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Mitchell Mystery Reading Group: SUNSET OVER SOHO (1943) - Post #1

4/9/2021

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Welcome to our group reading and discussion of Gladys Mitchell’s evocative wartime mystery, 1943’s Sunset over Soho. We have five fearless travellers ready to explore the first six chapters in this post, and over the next three weeks will examine the rest of the book. Joyka begins with this encapsulation:

“Air raids, injuries, heroism and lots of detail about London during the Blitz as only Gladys Mitchell can provide. And then, that short paragraph that shoots us off into one of the most confusing GM stories I have read.” She quotes the text that ends Chapter 3 as Mrs Bradley begins an account of riverside adventure that is alternately dreamlike and nightmarish:
“I’m going to tell you a story,” said Mrs Bradley. “Some parts of it you know, but only the least important. It concerns David Harben and these Spaniards, and, to a certain extent, the body.”
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THE STORY


Sunset over Soho is known as an especially challenging book in the series, but for the patient reader it also has many pleasures and rewards. Lynn Walker observes that “this is certainly a different book. It seems that Mitchell is stretching her abilities as a writer, which is always interesting to see and so far, it works.” A city church has been converted into a Rest Centre for those injured or displaced due to air raid bombings, and Mrs Bradley and Detective-Inspector Pirberry speculate on the discovery of a dead man in a coffin found in the basement. Erin Cordell comments that “the problem of how the coffin appeared where it was discovered is a fun problem to solve; it is those types of out-of-place and confounding situations that I enjoy in a whodunit.”

THE SETTING

Contributor Chris B., who has shared some wonderful historical and geographical research about previous titles, offers much excellent information to orient us to this novel’s time and place. He informs us that “the initial settings are in the more interesting parts of London’s West End, either side of ‘the inscrutable Charing Cross Road with its million secrets’, on which David Harben has a room. To the east of that road is St Giles; to the west of it, Soho.” Chris explains that “the Rest Centre, based on a real shelter for bomb-displaced residents at Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church at the east end of Shaftesbury Avenue, is in St Giles, not in Soho. It lies on “Maidenhead Close” (later revealed to be the historical name of the real Dyott Street, St Giles). Most other street names are real. These include, in Soho itself, Gerrard Street, where Mrs Bradley is renting rooms in a house with a Jewish tailor and two sex-workers, and nearby Little Newport Street, where she and David are both nearly stabbed.”

Readers were impressed at the author’s authentic rendering of this urban demi-monde. Lynn Walker says that “it would be fascinating to know from whom she got all the descriptive details of a shelter during the Blitz. Did she ever visit London during the war and experience an air-raid?” It is a tantalizing question, and I don’t believe I have seen any interview or anecdotal information to confirm such a stay. Tracy K., who runs the great blog Bitter Tea and Mystery, adds that “the descriptions of the air raids in Soho are the best I remember reading. It makes a difference to be reading a book set during the Blitz written at the time that the war was going on.”


THE TRUTH
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Mitchell achieves her verisimilitude in multiple ways. For one, the stakes seem higher here than in other Mrs Bradley stories. The tone, in my estimation, is grimmer and more sober than one usually sees, and is certainly leagues away from the winking comedy found in earlier entries like The Mystery of a Butcher’s Shop and The Saltmarsh Murders. In this story, there are unsuccessful but still frighteningly violent murder attempts targeting both Mrs Bradley and David Harben, and this seems to align with the uncertainty of the times and the fragility and disposability of a human life. But there is also Gladys Mitchell’s careful attention to descriptive detail, and authenticities arise here that might be ignored or glossed over in her lighter tales. One such authentic element is a clear-eyed and non-judgmental approach to the sexual encounters described in Sunset over Soho – more on that in a moment – while another is a desire to call attention to the ethnicity of the city’s affected citizens.

Chris writes knowledgeably on this aspect: “The people sheltering at the Rest Centre are ‘of all races and classes... Jews, Greeks, Russians, French, Chinese, Negroes and English’. Local Austrian, Spanish, Swedish, Italian and Polish people are also mentioned in the first two chapters. This multi-ethnic mix is only partly attributable to recent refugees from the war. The distinctive character of Soho had since the mid-19th century been formed by its already very mixed immigrant population. The southern end of Soho around Gerrard Street more recently known as Chinatown (since the 1980s) had in the 1930s and 1940s – alongside a few Chinese and Indian restaurants – a greater variety of French, Italian and other European, including Jewish, inhabitants. It was a night-life district of pubs, cheap restaurants, night-clubs, gambling-dens and brothels.”

Indeed, from the presence of Mrs Bradley’s street-walker neighbors (unambiguously called such) to David Harben’s sexual attraction (carrying a kind of moth-to-the-flame destructive pull) to the mysterious Leda, the author here provides an unusually adult and unadorned view. It is one in keeping with an unsentimental description of a nation at war and at unglossed extremes. Tracy notes that “there is more sex in this book than in the two others I have read. It is not explicit, but nevertheless it is clear that David Harben and the girl have two sexual encounters and that he is emotionally involved.” One encounter is so striking in its forthrightness that I provide it below; while it is atypical for the author generally, it is entirely in keeping with the tactile sensuality and descriptions of willful nature found in this novel’s river scenes, full of swirling mists and flowing currents. From the end of Chapter Six:

Their bodies were cold from the river, and then, with frightening suddenness, surgingly warm, except for cold fingers clutching at shoulder and waist, and a cold mouth pressed on the living warmth of the flesh. Lean belly and rounded thigh, the pressure of deltoid and heel, strong shoulder and urgent hand, lost shape and meaning. Agony passed like a sword, effort broke out in sweat, and stars stood, shivered, and swam.

Harben recovered soonest. He pushed the wet hair from his eyes, got off the bunk, picked up his shirt, and said sadly:

"Well, that’s that. And now what the devil do we do?"
In addition to a notably modern attitude to race and sex (for 1943), Erin also recognizes in Soho Gladys Mitchell’s consistently positive view of gender empowerment. Her ageing detective and, later, her strong-willed and resourceful secretary are both women who can command virtually any situation. Erin says, “there are references in this book and in others where the author has written about equality for women: ‘Pirberry was intrigued and astonished [by this] remarkable subscription to the doctrine of the equality of the sexes.’ These sentences always jump out to me, as this is still the case among some men even in 2021.”


THE RIVER
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From Joyka: “In Chapter 4, I feel GM started her novel all over again, this time featuring not Mrs Bradley but David Harben and his tub which he ‘clings to rather than loves.’ We learn early on he is a moderately successful novelist so a vivid imagination would be expected, no?”

Indeed, David Harben’s story, about meeting a beautiful woman one shadowy night aboard his tub, and finding a dead man in a house along the river shore, begins in Chapter Four, which Mitchell designates as the start of Book Two – The River-God’s Song. One of the challenges for readers of Sunset over Soho is undoubtedly this story-within-a-story narrative device, made more confounding by the notion that we can’t really trust what we are learning, as novelist Harben may be lying to protect himself and others. Detective-Inspector Pirberry certainly takes this view, and as the book continues, we hope that Mrs Bradley will be able to separate the truths from the lies.


Chris provides this astute observation: “While the first three chapter-titles are functional, the next three are fabulous or mythological, indicating that the enigmatic ‘story’ here told by Mrs Bradley belongs to some realm of unreality distinct from the realism of the first three chapters.”

Chris also comes through with excellent historical commentary regarding both landscape and author biography. He writes: “Chiswick [pronounced ‘Chizzick’], is part of Brentford & Chiswick, at that time a proudly independent suburban municipality (the novel is dedicated to its current Mayor) just outside the then western borders of London, subsequently swallowed up into Greater London in 1965. It sits on the north bank of the River Thames, upriver from Westminster, and opposite Kew. Just west of Chiswick is Brentford, where Gladys Mitchell had lived since the age of eight, and where she still lived in 1942 and ‘43, working as a teacher at the local Senior School for Girls. She would soon make it the recognisable although unnamed setting of her novel The Rising of the Moon (1945). Chiswick is where the riverside house of Chapter 5 is located, and where David’s boat is at that point moored.”

THE PEOPLE

Let us conclude with a few thoughts on Mitchell’s construction of her characters in this book. Personally, I find David Harben an interesting and a satisfyingly real and flawed potential protagonist. It helps that Mrs Bradley shows an affinity for – or at least an interest in – the young man in a tight spot, as the reader can then do the same. Lynn says that “characterization is always a strong point” with Gladys Mitchell, and that there is much of interest here. Erin singled out a description of the Rest Centre’s Supervising Officer as someone who ‘might die for a theory, allow himself to be martyred for an idea.’ She feels this is “a perfect commentary on the time the book was written. Britain was fighting for its life, Germany was fighting for the idea of domination and revenge.”

I have to agree with Chris, though, that GM’s “over-characterisation of the Supervising and Welfare Officers (Godfrey and Edith, oddly without surnames) as truly wonderful human beings” is a narrative misstep, as it pulls the reader’s focus inorganically towards two characters who are ultimately insignificant within the story. Adds Chris: “The clumsy method is a clear case of telling instead of showing. This looks like Gladys paying private tribute to two personal friends of hers.” And she may well have been.

Thank you to all the contributors, and to everyone who might be reading along with us! Next week, we will look at Chapters 7 through 12, as the novelist and the psychologist are pulled deeper into the story. If you wish to share your comments, please send them by Tuesday, April 13 to jason@jasonhalf.com .

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Mitchell Mystery Reading Group: SUNSET OVER SOHO this month!

4/1/2021

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I am happy to announce that April's Mitchell Mystery Reading Group event is now open! This month we will discuss 1943's Sunset over Soho, one of Gladys Mitchell's most challenging but intriguing Mrs. Bradley stories. The group will read and discuss a section of the book each week:

TUES. APRIL 6 – Comments due for Chapter 1 “Blitz”
through Chapter 6 “Mermaid”
TUES. APRIL 13 – Comments due for Chapter 7 “Fugitive”
through Chapter 12 “Tryst”
TUES. APRIL 20 – Comments due for Chapter 13 “Castaway”
through Chapter 18 “Angels”
TUES. APRIL 27 – Comments due for Chapter 19 “Prodigal”
through Chapter 23 “Meeting”

I realize that print editions are difficult to obtain, but I had heard from multiple readers that Sunset over Soho would make for a compelling choice, and I think so too. Currently, U.S. Kindle owners can purchase the eBook text through Amazon.com, but it is unavailable in the UK and elsewhere. Our next group reading will occur at the end of the year, and I promise that the chosen title will be one that is in print and available to all.

If you want to participate in the blog discussion, please send your comments (generally a few lines to a few paragraphs) to me at jason@jasonhalf.com before the due date listed above for each weekly section. You can also comment on the page to continue the conversation. If you would like to read along with us but not send comments, that's fine too. There is always an engaging set of topics chosen and covered with every book we explore, so I hope that you find the observations instructive and enjoyable. Cheers -- JH


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Book Review: THE DEADLY TRUTH (1941) by Helen McCloy

3/31/2021

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The premise is an enticing one: selfish socialite Claudia Bethune appropriates a vial of experimental truth serum from the laboratory of a scientist who is infatuated with her. Her objective is a mischievous, malignant one and the cause of her undoing. At a dinner party, her carefully chosen guests are served drinks spiked with the serum, while a sober Claudia has a ringside seat to watch the fun as inhibitions are shed and secrets are revealed. But two of the revelations provide nasty jolts for the hostess, and later that evening she is found by Dr. Basil Willing at her dining room table, strangled with her own jewel-set necklace. By morning, the effects of the drug have worn off, but the guests are hesitant to describe the scene from the night before. As Dr. Willing conducts his interviews, he needs to determine whether his subjects are telling everything or hiding important truths that someone has killed to conceal.

I am always excited to celebrate the return of classic mystery authors and their books after years or decades of unavailability, and this time it is Agora Books which offers readers the first three Dr. Basil Willing titles of American novelist Helen McCloy. Hopefully there will be many more to come. The Deadly Truth is the third book in the series, first published by William Morrow and Company in 1941. While years ago I read the Crippen & Landru Publishers collection of McCloy’s short fiction, The Pleasant Assassin and other Cases (2003), I never tried one of her mystery novels until now. Truth is engaging, well plotted, and nicely paced, even as the author’s series detective proves to be a little sedate and nondescript. McCloy’s cerebral psychiatrist Dr. Willing is highly capable and keenly observant, and perhaps it is wise for the detective to be relatively featureless compared to the flamboyant cast of characters he must investigate.

McCloy builds the backstories of her victim and suspects by employing some admirable twists and turns. In addition to the ambitious and trouble-stirring Claudia Bethune, Claudia’s husband Michael has cast off his first wife, Phyllis, for the wealthier and more attractive socialite. Michael and Phyllis both attend the truth-telling party, as does financial manager Charles Rodney and aspiring debutante Peggy Titus. The secrets revealed by the guests under the influence of the serum are unpalatable indeed, and Dr. Roger Slater, who has followed Claudia from his laboratory to recover the drug she stole from him, is a witness and reluctant conspirator at the fateful dinner.

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McCloy peppers The Deadly Truth with some interesting clues, even as at least one – involving proving an individual’s real or feigned deafness – carries a questionable physiological explanation. I also enjoyed identifying the differences between this New York-set 1940s murder mystery and its traditional British equivalent. For one, American genre writers of this time often (unconsciously?) replicated the patter and archetypes of the characters from a Hollywood movie, so there is a glamour and archness to dialogue and dress that you don’t find in a village like Miss Marple’s St. Mary Mead. Additionally, business and finance are often more actively incorporated into the plots of American mystery writers, who seem to enjoy exploring the minutiae of directing board motives and office appointment alibis more than their British counterparts. (See Rex Stout or Emma Lathen, e.g.) In Truth, labor strikes, stock buyouts, and cumulative assets are all avenues of investigation.

Thanks to Agora Books for starting to reprint the Basil Willing books of Helen McCloy; may there be more to come soon. I received an advance reading copy through NetGalley in exchange for a forthright review. Kate from crossexaminingcrime and J.F. Norris from Pretty Sinister Books also have reviews posted.

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Book Review: MURDER AT MONK'S BARN (1931) by Cecil Waye

3/9/2021

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These days, you will often find me singing the praises of the independent presses whose continuing efforts are giving fans of Golden Age Detection mysteries access once more to long-unavailable stories. It’s a refrain that is well deserved: Mysterious Press and Open Road Media have brought back rare Q. Patrick and Patrick Quentin titles, while Agora Books has begun to reissue Helen McCloy’s series featuring Dr. Basil Willing, to give just two current examples. Dean Street Press has long been a champion in the reprint field, consistently providing fans with hard-to-find titles from prolific Golden Age authors like Christopher Bush, Brian Flynn, E.R. Punshon, and Patricia Wentworth. Dean Street has recently released four more rarities well worth celebrating and seeking out: the Cecil Waye stories published early in Major Cecil John Charles Street’s mystery writing career.

Street is best known for the more than 100 smart puzzle stories he produced using the pseudonyms John Rhode and Miles Burton. It is exciting to see how the Cecil Waye books fit into the canon. As of this writing, I have only read the first book to feature the sibling investigating team of Christopher and Vivienne Perrin, 1931’s Murder at Monk’s Barn. In his introduction, Tony Medawar describes the other Waye stories as “metropolitan thrillers”, but Street’s first entry in this brief series is a winning combination of locked-room mystery, lovers in jeopardy, and clue-driven puzzle.

Gilbert Wynter, a senior partner of an electrical engineering firm, is shot through the curtained window of his Monk’s Barn residence. His younger brother Austin, who is now the chief suspect, visits the Perrins Invesigators office and requests their help in clearing his name. The assignment becomes especially personal for Vivienne Perrin, who quickly falls in love with her client. The murder is a baffling one, however, as the shot (and the retrieved gun) originated from within the walled and gated gardens of the home, yet no visitors could have entered or exited without being noticed. Motive is also unknown; the only person with one appears to be Austin, who had just quarreled with his brother about the direction of the company. With Gilbert out of the way, Austin is one step closer to complete ownership of the firm.

But the dead man’s wife inherits Gilbert’s share of the holdings, and Anne Wynter appears to be just as obstinate as her husband had been about expanding the company. When a poisoned box of chocolates arrives in roundabout fashion as a gift at Monk’s Barn and a gossipy neighbor named Mrs. Cartwright becomes the next fatality, Superintendent Swayne cannot ignore the mounting evidence against Austin Wynter and makes an arrest. It is Vivienne, with Christopher following a step behind, who must race against the clock to find a solution that will clear the name of her inamorato.

The presence of a romantic narrative in detective fiction has long been a source of contention for some readers. Others, like myself, have no real problem with the “human element” seeping into a whodunit as long as it doesn’t threaten to overtake the story and shift its genre status. Street, writing as Waye, strikes a pleasing balance here, in my opinion. As he will be known for his exercises in clinical detail through the dozens of John Rhode mysteries featuring the science-minded Dr. Lancelot Priestley, it is enjoyable to see how the “humdrum” author approaches a romantic motif; I think he acquits himself admirably, and of course Vivienne’s feelings for the accused man raises the stakes for the character and (ostensibly) for the reader.
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The puzzle of Monk’s Barn is a satisfying one, even as the pool of alternative suspects is limited to precisely two. Presuming, as the Perrins do, that their client is innocent, the circumstances of the first murder (and Vivienne’s mid-book exploration of the neighborhood terrain) spotlight the villain for the reader early on. The solution is clever but not overly complicated, and there is also a touch of effective melodrama through the final tragic tableau the author creates for his murderer.

If I have one (minor) complaint, it is connected with the introduction of that fateful box of chocolates. The prop is introduced and handled in such an obvious way that it might just as well have a flashing neon skull and crossbones atop it. I primarily bristled at its unnatural absorption into the story, which could have been more subtly deployed to much greater effect. As written, the reader watches as Austin offers to buy Vivienne a box of local chocolates, Vivienne explains that she never eats chocolate, Austin sends a box to her anyway, Vivienne decides to gift them to Mrs. Cartwright, who explains repeatedly that she will bring them to Mrs. Wynter, who will eat the square chocolates while she, Mrs. Cartwright, will eat the round ones... By the time the poison finally makes its entrance, it feels like we have been immersed in the Chocolate Saga Set-Up for pages upon pages, which we have.

Still, Murder at Monk’s Barn quickly recovers after this, even as Mrs. Cartwright does not, and the book is great fun for aficionados of classic mystery fiction. It was every bit as enjoyable as the Miles Burton titles I have read featuring Inspector Arnold and Desmond Merrion, another pair of Street investigators where one is grounded and the other more free-thinking. You can find supportive reviews of Monk’s Barn from Nick Fuller at The Grandest Game in the World, Puzzle Doctor at In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel, and José Ignacio at A Crime is Afoot. Thanks again to Dean Street Press and all of the reprint publishers who are making out-of-print titles available to a new generation of readers and fans.

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