St Hildas 2009 – 2

Session 2

Martin Edwards – Original Sinners

As anyone who has read Martin Edwards’ blog (http://www.doyouwriteunderyourownname.blogspot.com/ ) will know he is extremely well-read in the highways and byways of mystery fiction. This talk was therefore filled with allusions to writers both well-known and obscure (to me anyway). The problem in relation to the latter was that I was unable to make out the proper spellings or names referred to and the following account is therefore heavily abbreviated. The theme of the talk also only became clear when Martin explained it at the end but, in my view, it makes more sense to introduce it first.

St Hildas 2009 – 3

Session 4

Mary Andrea Clarke – Headsman and Hangmen

This was a history of executioners through the ages, and included an examination of the effect of killing on the killers. Although this was an extensively researched and well put together talk, I have to admit that the subject itself is not one that interests me and therefore I did not make many notes.

St Hildas 2009 – 1

The annual St Hilda’s Mystery and Crime Weekend was held from 21st to 23rd August 2009 at St Hilda’s College, Oxford. As usual it was superbly organised and this year was graced by excellent weather. I have attempted to give a general description of the Weekend at http://mysterymile.wordpress.com/2009/07/02/st-hildas-2006/#more-22. This was my fourth St Hilda’s (after 2001, 6 and 7) and I definitely enjoyed it the most.

Pepper – The Last Days of Newgate

Andrew Pepper – The Last Days of Newgate (2006)

I don’t usually comment on books which fall into the DNF (Did Not Finish) category, but this particular mystery offers me a chance to make a more general observation on my reading habits and approach. I reviewed the third in the Pyke series, Kill-Devil and Water (2008), at the beginning of this year for rte (see http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/review.html?id=7911 ) and found many positive things to say about not least the fact that it had a real, and very good, mystery plot. My one problem I summed up as follows…

Mackenzie as Marple : Rye and Murder is Easy

Julia Mackenzie made her debut as the latest incarnation of Miss Marple, replacing Geraldine McEwan. The first episode was A Pocketful of Rye and it was pretty good.

Lippman – Another Thing to Fall

The final unused rte review in this batch – in this case it proved to be a duplicate.

Laura Lippman – Another Thing to Fall

Compton – Tell No Lies

Julie Compton – Tell No Lies (2008) (another rte one and again very understandably not used!)

Jack Hilliard is the bright young star of the St Louis public prosecutor’s office. He has a brilliant court-room manner, a developed conscience and a happy family life with his wife Claire and their two sons. When his boss Earl, the District Attorney, retires from the job, Jack is the obvious candidate to replace him. He puts all this in jeopardy as a result of his entanglement with lawyer Jenny Dodson. When he finally sleeps with her the results are catastrophic, as Jenny is accused of a murder and only Jack can save her by providing an alibi for the night in question; his entire world rapidly unravels.

Canobbio – The Natural Disorder of Things

Another one which slipped the rte net – for very understandable reasons. This is probably not the worst mystery I have ever read but I am pretty sure it is the one I have disliked most. Had I not been reviewing it I would probably not have lasted more than ten pages; as it was it took me ages because I simply could not manage more than a few pages at a time.

Millar – The Grounds

Again this was written for rte but not used on the sad grounds (sorry!) that the book was already out of print by the time I got round to reviewing it. While this is a completely necessary rule as far as rte is concerned (there is no point the site carrying reviews of unavailable books), it is a real pity that this book did not get a better chance – anyway it is worth looking for a second-hand or library copy.

Kellerman – The Brutal Art

Jesse Kellerman – The Brutal Art (2008)

Another review intended for rte which turned out to be a duplicate. The rte review (at http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/review.html?id=7558 ) is a great deal more positive! Interestingly however the reviewer also notes the publicity comparison with THE INTERPRETATION OF MURDER but says that he really disliked that book. Perhaps you can only like one or the other?