not a likable woman, but none of the other characters were likable either. I was definitely rooting for the police to figure out exactly what was going on and for Roger Sheringham to get his comeuppance.

The Edinburgh Mystery and Other Tales of Scottish Crime is a collection of short stories edited by Martin Edwards. As with any collection of short stories some are stronger than others. Some are written by Scottish authors and some are set in Scotland but all have a connection in one way or another. There are stories by writers such as Arthur Conan Doyle, Josephine Tey, Michael Innes, and Margot Bennett. The issue with short stories in the mystery genre is that they frequently feel rushed. A short story does not give much time to present a mystery, introduce characters, have the mystery solved and the solution expounded. As a result, the short stories sometimes feel like they rely too much on coincidence or the perfect question or observation at the perfect time. That does not mean they aren’t enjoyable; it means the reader has to suspend disbelief even more than is typical. I enjoyed most of these stories and would recommend the collection.

Green for Danger by Christianna Brand is my favorite of this trio of books. I actually read it last year. It was one of my multitudinous library requests. I greatly enjoyed it and am happy to have it in my permanent collection. Green for Danger is set in a military hospital during the Blitz. A man dies on the operating table and there are seven people who could have been responsible. Inspector Cockrill investigates the death and soon has a second murder to deal with. The Blitz, the small group of suspects, and the hospital setting all lead to a claustrophobic and intense mystery. A film of the book was made in 1946. I plan on watching it and I will definitely be requesting more of Brand’s books from the library.

Thank you to the British Library for providing me with copies of these books.