The Port of London Murders

by Josephine Bell (read by john Telfer) c. 1938

Agatha Christie Centenary Read November side read

 

 

 

Length: 7 hrs and 49 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 05-06-21

Language: English

Publisher: Soundings

ASIN:  B0946ZXRRW

Publisher's Summary

When the San Angelo drifts into port  in the Thames Estuary, telephones begin to ring across the capital and  an intricate series of events is set in motion. Beset by dreadful storms  in the Bay of Biscay, the ship, along with the 'mixed cargo' it  carries, is late. Unaware of the machinations of avaricious importers,  wayward captains and unscrupulous traders, Harry Reed and June Harvey  are thrust together by a riverside accident, before being swept into the  current of a dark plot developing on the dockside. 

A moody  classic set around London's historic docks published in 1938, Josephine  Bell's unique and atmospheric writing shines in a mystery weaving  together blackmail, bootleg lingerie and, of course, murder.

Give me more Josephine Bell

Did she write anything else? I don't know, let alone if it is available on audio. I very much enjoyed this one, mostly, I think because of its setting on the docks of London and the complete lack of lords, ladies and the idle rich.

Not quite 4 stars.

 

Over My Dead Body

 

By Rex Stout (read by Michael Prichard)

Nero Wolfe, Book 7

An Agatha Christie Centenary Celebration side-read runner up

 

Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe has to be one the most obnoxious private investigators to grace the pages of a detective novel. He is a cold, rude, ill-mannered, misogynist, agoraphobia-suffering effete snob who you just want to ask "Who died and made you King?" Good thing the story is told from point of his  long suffering assistant/leg-man Archie Godwin -- and Goodwin is no peach either -- because, from what I have seen of the character, I have little interest in getting inside Wolfe's head.

The plot was okay; enough to keep me reading to find out whodunit but not enough to make me want to spend any more time with the lead characters.  Still, it really feels like Nero Wolfe was written for the Walter Mittys of the world who want to know what it feels like to be a macho-man (this isn't it) and for the macho-men who just want to see their chauvinism confirmed.  Sorry, not my demographic. It might have been tolerable if I had gotten any inkling that the author was poking fun at his characters, but I found the book devoid of  any humor to lighten the load. The only redeeming moment in the book is when Wolfe is bested by a woman.

So what am I missing, friends? Stout was trade-award winning writer. He was a prolific author whose books sold. Am I falling into the trap of judging mores through a modern day prism? Should I just be ignoring the character and enjoying the plot? No, there is more going with Wolfe than just his dated mores; he is just plain rude, self-centered and entirely lacking empathy with people. I can't even laugh at him.

While I am at it, I should apologize to my Agatha Christie group for having voted for this book as a possible side read; at least it didn't win. The only reason it got my vote was because I already owned it. If I had but remembered what a yutz Wolfe is,...but alas I have such short, short memory for what I read.

Therefore, 2.75 stars for the reading experience.

The Third Man

 

By Graham Greene (read by Martin Jarvis)

February "Agatha Christie Centenary Celebration" side read

 

This was a re-read for me, maybe my third or fourth time. I just learned that not only was it a novella written as part of the script development process for the film but it was never meant to be publish. And, ding! the light goes on.  No wonder I have had so much trouble with the book; it is not a finished product.  I like the story; it is very sinister and mysterious yet not all that complicated--just right for a feature film.  Still, I wish that he had gotten around to a "for publication" version. Maybe it would have taken care of the problems that I have with the two narrative voices that Greene uses to tell the story;  I can never easily pick up on the switch of voice. 

All in all, I'm sorry that he decided not to publish because I would love to read his 'polished for publication' version of this story.

Three and a half stars for the rough draft. 

 

N.B.this edition is no longer available on AudibleUS.