One of my favorite Golden Age authors really isn't that well known for her mysteries. Georgette Heyer (pronounced "hair") has a solid and well-deserved reputation as an author of historical romance novels. But she also wrote a dozen or so mysteries that are very enjoyable Golden Age mysteries, including They Found Him Dead, originally published in 1937. I reviewed it several years ago for the Classic Mysteries podcast. Here's a transcript of that audio review, lightly edited as usual.
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“Found dead.”
That was pretty much the official verdict in the case of the death of Silas Kane. He had celebrated his sixtieth birthday at his English country home with his relatives. But, late at night, in the mist and fog, he had gone out for a walk and – apparently – had gotten disoriented on a cliff path, slipped and fell to his death. There was no question of foul play, even though there was plenty of sniping and bickering among those relatives. No, it was clearly death by misadventure. Or at least that was the verdict until Silas’s heir also died – by a gunshot wound. Perhaps it was time for a closer look…
It happens in They Found Him Dead, a Golden Age English country house mystery written in 1937 by Georgette Heyer.
Georgette Heyer wrote more than fifty books in the course of her career. Most are romance novels, some with historical backgrounds. But among her books, she also wrote a dozen classic mysteries that are as thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining as you could wish for in an English country home mystery. You know the type: they are set in and around the country estate of some local landowner, usually the patriarch of a mostly dysfunctional family. There is sure to be a murder. There may be an amateur detective or – more likely, with Heyer – a clever professional. There may or may not be some romance. The better ones will also have a touch of humor. And the best of them will cleverly misdirect the reader into jumping to all the wrong conclusions.
Georgette Heyer excelled in all these areas. Having read several of her books, I must say that They Found Him Dead is one of the best that I have read by her.
The book begins with that birthday celebration for Silas Kane at his country estate. His relatives are gathered around. There are plenty of family disagreements – mostly over matters of business – but certainly nothing that would suggest dark deeds lurking around the fringes of the estate.
But then Silas goes out after the party for a walk along the cliff – and never returns. There was a good deal of fog, after all, and death by misadventure seems a perfectly reasonable verdict.
But then Silas’s heir – who has also been involved in those disagreeable business discussions – is shot to death. And although plenty of people heard the shot, nobody appears to have seen anything – or anyone – useful in the area.
And then a third man – Jim Kane – who turns out to be the heir of the heir, so to speak – finds himself on the receiving end of a number of murderous attacks. It begins to seem that his death may be just a matter of time.
Into the midst of all this, Georgette Heyer brings her detectives, Superintendent Hannasyde and his assistant, Sergeant Hemingway. As they sift through the evidence, it tends to point to one particular member of the family. But Hannasyde isn’t satisfied…and, the more he looks into the mystery, the more he is puzzled by this jigsaw puzzle of a case in which no two pieces really seem to fit together.
Through all this, Heyer manages to maintain our interest in the members of Kane’s family and his business partners. She comes up with quite an assortment of memorable characters. Dorothy L. Sayers is quoted as saying of Georgette Heyer, “her characters and dialogue are an abiding delight to me…I have seldom met people to whom I have taken so violent a fancy from the word ‘Go’.” I agree. Heyer writes about her characters with wit, humor and charm, and she has put them into a fine mystery with more than a few surprises in store for her readers. I would recommend They Found Him Dead very highly.
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You can listen to the original recorded audio review by clicking here.
Next: A Case of Spirits, by Peter Lovesey.
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