Furious Old Women: A Carolus Deene Mystery

by Leo Bruce

Book Overview

Mysterious doings in a churchyard. A catalogue of crime calls this probably Bruce's wittiest and best-plotted novel to date. A very ingenious idea...a fine surprise in the last moments. The humour and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0897330846
• ISBN13: 9780897330848
• Release Date: August 1983
• Publisher: Academy Chicago Publishers
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 4.1" x 7.0"

Customer Reviews

Little Known Gem

Not many people these days have heard of Leo Bruce which is a pity as he was a wonderfully witty writer who created very readable plots populated with real and human characters, "warts and all". The women of the title are two elderly spinsters, strong willed opposites who put all their energies into doing their bit for the local Church of England church. One wants it to be "high" and full of Catholic ritual while the other abhors anything she regards as popish nonsense and wants a "low", more Calvinist protestant church. Naturally they hate each other and, when the no nonsense "low" woman is found dead in a grave about to be used for a funeral, murder is naturally suspected and school master and amateur detective Carolous Deene turns up to try and decipher the mystery as his school holidays are just beginning. The locals are excellently written, from the vicar torn between the wishes of the Furious Old Women and trying to be all things to all people to Mugger, the womanising handyman and poacher and Flo, an easy going woman friendly to one and all. The plot thickens when the other Furious Old Woman is found dead from an overdose of sleeping pills and one of the sisters of the first attempts suicide. Deene adroitly works out who did what to whom despite the antagonism of the Scotland Yard detective assigned to the case but doesn't reveal his findings in traditional amateur detective style. He tells a small group including the headmaster of his school his thoughts on the case instead so the reader knows what happened even though Deene doesn't explain all to the various suspects nor the Police Officer. The imprint I have is an American one (Academy Chicago Publishers) and the binding not at all good. A cheap and cheerful copy but well worth looking after and gluing back together if the pages make a bid for freedom as it is a book worth re-reading just for the pleasure of meeting the characters once again and at least Academy Chicago Publishers reprinted the book or I would never have been able to find a copy.