Summary

Dr. Anselm Rees has been found dead in his locked study. Inspector George Flint of Scotland Yard is at a loss as to how it could have happened, so he turns to Joseph Spector, a retired stage magician, who has a keen eye and the ability to find the possible in the impossible. He seems to feel that a stolen painting is somehow part of the mystery. When there is a second impossible murder in an elevator, the two of them realize that they have a very desperate and very clever murderer at work who must be stopped before more lives are lost. 

My Thoughts

I loved this book so much! 

I’m always so nervous when a book and author receive so much praise. Will they really live up to expectations? I’ve been disappointed before. I was not disappointed this time!  This book contained all that I love about the Golden Age detective stories 

In my ideal mystery novel, someone is murdered, everyone else has a cup of tea or a glass of brandy, and gets on with living so the reader can focus on solving the mystery. It’s a beautiful thing. 

One of the reasons I love Agatha Christie is her focus on the puzzle. Poirot had an egg- shaped head, green eyes, and liked things to be orderly, while Miss Marple liked to knit, lived in a cottage and had a nephew. We picked up a bit more about these detectives over the dozens of books that were written, but though Poirot and Marple were key to the books, the books weren’t really about them. Her books were about the puzzles. This book is also about the puzzle.

While Mead’s characters are solid, interesting characters, we leave the book not knowing much at all about the detective and the magician, and I am content with that. I’ve learned that Detective Inspector George Flint has a wife and that Joseph Spector has a rather unusual house and a maid with an elaborate hair-do. That’s really all I need. If I want character growth and emotional scenes, I’m turning to a different style of book.

Just as the book wasn’t character driven, it also didn’t provide elaborate descriptions of places. The story takes place in 1936 in London, and where relevant, we are given details of rooms and buildings. I was conscious of where I was and how places looked, but the descriptions didn’t slow down the overall pacing of the book. 

The author’s use of words felt very intentional, and there were some sentences, sometimes very simple sentences, that just made me stop and admire them. (I never claimed I wasn’t a word nerd.) For instance, “Weaver was by nature an inconsequential man.” That is just a really good sentence with which to introduce a character. I very much admire authors who can say so much in just seven words. 

A handful of words might have been anachronistic, but not so much so that they jolted me out of the story. I also noted that American words were used in place of certain British words, such as elevator, instead of lift. I don’t know if that was only in the American books or not, but I do know editors or publishers often make changes before the American release.  Those who feel strongly about grammar, may be alarmed by sentences beginning with the conjunctions ‘and’ or ‘but.’ Personally, I find it makes the dialogue seem more authentic and flow more naturally.

There clues were well-hidden and adequate to solve the mysteries. The suspect pool was just the right size and the red herrings served their purpose well.

The motives of the murderer were convincing. The murder of Doctor Rees in the locked room also seemed convincing. However, I had to read through the explanation of the murder in the elevator a couple of times before I was convinced of the feasibility.

What Else I Liked

• The author provides an interlude after all of the clues and information have been set before the readers. It gives them a last chance to figure out the puzzle, if they haven’t already, before the murderer is revealed.

• During the reveal, the author provides page numbers directing the reader to the clues in question – an evidence trail of fair play.  I had never seen this in a book before and I appreciated it!

• There was a summary scene at the end where all of the loose ends were tied up.

Who Might Appreciate This Book –

• people who enjoy Agatha Christie or any of the other Golden Age of mystery authors

• anyone who loves solving a puzzle

Who Might Not Appreciate This Book –

• people looking for a cozy mystery where characters, settings and sometimes food or romance play a large role. This book gave me a cozy, nostalgic feeling, but it is not a cozy mystery as we think of cozy mysteries today.  The characters are secondary to the actual mytsery.

• anyone searching for a story to move them emotionally. The story doesn’t dwell on the emotional lives of the characters. If you want to see families incapacitated by grief, people traumatized by the discovery of bodies, and hardened detectives turning to the bottle, I’d recommend Nordic Noir-style mysteries. 

My Rating 5/5

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About the Author

Tom Mead is a British author who specializes in locked-room mysteries. He is a member of the Crime Writers’ Association and the International Thriller Writers’ Association. 

You can find more about him on his website.