On This Page
Description
In September 1925, Scotland Yard DCI Alec Fletcher inherits a large house on the outskirts of London from a recently deceased great-uncle. Fortunately so, as he and his wife, the Honorable Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher, are the recent proud parents of twins, and their house is practically bursting at the seams. Though in need of a bit of work, this new, larger house seems a godsend-set in a small circle of houses, with a communal garden and Hampstead Heath nearby, the setting is idyllic.Idyllic, show more that is until a dead body shows up half-hidden under the bushes of the communal garden. Now rumors of bootleggers, American gangsters, and an international liquor smuggling operation via black ships have turned everything in their new neighborhood upside down. Alec is assigned by Scotland Yard to ferret out the truth behind the dastardly dead-but it's up to Daisy to find out who the dead man is, what his relationship to her new neighbors is, why he was murdered, and who did him in!. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
A new house and new problems.
This follows the usual Daisy Dalrymple trope, Daisy does something and she finds a body, only this time it's the maid and the dog who find the body (which leads to a few entertaining moments with Daisy telling people it wasn't her, honest and their not believing her.. She has to admit that she has form.
There's a return visit from Agent Lambert, prohibition era illegal exports of alcohol and a bevy of new neighbours that Daisy has to get to know. There are also some reflections of the Irish War of Independence which would have been pretty fresh in people's minds - a later book is set in 1926 and the Irish War of Independence finished up in about 1922, and their are questions about one of the characters show more being an IRA sympathiser, which they weren't and Daisy does point this out regularly.
It's interesting to see Daisy and Alex settle into a different life and deal with some wealth. I'm looking forward to seeing how this will change their lives, lets hope the gift horse doesn't bite any harder. show less
This follows the usual Daisy Dalrymple trope, Daisy does something and she finds a body, only this time it's the maid and the dog who find the body (which leads to a few entertaining moments with Daisy telling people it wasn't her, honest and their not believing her.. She has to admit that she has form.
There's a return visit from Agent Lambert, prohibition era illegal exports of alcohol and a bevy of new neighbours that Daisy has to get to know. There are also some reflections of the Irish War of Independence which would have been pretty fresh in people's minds - a later book is set in 1926 and the Irish War of Independence finished up in about 1922, and their are questions about one of the characters show more being an IRA sympathiser, which they weren't and Daisy does point this out regularly.
It's interesting to see Daisy and Alex settle into a different life and deal with some wealth. I'm looking forward to seeing how this will change their lives, lets hope the gift horse doesn't bite any harder. show less
Very good installment of the Daisy Dalrymple series. I really like how real she make the period in England between the wars sound. She and Alec move into a new house with the twins and there is a murder practically on their doorstep. Bootleggers, etc.
Alec's uncle has left him a considerable amount of property in a neighborhood amidst a square and a house as well; all contingent upon Alec & Daisy living in the house. The uncle's solicitor is hostile towards Daisy & Alec's moving in, his daughter being the wife of the son of the next door neighbors who are purveyor of spirits & "rum runners" supplying illegal liquor to prohibition era America.
When the sons meet in by the square's fountain, each accompanied by an American, a gun is drawn by one of the Americans, who is found bashed in the head & strangled, dead under a bush outside of Alec & Daisy's back door.
An interesting story that held my interest, especially in view of the fact that rum-running liquor to the u.s. was not illegal show more in Britain, but only in the u.s. show less
When the sons meet in by the square's fountain, each accompanied by an American, a gun is drawn by one of the Americans, who is found bashed in the head & strangled, dead under a bush outside of Alec & Daisy's back door.
An interesting story that held my interest, especially in view of the fact that rum-running liquor to the u.s. was not illegal show more in Britain, but only in the u.s. show less
The Fletcher family have come into a small inheritance which means that they can leave St Johns Wood and move to a larger home in Hampstead. The house has a large communal garden and one day, not long after they've moved in, Belinda's dog, Nana, discovers the body of a dead man in the garden, it quickly becomes clear that the man in murdered and Alec is called into lead the investigation, which is centred around the lucrative trade of smuggling booze into a USA still subject to Prohibition. A solid addition to the series.
The latest in the long-running Daisy Dalrymple mystery series. The Fletchers inherit a large house and move across London. Their personable new neighbors turn out to be involved in exporting wine to America in violation of Prohibition. An inept Treasury agent shows up, and soon enough there is murder.
This is the latest enstallment of the Daisy Dalyrimple Mysteries. It takes place during prohibition. Daisy and her family move to a new house that was left to them by her husbands uncle. When a man is murdered in their garden Daisy and her husband must work quickly to find out who did it. It is a wonderful tale of smuggling and gangsters.
The latest in the long-running Daisy Dalrymple mystery series. The Fletchers inherit a large house and move across London. Their personable new neighbors turn out to be involved in exporting wine to America in violation of Prohibition. An inept Treasury agent shows up, and soon enough there is murder.
Members
- Recently Added By
Lists
British Mystery
469 works; 14 members
Historical Mysteries 1910s to 1930s
47 works; 1 member
Author Information

74+ Works 9,844 Members
Carola Dunn was born in England on November 14, 1946. She received a B.A. in Russian and French from Manchester University and took a secretarial course for graduates at Oxford Tech. She traveled to numerous places around the world including Samoa and Fiji before getting married and settling in California. Prior to becoming a full-time writer, she show more worked in child-care, market research, construction, and wrote definitions for a science and technology dictionary. Her first book, Toblethorpe Manor, was published in 1979. Since then, she has written over 50 books including more than 30 Regency romances and the Daisy Dalrymple mystery series. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Black Ship
- Original publication date
- 2008-09-02
- People/Characters
- Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher; Alec Fletcher; Moira Jessup; Audrey Jessup (Mrs. Aidan); Patrick Jessup; Aidan Jessup (show all 9); Tommy Pearson; Tom Tring; Absalom Lambert
- Important places
- London, England, UK
- Dedication
- To my "full-service" agent, Alice Volpe of Northwest Literary Agency, Inc., and to Alan (and Slick), with thanks
- First words
- A last teeth-rattling sneeze escaped Daisy as she stepped out to the front porch.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"The heck with seltzer!" he said recklessly. "Pour me Champagne!"
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 290
- Popularity
- 110,852
- Reviews
- 7
- Rating
- (3.48)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 18
- ASINs
- 7






























































