Bernard Capes (1854–1918)

Mr. Vivian Bickerdike and the enigmatic Baron le Sage are houseguests at the Kennett family estate, Wildshott, in Hampshire. The Baron is there to play chess with the family patriarch Sir Calvin Kennett. Vivian is there at the urgent behest of his friend, young Hugo Kennett. Vivian suspects something is horribly wrong in the household, but Hugo steadfastly refuses to tell Vivian what is going on.

When Annie—the Kennett’s beautiful maid—is found shot to death, Vivian’s suspicion is confirmed. Several inhabitants of Wildshott are subsequently arrested for the crime, but neither Vivian nor the Baron is satisfied the real culprit has been apprehended. Vivian watches with a critical eye as the Baron’s mysterious activities lead to the true solution of the crime.

Don’t expect to ‘play along’ as this mystery unfolds; the reader is not given the information needed to solve the case. Baron le Sage investigates the case on his own and never reveals anything until the denouement. This doesn’t ruin the story by any means, but the Baron’s unexplained omniscience and tight-lipped pomposity do grow tedious after a while.

The author alternates between Vivian’s narration and an omniscient narrator; this fluctuation severely disrupts the flow of the storyline. The book definitely would have benefited from one narrator rather than the garbled combination.

Overall, however, this is an interesting and well-written story. I would recommend it to educated fans of Golden Age mysteries and classical literature.… (more)

Surprisingly good stories by the virtually unknown Capes. I assumed these would tend towards [a:M.R. James|2995925|M.R. James|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1254798756p2/2995925.jpg] but these actually reminded me more of [a:L.P. Hartley|51606|L.P. Hartley|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1193521188p2/51606.jpg]. Capes doesn't use the same formula twice so the stories throughout the book remain fresh to the reader. There are a few of the usual haunts but there are a lot of clever variations and even some truly original seeming tales. Capes also isn't afraid to even lead his good characters to a bad ending usually with a bit of irony thrown in.

[a:Hugh Lamb|25353|Hugh Lamb|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], the editor, says the reason there really are a lot of gems out there by the likes of the virtually unknown is that anthologists are just lazy. He had to comb through lots of original sources and rare books by Capes to get the cream that is here (added to the original 1989 collection), but he says it is no excuse as plenty of other obscure writers have lots of first rate forgotten stories. Lamb virtually made a career out of composing this type of "lost" collection or anthology.… (more)