Gaudy Night: Mystery and suspense....to a degree.
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I stupidly read a review of this when I was half-way through it, but it is a tribute to the style and depth of the writing that I have continued to the end, fully aware of the conclusion, my enjoyment marred not one bit.
It is a mystery novel in which no-one dies, or at least in which death remains firmly in the background - at first a little frustrating for the modern sensation-battered reader, but in the end much more rewarding, as the focus moves to the characters, making the experience that much richer. In the end, this is not about body-count, but don't let that put you off!
I haven't read all the previous books in the series, but fully intend now to put that right. I know enough from the odd episodes of the serializations I have seen to understand that Wimsey has saved Vane from the gallows and has had his offers of matrimony repeatedly thrown back at him.
This book provides the resolution to this scenario, and along with it some evidence of the man behind the mask - his weaknesses and his strengths given equal weight. And this in spite of the fact that he doesn't really come on the scene until quite late in the book, as it is Harriet Vane, herself a complex, well conceived character, who undertakes to solve the mysterious goings-on at her old college.
We get the best of both worlds here, for although the book allows us to retreat into a make-believe, slightly cosy version of yesteryear, it also gives some sense of where women's issues stood at that time, and opens up a debate on the pros and cons of marriage, as compared to the life of the mind which so many of the female characters in the college hierarchy have retreated into.
Perhaps it is not stretching things too far to put this in the same bed as Morse - not simply because it happens to be set in Oxford, but because it places so much weight on the internal struggles of the protagonists. This has the added benefit for the reader that one can enjoy it as much, if not more, the next time round, even though you know whodunit!
I hope this review is not too redundant given the existing entries, but I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and wanted to add the thoughts provoked by it. But if it's bodies you're after, I hear there's a new Rambo film out!
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As much a fascinating character study as it is a twisting mystery
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Set five years after the events of Strong Poison, the fascinating thing about this book is that whilst there is a strong mystery element to it, it's essentially a character study of Harriet Vane who is struggling to come to terms with her friendship with Peter Wimsey and his continued proposals of marriage. In fact, for a book labelled on the front as "A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery", he doesn't appear in person until three-fifths of the way through - until then we have Harriet's thoughts about him, a couple of letters and the appearance of Wimsey's nephew, Lord Saint-George (a kind of 'Mini-PeterWimsey') who effectively subs for his uncle.
You may think that a book that's essentially there to be a 'will she-won't she' would be boring and self-indulgent wankery on the part of the author, but you would be completely wrong because Sayers mixes Harriet's dilemma in with the plot and various philosophical and social theories about the role of the genders, which far from being a dry academic exercise, really brings out Harriet's confusion and intelligence. In fact, the denouement serves as a means for both characters to step back and evaluate what's been happening between them over the previous years and is a catalyst for the happy ending that fans were undoubtedly longing for.
Mixed in with this is a strong contemporary feel to the writing - Sayers deliberately brings in the politics of the time and we see in the background Wimsey's involvement in international politics on behalf of the Foreign Office, as well as some side discussion as to events in Germany (from one Don's protest against the Kinder, Kirche, Kuche regime in Nazi Germany to a very uncomfortable statement from the Porter that "what we need is an 'Itler").
Sayers references the previous adventures of Wimsey and Vane throughout the text, but you don't need to have read them to understand the plot or the nature of their relationship.
My only criticism of the book is that the publishers should really be offering some kind of footnote or endnote translating the Latin/Ancient Greek/Hebrew sections for those of us unable to understand them.
I would also take issue with the publishers New English Library, who are getting money for old rope by reprinting the "new introduction by Elizabeth George" in every addition, along with a postscript on Wimsey, written by Sayers in the character of his Uncle Paul. Personally, I find it cheap and insulting and given the back quotes from a wide variety of well-known mystery writers, it should not have been difficult to find different people to give different introductions to each book. Bad show, New English Library. Bad show indeed.
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CD - Good BBC production - Harriet Vane is the Star
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CD - Good BBC production - Harriet Vane is the star in this in a womens college at Oxford, so it seems to be more a womens story but I enjoyed it all the same. It is not in my view as good as "Murder Must Advertise" which is the BBC's best Sayers production. Also Ian Carmichael sounds slightly too old here and perhaps he was! The recording is tight and vibrant however. Only slight downside is that Harriet Vane sounds a little like Joanna Lumley but isn't!
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Gaudy Night
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I only started reading the Dorothy L Sayers books this summer (after years of my mother telling me how amazing they were) because of the repeats of the Harriet Vane series on tv. I have to say I'm totally hooked. This is my favourite so far - I've read the first two of the Harriet Vane Series and Clouded Witness. I like the way she develops the characters and that each book is different. I'd definately agree with reviews I have heard about Dorothy Sayers' books not only being detective stories, but also novels in there own right!
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Gaudy Night
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It would be nice if anyone has read books on CD format to
review as I can't really take too much notice of reviews on
paper. I probably miss out on a lot of good books this way,
what can I do,the CD format lasts longer than a paperback and can be easly stored in my CD case that holds 208CDs.
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