The Affair of the Mutilated Mink (1981)

by James Anderson

Series: The Alderley Affairs (2)

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The Earl of Burford throws another party in his stately home. Guests include a fading Hollywood movie star, his producer, a tempestuous Italian actress, a bombastic writer, a temperamental painter and an Olympic athlete. A murder takes place in the night, and once again Inspector Wilkins is called to investigate.… (more)

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This sequel to The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy takes place just six months later, with another country house party turned murderous at the Earl of Burford's estate—only this time a number of the guests are movie stars, while the earl's daughter is trying to decide between two prospective fiancés. The humour is a little bit less successful this time around though there are still some nice digs at the conventions of the genre. (

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siriaeve | May 21, 2018 |

I loved The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy, the first in this series, and went to some trouble to get this second volume, but was disappointed in it --perhaps the American movie atmosphere does not fit the British manor house setting --two sets of stereotypes do not blend well. There are 2 other issues 1) the humor is more heavy handed, notably when Lady Gerry, the daughter of the house, pretends to be a murderous schizophrenic, and 2) the story comes close to being a Hilary Waugh ( term I use due to the plot's overuse by that author) --a story in which one character is found in obviously incriminating circumstances, is cleared by the detective, and then found to the criminal after all -- in this case there is a subtle distinction because the "clearing" is not done by the real detective (Inspector Wilkins of the local Westshire police) but by supposedly brilliant Scotland Yard man St. John Allgood, who takes over and mishandles the investigation (until Wilkins solves the case at the end). Allgood is a blatant takeoff on Roderick Alleyn and John Appleby (and his manservant is based on Albert Campion's man). Incompetent Scotland Yard men are a tradition as old as Lestrade, but even so this is playing it close to the line, as Wilkins seems to accept the clearing at time.) (

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antiquary | Aug 11, 2014 |

The Earl of Burford invites a Hollywood producer, an actor, and a scriptwriter to his country estate for the weekend, hoping that they'll decide to film their next swashbucker there. His daughter, Lady Geraldine, invites two prospective fiances down for the weekend in order to compare them before making a decision. Meanwhile, the Countess invites her distant cousin whom she has not seen for twenty-five years and her husband over. Along with a couple of uninvited guests, the house party assembles at Alderly for a weekend of socializing, drinking, and riding around the estate. But in the middle of the night, there is a gunshot, and one of the guests is found dead in her room with another guest standing over her holding the gun.
This is a fun and well-written mystery. There are also several hilarious scenes where Lady Gerry pretends to be a homicidal schizophrenic. (

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soraki | Nov 24, 2010 |

Sounds just like my sort of book (a who-done-it) set in the 30's with all the glamour of that age but I'm afraid it failed to grip or excite. All the promise is there but it did not fulfill. (

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Summermoonstone | Jul 18, 2010 |

Second in Anderson's series of affectionate parodies of the classic 1930s country house murder mystery. I thought this one was better constructed than the first, with enough there to make it possible to deduce who the killer was if you were paying attention. I did work out who the killer probably was fairly early on, but not his motive, which is very cleverly hidden. I missed some of the clues and was distracted by some of the red herrings, so wasn't certain until close to the end.

The Earl of Burford has discovered the joys of the talkies, and is having a wonderful time being a starstruck fan. So wonderful that he can't believe his luck when a Hollywood film producer wants to hire Alderley as a setting for his latest film, starring the Earl's favourite actor. Naturally, the producer wishes to assess the building and grounds for practicality first, and to encourage the Earl to agree asks if he can bring his star along as well. Thus starts a weekend house party which snowballs, continually acquiring invited and uninvited guests until the house is full of people -- many of whom are not quite what they seem on the surface. And when one of them ends up shot dead in the middle of the night, Inspector Wilkins has a job on his hands untangling the many motives which have brought the characters to Alderley.

Great fun to read, with some appealing characters. I'm being more ruthless about getting rid of books now, and this one isn't a keeper for me, but it was well worth the time spent reading it. (

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JulesJones | Jan 2, 2010 |

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Belongs to Series

The Alderley Affairs (2)

Is contained in

The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy/The Affair of the Mutilated Mink/The Affair of the Thirthy-Nine Cufflinks: An Omnibus Edition by James Anderson

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Canonical title

The Affair of the Mutilated Mink

Original title

Alternative titles

Original publication date

1981

People/Characters

Inspector Wilkins

George, Earl of Burford

Lavinia, Countess of Burford

Lady Geraldine Saunders

Merryweather [Alderley's butler]

Important places

Alderley, England, UK (fictional)

Important events

Related movies

Epigraph

Dedication

First words

'You murdering fiend!'

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Original language

Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

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▾Book descriptions

The Earl of Burford throws another party in his stately home. Guests include a fading Hollywood movie star, his producer, a tempestuous Italian actress, a bombastic writer, a temperamental painter and an Olympic athlete. A murder takes place in the night, and once again Inspector Wilkins is called to investigate.

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Book description

The Earl of Burford hosts another slightly batty, thoroughly baffling house party....

George Henry Alwyn Saunders, 12th in his line, has taken a fancy to films. He's nearly killed with delight when a movie mogul wants Alderley, the Burfords' 17th century country estate, for the set of a new Rex Ransom epic. The bronzed, handsome star has long thrilled the loopy lord with dazzling deeds on the silver screen.

Less than thrilled is the Countess, who's suddenly playing hostess to a Hollywood crowd and a growing guest list that includes a long-lost cousin and a shady second spouse, two suitors for the Burford's willful daughter Lady Geraldine, an eccentric screenwriter protesting the pirating of his work, a sultry, sparky femme fatale, a professional blackmailer....

Oh yes, roles from James L. Anderson's first zany whodunit, The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy, are reprised by Merryweather, their imperturbable family butler, and the perspicacious Inspector Wilkins of the Westshire constabulary. And what does a mutilated mink coat have to do with anything?....

Nothing can top the merrily murderous 1930s house party for a puzzler!

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The Earl of Burford can't believe his luck; Rex Ransom, his favourite star from the 'talkies,' and his hot-shot producer, Haggermeir, want to film their next feature at Alderley, the family's seventeenth-century country estate. Somewhat less enthusiastic is the Countess, who suddenly finds herself hosting an impromptu house party for the incoming Hollywood crowd.

It's almost too much for poor Merryweather, the family's imperturbable butler, to cope with. And that's before there's a murder in the dead of night — By morning Inspector Wilkins of the Westshire Constabulary is cast in the unlikely role of hero, as he tiptoes through the evidence and endeavours to unravel the slightly batty, thoroughly baffling mystery — and work out just what a mutilated mink coat has to do with anything.

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