Heads You Lose

We were quite startled by the rampant antisemitism in this book. It was a good mystery with a startling but inevitable conclusion. But we couldn't get past the racism.

Set during World War II, Heads You Lose is a rather silly country house murder mystery that has the victims, all women, being beheaded. It becomes quite obvious that one of the party that is currently residing at Pigeonford Estate must be behind the murders and it is up to Inspector Cockrill to discover the truth.

After a jealous Grace Moreland declares that she wouldn’t be caught dead in a ditch wearing her rival’s new hat, she is found in exactly that position, dead in a ditch, wearing Fran’s new hat, although her head is no longer attached to her body. Then a day or two later another woman, the estranged wife of one of the guests, is also found on the grounds and also without her head attached.

This is the first outing for show more Inspector Cockrill and also my first read of a Christianna Brand mystery. I sincerely hope the author improved her plotting and timing as she went on as I thought overall this was rather a weak effort. I did enjoy some of the humor but it was fairly easy to figure out who the murderer was and I did feel that the end of the book was rushed and rather a let down. As in many books written at this time, the author’s comments, particularly in reference to a Jewish character, are rather offensive. I do have this author’s better known mystery, Green for Danger, on my Kindle and I have my fingers crossed that the author was able to produce a more convincing mystery as she went on. show less

I owe Martin Edwards, solicitor, writer and editor, a debt of gratitude. Without his anthology, The Long Arm of the Law: Classic Police Stories, I should never have heard of British author Christianna Brand or of her clever creation, Inspector Cockerill. He so charmed me with his mocking deflation of a retired police blowhard in “After the Event” that I simply had to have more Cockerill.

Heads You Lose’s release in 1941 marked the first appearance of Inspector Cockerill. The gruff but clever and fair policeman is a fine addition to the cozy cop genre; however, the casual anti-Semitism (so widespread at the time) and the utterly ridiculous ending will put off quite a few readers. Yet, due to such an attractive main character, show more I’ll be trying the second novel in the series, Green for Danger, though, before I give up for good. show less

As a fan of Agatha Christie's mysteries, I wanted to explore some other writers from the Golden Age of mystery. I was disappointed at a couple of early Ngaio Marsh novels, but I really enjoyed this one by Christianna Brand.

The writing is excellent, and Brand is really good at depicting vivid characters. The emphasis is not so much on Inspector Cockrill and his investigation, but on the psychology of the people involved and on how they perceive the situation.

The last part of the novel is like a roller coaster, where several characters in quick succession seem to be the murderer. The true solution is a bit convoluted and unlikely, but that's something that often happens in these "cosy" mysteries.

Very enjoyable.

Atmospheric and beautifully drawn, by an author I highly respect. But this one's ending left me cold. Solution is a cop-out, and I was waiting for a final twist..

This one hasn't aged well, several racist comments in it. Picked it up, after seeing 'Green for Danger', have yet to read the book. She it's good at characters and the storyline was unique. Kept you guessing till the end.

I enjoyed this first Inspector Cockrill mystery, which was a quick read. It wasn't as good as the only other one I have read, Green For Danger; I think Cockrill being friends with the suspects hampered things a bit.