Oh, this was a difficult week. I read eight books. Three of them were worthy of note. (An embarrassment of riches!)
Dorothy L. Sayers is always worthy of note, and I finally tackled her Gaudy Night. Its 500+ pages include anachronistic Oxford references and bits of Latin and French for which a mere State university bachelor's degree did not prepare me. But Sayer's skill with a story and deft handling of characters, most especially Lord Peter and his love Harriet overrides the extra effort required. In the end, no true fan of Wimsey cannot read the novel in which Harriet finally gives in.
Also of interest this week was Aiding and Abetting by Muriel Spark. She re-imagines the drama of the real-life fugitive and scoundrel, Richard Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan. With sly wit and a bit of a sadistic twist, Spark brings her imaginary Lucan to justice.
However, for the second time, Robert Barnard is my pick of the week; this time for his Scandal in Belgravia. Smartly and succinctly told, this book, while indisputably a whodunit, reminisces without being maudlin. We are taken on a journey back to the 50s by an unsentimental narrator who honestly bares his emotions in a stiff yet comfortable realism. Barnard's stories always strike me as less about the mystery than about the people affected by the mystery.
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