Veronica Stallwood

As I grow older, I find that an increasingly large proportion of my reading matter seems to be crime fiction, and I am always eagerly looking out for engaging new protagonists. Veronica Stallwood certainly seems to have delivered the goods in Kate Ivory (with a hint of metafiction, as the character is herself a novelist). The novels are set in Oxford, too, which is always a boon as far as I am concerned. That makes me all the more surprised that I hadn’t read these books, set and published show more in the 1990s, earlier.

I first encountered Kate Ivory in [Death and the Oxford Box], in which her participation in a scheme to help a friend recover some property from her estranged husband led to her involvement in the investigation of a brutal murder. Kate emerged from that with flying colours, and I was glad to take up with her again. In this book, she has been asked by her rather oleaginous former semi-boyfriend (the relationship is absolutely ripe for inclusion in what Facebook used to cover with, ‘It’s complicated’) to help investigate the apparent theft of valuable books from the libraries of various colleges and other august institutions around Oxford. As she sets about her explorations, she learns that an assistant employed at one of the libraries involved had been killed, with her unsolved murder deemed by one and all to have been the dreadful but random act of a lunatic. As Kate’s investigations into the book disappearances continue, she comes to suspect that the murder may be connected. This is a novel very much of its time, and the details that the writer and Kate provide about the databases being used now seem quaintly archaic. Fortunately, they do not intrude to any extent that detracts from the joy of the novel.

Stallwood writes with an enjoyably light touch, and as a character Kate is a very likeable (although a large proportion of the people whom she encounters throughout the book find it surprisingly easy to dislike her). For once in a novel set so determinedly in Oxford, academic life is largely excluded, and this is a welcome approach. From the very nature of her investigation, Kate cannot avoid some involvement with the gown, but she is very much on the side of the town.

To offer much more in the way of synopsis would be to risk strewing inadvertent spoilers, which I am reluctant to do. The plot is well devised, and advances through the medium of a journal written by the criminal. This is a familiar literary device, and can sometimes seem too contrived, but in this instance is given the twist of showing different literary styles, as its writer is attending a creative writing course, and adapts their style to reflect the steer of the latest tutorial. show less

I have always been very partial to stories set in Oxford, and Oxford-based historical novelist, Kate Ivory is an appealing protagonist. This book marks her third investigation. I think it would be difficult to dislike Kate – she is pragmatic, sensible and very direct and honest (alarmingly so on occasion). She also has an unfortunate knack of becoming embroiled in murder investigations.

On this occasion, although she hadn’t previously known the victim (Dr Olivia Blackett, an expert on show more nineteenth century English literature, and Charles Dickens in particular), beyond a brief and unproductive meeting shortly before the murder occurred, she had wanted to become better acquainted with her. Kate had been working on a fictional account of Charles Dickens’s complicated personal life, revolving around his relationships with Ellen Ternan and her sister Maria. Her interest is piqued when she learns of Dr Blackett’s discovery of a collection of letters from the sisters, and hopes to be able to peruse them with a view to bolstering the plot of her novel.

Meanwhile, a group of travellers has arrived in Oxford, including Angel, a young woman who has suffered dreadful loss, and whose memory of the recent past is unreliable. Angel also wishes to contact Dr Blackett, but won’t, or can’t, explain the reason to her fellow travellers, who have taken on her care as a communal responsibility. The paths of the individual travellers, including Angel, cross occasionally with Kate’s, including on the day on which Dr Blackett is killed. In classic whodunnit style, there is a big group of potential suspects, all with clear opportunity and different motives, including Kate and people close to her.

Veronica Stallwood delivers the story in clear prose that keeps the plot moving briskly. I think I was slightly less keen on this book than the two previous ones from the series that I read recently, but am still keen to follow Kate’s adventures into the next volume. show less

As a lifelong habitue of crime fiction I have generally found myself coming down more frequently on the gritty, ‘noir’ side of the genre rather than the so-called ‘cosy’ aspect. As with any such preference, there are of course many exceptions, and this book is certainly one of them. Kate Ivory, Veronica Stallwood’s charming protagonist, is a delightful character, and I look forward to further encounters as I progress through this series.

Indeed, while the basic scenario against show more which the crimes are perpetrated was not entirely plausible. I did find Kate herself a very believable character. An Oxford setting always helps, too, and in this case there is a light sprinkling of university life that accorded with my own memories.

The plot is fairly involved, and perhaps not readily susceptible to synopsis, so I won’t venture to say much more about it. The writing style, however, is as engaging as the character of Kate. I am just surprised that these novels are not more widely known. show less

My first Kate Ivory novel and it didn't leave me wanting to read more, despite the respectable reviews of her books on the cover of this one. I certainly think that there is no chance of Morse being knocked of his pedestal as the premier Oxford detective series, based on this sample. Kate Ivory, a less than successful writer is desperate to earn some money between books and steps into the shoes of an Oxford College's Development Officer, who recently died under suspicious circumstances, to show more manage a summer school. It seems that her presence is unwelcome and a number of people have something to hide and don't want an unwelcome light shone on their activities.

The book doesn't seem to take itself very seriously and the plot is pretty thin and doesn't provide much meat for keen crime readers. It may have some limited appeal for those familiar with Oxford and academia, who may recognize some of the stereotypes portrayed, but it left me expecting and wanting more. I also didn't like the style of interspersing the main story with a recap of events by the deceased, supposedly in heaven. show less