John Rowland (1) (1907–1984)

Three cheers for British Library Publishing and Poisoned Pen Press! Thanks to them 21st century readers are rediscovering wonderful mystery writers from the genre’s Golden Age: J. Jefferson Farjeon, John Bude, and Christopher St. John Sprigg. How did these excellent mystery writers ever lapse into obscurity?

Poisoned Pen Press’ latest reprint is Murder in the Museum, a tale in which three obscure academicians specializing in lesser Elizabethan writers end up dead. Now, the author, John show more Rowland, isn’t of the same caliber as Farjeon, Bude and Sprigg — and Scotland Yard Inspector Henry Shelley can’t hold a candle to Bude’s Inspector William Meredith (featured in The Lake District Murder, The Sussex Downs Murder, and Death on the Riviera); however, Murder in the Museum introduces the most charming police sidekick ever, the milquetoast (if insightful) Henry Fairhurst. Ridiculous — with his pince-nez, meek ways, and his domineering spinster sister — Fairhurst finds his Walter Mitty-like dreams of helping the police — and being valued by them — suddenly come true. It’s adorable!

Murder in the Museum takes a bit to get going, and the novel would have benefited from serious trimming in its first third. And its two “professionals” — Inspector Shelley and the dimwitted Sergeant Cunningham — remain pretty two-dimensional. However, I loved meek, middle-aged Henry Fairhurst; I just wish he could have a series to himself! Even with its faults, Murder in the Museum provides readers with a satisfying read, as long as you set your expectations accordingly.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I received this book free from NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and British Library Publishing in return for an honest review. show less

DNF. I am throwing in the towel @ 30% because my TBR is way too big to waste time on books I simply cannot enjoy.

What is even more aggravating than actually having bought this one (rather than borrowed from the library) is that there were elements that should have made this book great:

1. The setting: The books starts in the Reading Room at the British Museum. It is one of my favourite places. It has lots of atmosphere. The first murder takes place there. In public, but without any one show more noticing.

This should have made for a great locked room type mystery.

Instead, there is hardly any scene setting, and the little that is there does not describe anything about the museum or the reading room. Why set it in the Museum then? Why not an indistinguishable coffee house? Or a park?

Also, there is no atmosphere. None! Most of the book seems written in pretty flat dialogue. We don't even get to know any of the characters other than by name and occupation.

2. There are lot of tips of the hat to Sherlock Holmes in this book: A character caller Mr. Henry Baker like in ACD's Blue Carbuncle, the British Museum (which is also mentioned in Blue Carbuncle), and later on (I skip read to the end) the action takes us to Dartmoor where a prisoner escaped (Hound of the Baskervilles much?). Could this be more Sherlockian?

Yes. Yes, it could! Why did the author stop at nicking ACD's characters and settings? Why could he not have copied some of ACD's style, too? It would have infinitely improved this book.

I completely gave up on the book when I got to the following:

In a few minutes he was speaking to the inspector in charge of the City police station at Oxford, and he explained his need for information, having first given the secret police sign which indicates that a fellow limb of the law is making the enquiry.

A secret police sign?!?!? WHY??? They're not even under cover!

This makes no sense.

There was more that made no sense - like the first officer on the scene declaring the cause of death to be poisoning by cyanide. Surely, they must have had some protocol even in 1938 when this was written.

Anyway. Good riddance. show less

This review contains spoilers.

As you might expect based on the title of this book, it begins with an untimely death in the British Museum’s Reading Room. Julius Arnell, a specialist in Elizabethan drama, is discovered to have been poisoned. A fellow reader who happens to have been there when Arnell died attempts to solve the crime himself, much to the annoyance, but also amusement, of Inspector Shelley.

This was a light mystery that did what I expected of it. I am always glad when crime show more novels get straight to the point and put the murder in at the very beginning. This book does this admirably by titling the first chapter “Death!” with an exclamation mark for maximum zest. Shelley wasn’t a great protagonist for me; he was patronizing and a bit of a cipher, snarking at people and I guess being OK at his job. The amateur sleuth, Henry Fairhurst, was silly, but I totally thought at one point that he would be the murderer because of how he was trying to insinuate himself into the investigation.

Also, I totally pictured Moses Moss as Richard Ayoade, because he was MAURICE Moss in The I.T. Crowd.

Do note that this story is set in 1938 and therefore there is some casual antisemitism. show less

The victim of the Murder in the Museum is a Shakespeare scholar, who held a theory that "Shakespeare’s plays were written by two people together— one was Shakespeare himself and the other Kit Marlowe". So obviously I was pleased when he was killed. At least he wasn't an Oxfordian; I would have had to stop reading, because the death wasn't brutal enough.

This is a reissue of a Golden Age mystery which involves poison, kidnapping, and a cross-country high-for-its-time-speed pursuit; it show more features some of the good aspects of the subgenre – a clever detective, some nice writing; and also several of the not-so-good ones – like the mores and mindset of the time, which means that whenever someone who is Jewish comes on the scene or is spoken about, it's jarring. (Be warned.)

I'm not sure if I'll hunt out more John Rowland novels – this one didn't win me over completely – but I'm certainly not sorry I read it. There's much worse out there. Much.

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review. show less