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It's "great fun" when a baker's dozen of Golden Age authors collaborate on a whodunit—including Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and G. K. Chesterton (The Guardian).Originally published in 1931, The Floating Admiral is a classic literary collaboration by members of the Detection Club, in which each chapter is written by a different mystery author, with G. K. Chesterton adding a prologue after the novel was completed. Each writer was tasked with building on what the previous writer show more created, without ignoring or avoiding whatever plot points had come before. Although Anthony Berkeley wrote the definitive conclusion to the mystery in his final chapter, the writers all provided their own individual solutions, each in a sealed envelope, which appear in the appendix. In the words of Dorothy L. Sayers in her introduction, the spirit of the project was that of a "detection game," for the amusement of the authors—and their readers.
In the sleepy English seaside village of Whynmouth, an old sailor discovers a corpse floating serenely in a rowboat owned by the local vicar. The victim has been stabbed in the chest. It falls to Inspector Rudge to solve this most baffling mystery, in which not only the identity of the killer but the identity of the victim is called into question.
The Floating Admiral includes contributions by Canon Victor L. Whitechurch, G. D. H. and Margaret Cole, Henry Wade, Agatha Christie, John Rhode, Milward Kennedy, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ronald A. Knox, Freeman Wills Crofts, Edgar Jepson, Clemence Dane, and Anthony Berkeley.
"I was . . . hugely entertained by the virtuoso displays of mental gymnastics, which kept me guessing all the way." —The Guardian
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The Floating Admiral was a collaborative effort among the members of the Detection Club, which boasted such names as G. K. Chesterton, Dorothy Sayers, and Agatha Christie. I didn't know much about the Detection Club until I read Dorothy Sayers's foreword to this book, which says, "It [the Detection Club] is a private association of writers of detective fiction in Great Britain, existing chiefly for the purpose of eating dinners together at suitable intervals and of talking illimitable shop... If there is any serious aim behind the avowedly frivolous organization of the Detection Club, it is to keep the detective story up to the highest standard that its nature permits, and to free it from the bad legacy of sensationalism, clap-trap and show more jargon with which it was unhappily burdened in the past." It sounds a little like a detective/mystery fiction offshoot of the Inklings to me.
It's clear the authors had good fun writing this mystery. G. K. Chesterton kicked it off with a prologue, and then the manuscript was passed from writer to writer, each adding a chapter in turn. But none of the contributors knew the others' proposed solutions, and at the end each had to provide a consistent solution based on all the clues up to the point of their chapter. It was a mystery novel in which the authors themselves were blindfolded, and I really enjoyed the experience of reading along with them and trying to puzzle it all out. As I read, I could almost sense the slight feeling of competition among the authors. Perhaps competition is not the word I want; it was more that everyone was trying to be at the top of his or her game with this one. It would be so minutely scrutinized and peer-reviewed.
The set-up is this: an old fisherman finds Admiral Penistone floating downstream in a boat, murdered by a wound to the heart. Inspector Rudge is set on the case, and has to hunt down all the people who knew the grumpy old martinet of an admiral. Everyone who knows him seems to scatter when they receive news of his death, and we are led on a merry chase through the technicalities of the river's tides, reticent witnesses, midnight excursions, train schedules, hurried nuptials, ancient scandals, and the provisions of the will. Finally in the last few pages we reach a complete upset of all previous theories, such as any good mystery novel must boast as a matter of course.
Though it seemed to drag a bit in the middle (I suppose that is what comes of everyone having to have a turn writing a chapter), this actually is a quite respectable mystery. Naturally the quality of the writing varied a bit. There was one author in particular whose style I didn't care for, a Freeman Wills Croft. His contributions to the plot were all right, but his style was distinctly clunky.
It was great fun reading everyone's proposed solutions at the end. Agatha Christie's was so laughably ridiculous (and I'm usually a great fan of her stories). Several of the writers admitted they couldn't explain certain facets of the case, and their bewilderment should be a great comfort to any reader who has ever felt quite at sea amidst a perplexing set of clues. It was really interesting to see the different characters brought forward as the murderer in each author's solution. Some of them were the same, but others had viewed the characters in almost opposite ways, and their solutions reflected those differences.
I'd recommend this mystery to anyone who enjoys detective fiction. Because of the nature of the novel's creation, the reader participates in a rather different way than usual. Every time someone came up with a startling new way to view the case, I thought of the person next in line to write a chapter with a feeling of pity, and wondered what the person who wrote the chapter before would think of what the current author had done with his work. I wouldn't like to experience this disjointed game-like feel with every mystery I read, but it was an enjoyable little experiment. If I weren't so shy of their brilliance, I should very much have liked to have attended one of the Detection Club's suitably intervalled dinners. show less
It's clear the authors had good fun writing this mystery. G. K. Chesterton kicked it off with a prologue, and then the manuscript was passed from writer to writer, each adding a chapter in turn. But none of the contributors knew the others' proposed solutions, and at the end each had to provide a consistent solution based on all the clues up to the point of their chapter. It was a mystery novel in which the authors themselves were blindfolded, and I really enjoyed the experience of reading along with them and trying to puzzle it all out. As I read, I could almost sense the slight feeling of competition among the authors. Perhaps competition is not the word I want; it was more that everyone was trying to be at the top of his or her game with this one. It would be so minutely scrutinized and peer-reviewed.
The set-up is this: an old fisherman finds Admiral Penistone floating downstream in a boat, murdered by a wound to the heart. Inspector Rudge is set on the case, and has to hunt down all the people who knew the grumpy old martinet of an admiral. Everyone who knows him seems to scatter when they receive news of his death, and we are led on a merry chase through the technicalities of the river's tides, reticent witnesses, midnight excursions, train schedules, hurried nuptials, ancient scandals, and the provisions of the will. Finally in the last few pages we reach a complete upset of all previous theories, such as any good mystery novel must boast as a matter of course.
Though it seemed to drag a bit in the middle (I suppose that is what comes of everyone having to have a turn writing a chapter), this actually is a quite respectable mystery. Naturally the quality of the writing varied a bit. There was one author in particular whose style I didn't care for, a Freeman Wills Croft. His contributions to the plot were all right, but his style was distinctly clunky.
It was great fun reading everyone's proposed solutions at the end. Agatha Christie's was so laughably ridiculous (and I'm usually a great fan of her stories). Several of the writers admitted they couldn't explain certain facets of the case, and their bewilderment should be a great comfort to any reader who has ever felt quite at sea amidst a perplexing set of clues. It was really interesting to see the different characters brought forward as the murderer in each author's solution. Some of them were the same, but others had viewed the characters in almost opposite ways, and their solutions reflected those differences.
I'd recommend this mystery to anyone who enjoys detective fiction. Because of the nature of the novel's creation, the reader participates in a rather different way than usual. Every time someone came up with a startling new way to view the case, I thought of the person next in line to write a chapter with a feeling of pity, and wondered what the person who wrote the chapter before would think of what the current author had done with his work. I wouldn't like to experience this disjointed game-like feel with every mystery I read, but it was an enjoyable little experiment. If I weren't so shy of their brilliance, I should very much have liked to have attended one of the Detection Club's suitably intervalled dinners. show less
In and of itself, hardly a masterpiece of the detective genre - the narration is rather directionless, and the plot is absurdly convoluted. But that's hardly surprising, and really it's remarkable how well it does hang together given the way it was written. The quality of writing is pretty variable, and I can certainly see why it's Christie and Sayers who have endured the best. I also found Sayers' proposed solution the most satisfactory - though Christie's suggestion is rather brilliant in its own way!
An interesting experiment in group writing that rather fails as a detective story. Members of The Detection Club got together in 1931 on a cooperative project to raise fund for the organization. Each athor writes a chapter of a murder mystery, and each one must be consistent with any clues or plot points developed in the previous chapter.
This is a difficult, I might say impossible feat to pull off. That is, the authors liv up to the agreement, but since each in puts their spin on the story, the reader is presented with a messy plot and characters whose motives and actions are wildly incoherent.
All that said, it’s a bit entertaining to see the different writing styles juxtaposed. I felt a distinct sense of relief when reading the show more chapters by Christie and Sayers: here, I thought, are polished, witty professionals at work. The final chapter, “Cleaning Up the Mess,” shows Anthony Berkeley’s amazing way with a plot. Oh, and the chapter by John Rhode was the best of the rest.
I’m not sorry I read it, but it’s only for fanatics of the Golden Age of detection. show less
This is a difficult, I might say impossible feat to pull off. That is, the authors liv up to the agreement, but since each in puts their spin on the story, the reader is presented with a messy plot and characters whose motives and actions are wildly incoherent.
All that said, it’s a bit entertaining to see the different writing styles juxtaposed. I felt a distinct sense of relief when reading the show more chapters by Christie and Sayers: here, I thought, are polished, witty professionals at work. The final chapter, “Cleaning Up the Mess,” shows Anthony Berkeley’s amazing way with a plot. Oh, and the chapter by John Rhode was the best of the rest.
I’m not sorry I read it, but it’s only for fanatics of the Golden Age of detection. show less
The Detection Club is a celebrated group of British mystery writers, formed in 1930 during the so-called ‘Golden Age’. In 1931, 14 members of the club – including Christie, G.K. Chesterton, Canon Victor Whitechurch and Dorothy L. Sayers – wrote this collaborative experiment. Each of the fourteen chapters was written by one of them, after which a suggested solution was sealed in an envelope, and the book was passed on to the next author for the next chapter. It’s far from perfect, but "The Floating Admiral" is a fascinating read: these 14 authors were experts in their field, and – although the sealed solutions show that many had picked up on at least the general direction of the clues – it’s marvelous to see how these show more professionals manage to pick up on the existing elements and weave them into a constantly-changing narrative. "The Floating Admiral" is tough to find these days, but if you can, grab it. (Personally, I recommend dating someone whose father collects such books; it’s a no-fail option.) show less
What an interesting and fun experiment this must have been for the members of the Detection Club to write a mystery - in full compliance with club rules - where one author built on the previous chapters but without having a collective idea about what the plot should be.
As much as I loved seeing each author bringing their individual style to the project, the overall product left me stranded after a few chapters - by the time Ronald Knox summarised all of the clues the preceding chapters had presented to the reader I was lost. After Knox had finished with his list, I had largely lost interest.
However, the solutions that the authors had included in the appendix (not the actual solution to the mystery but the individual solutions that show more each of the authors predicted) made up for the struggle to finish the book.
And I have to say, Dame Agatha's chapter and solution stole the show for me. She clearly had fun writing her parts for this project and clearly did not take herself seriously in this at all. It was so much fun to watch this. show less
As much as I loved seeing each author bringing their individual style to the project, the overall product left me stranded after a few chapters - by the time Ronald Knox summarised all of the clues the preceding chapters had presented to the reader I was lost. After Knox had finished with his list, I had largely lost interest.
However, the solutions that the authors had included in the appendix (not the actual solution to the mystery but the individual solutions that show more each of the authors predicted) made up for the struggle to finish the book.
And I have to say, Dame Agatha's chapter and solution stole the show for me. She clearly had fun writing her parts for this project and clearly did not take herself seriously in this at all. It was so much fun to watch this. show less
I love Dorothy Sayers. I’m fond of G.K. Chesterton and Agatha Christie. This game (they were wise not to call it a story), unfortunately, mixed up their talents (and those of several authors I’m less familiar with) in a way that did justice to none of them.
The puzzle they set for each other hared off in so many directions, it was impossible for even the great fiction writers represented here to stick to a recognizable narrative arc. Neither did the characters always seem to be the same people from segment to segment.
On the other hand, it was interesting to see what these various authors made of each others’ puzzles, and I was impressed enough with the ending Anthony Berkeley came up with that I’m going to see if I can hunt down show more more of his work. For me, finding a new author I like makes it worth the read. show less
The puzzle they set for each other hared off in so many directions, it was impossible for even the great fiction writers represented here to stick to a recognizable narrative arc. Neither did the characters always seem to be the same people from segment to segment.
On the other hand, it was interesting to see what these various authors made of each others’ puzzles, and I was impressed enough with the ending Anthony Berkeley came up with that I’m going to see if I can hunt down show more more of his work. For me, finding a new author I like makes it worth the read. show less
This novel tends to prove that having a lot of famous authors doesn't necessarily make for a better novel.
As the novel develops, each author adds various plot elements such as "discoveries", new characters, and red herrings, so that by the last chapter the stage is very cluttered indeed. It was Anthony Berkeley's job to pull it all together at the end and to "make sense of the mess". The reader isn't really given a lot of help in deciding which things to eliminate from consideration and by the end we have two bodies, and a police Inspector who appears to be totally confused. The result is that the final chapter is more like a novella, very long, and final plot is very complicated.
It does help that the narrator, David Timson, is so good show more and provides a sense of continuity with his voice, as well as distinguishing cleverly between characters. I'd like to be able to say that I recognised the various styles of the authors, but I'm not sure that I did. You are told at the beginning of each chapter who has been responsible for this chapter.
I have talked to fellow readers about this concept, particularly in relation to teams of writers responsible for novels. Just recently we came across an Australian novel written by 5 authors, and two writers in a team like Nicci French, Michael Stanley, and Charles Todd are quite common. show less
As the novel develops, each author adds various plot elements such as "discoveries", new characters, and red herrings, so that by the last chapter the stage is very cluttered indeed. It was Anthony Berkeley's job to pull it all together at the end and to "make sense of the mess". The reader isn't really given a lot of help in deciding which things to eliminate from consideration and by the end we have two bodies, and a police Inspector who appears to be totally confused. The result is that the final chapter is more like a novella, very long, and final plot is very complicated.
It does help that the narrator, David Timson, is so good show more and provides a sense of continuity with his voice, as well as distinguishing cleverly between characters. I'd like to be able to say that I recognised the various styles of the authors, but I'm not sure that I did. You are told at the beginning of each chapter who has been responsible for this chapter.
I have talked to fellow readers about this concept, particularly in relation to teams of writers responsible for novels. Just recently we came across an Australian novel written by 5 authors, and two writers in a team like Nicci French, Michael Stanley, and Charles Todd are quite common. show less
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- Canonical title
- The Floating Admiral
- Original title
- The Floating Admiral
- Alternate titles
- Introduction - Dorothy L. Sayers; Prologue - G.K. Chesterton; Chapter 1 - Canon Victor Whitechurch; Chapter 2 - G. D. H. Cole and Margaret Cole; Chapter 3 - Henry Wade; Chapter 4 - Agatha Christie (show all 15); Chapter 5 - John Rhode; Chapter 6 - Milward Kennedy; Chapter 7 - Dorothy L. Sayers; Chapter 8 - Ronald Knox; Chapter 9 - Freeman Wills Crofts; Chapter 10 - Edgar Jepson; Chapter 11 - Clemence Dane; Chapter 12 - Anthony Berkeley; Appendices - Solutions, Notes on Mooring of Boat, Counsel's Opinion on Fitzgerald's Will
- Original publication date
- 1931-12
- People/Characters
- Inspector Rudge; Admiral Penistone; Elma Fitzgerald; Reverend Mount; Neddy Ware; Wilfred Denny, Sir Wilfrid
- Important places
- Lingham, England, UK
- First words
- (Introduction by Dorothy L. Sayers)
When members of the official police force are invited to express an opinion about the great detectives of fiction, they usually say with a kindly smile: "Well, of course, it's... (show all) not the same for them as it is for us.
(Prologue by G. K. Chesterton)
Three glimpses through the rolling smoke of opium, three stories that still hover about a squalid opium joint in Hong Kong, might very well at this distance of time be dismissed as... (show all) pipe dreams.
Everyone in Lingham knew old Neddy Ware, though he was not a native of the village, having only resided there for the last ten years; which, in the eyes of the older inhabitants who had spent the whole of their lives in that ... (show all)quiet spot, constituted him still a "stranger." - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"And he never signed his confession" said the Superintendent disgustedly.
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