I've tried to read this book a few times and it doesn't seem to stick with me. I definitely believe this is a case of the reader and not the book.

Written in 1932, ‘The Conjure-Man Dies: A Harlem Mystery’, is the first known crime novel by a Black American—this complex mystery story interweaves the lives of numerous characters who might normally have little contact with one another. For various reasons, the major suspects have all come to seek advice from N’Gana Frimbo, an African trained at Harvard University who settled in Harlem to practice his conjuring and fortune-telling. ⁣
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In the waiting room of Frimbo’s apartment and in the actual meeting chamber where Frimbo conducts his practice, characters confront the darkness that is Frimbo. Jinx Jenkins, the last of the characters to have an interview with Frimbo, realizes that Frimbo is dead, runs to the waiting room, and calls for his friend Bubber Brown. The doctor and the police detective then enter the story.⁣
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Perry Dart, a police detective, and John Archer, a physician, lead the investigation. The novel’s plot is one of ascertaining who murdered Frimbo. Like any mystery story, people and events are not always what they appear to be. Dart is sensitive to this possibility and begins a process of questioning suspects in order to determine the culprit. Dart and Archer know immediately that their task is not only to determine the murderer but also to make some sense of who Frimbo is so that a motive for his murder might be found.⁣
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The novel accumulates detail on top of detail. Initial character descriptions become more fully textured, and the actions of characters who apparently are only minor become potential sources of information needed to solve the murder. Humorous, riveting, suspenseful and engaging,this book had it all. I highly encourage the reading of this book. ⁣
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Thank you, Harper Collins360 for this gifted copy.

The Conjure-Man Dies is believed to be the first detective novel by an African-American author, published in 1932. Rudolph Fisher was part of the Harlem Renaissance and the characters are all black Harlemites.

The novel centres around an African ‘conjure-man’ (psychic/fortune teller), N’Gana Frimbo, who offers consultations in his apartment above an undertaker’s, in a room cloaked in darkness, and spookily illuminated.

When one of his clients, dazzled by the effect, realises belatedly that he is talking to a corpse, he calls local physician Dr Archer. Perry Dart, one of New York’s few black detectives, works with the doctor to solve the crime.

The Conjure-Man Dies is interesting in that it follows the classic golden age template, but has a hardboiled setting. There is a fixed group of suspects (the people who had contact with Frimbo that night) and most of the detection revolves around solving a puzzle and following clues. After a number of twists and turns, the novel ends with a set-piece denouement.

This isn’t my favourite kind of crime fiction – I’m more drawn to psychological realism – and some of the descriptions of the house and the precise layout of the rooms was a bit slow for me. What I enjoyed, though, was the descriptions of Harlem and the people living there. There is some very beautiful, atmospheric writing, conveying the energy and drama of a fast-changing part of the city.

Fisher also highlights the distinctions drawn within the black community in Harlem. Frimbo is seen as separate because he is African, the cerebral Dr Archer is immediately accepted as an authority figure. The two young men who discover the body berate each other with racially charged language based on the relative darkness of their skin, to the extent that the publisher warns in a note that this will be offensive to many readers. In the context of the novel, it is shown as paradoxically highlighting the intimacy of their friendship, the “bantz” of its day.

The Conjure-Man Dies is interesting if you like classic mysteries with a strong sense of place, are interested in the Harlem Renaissance or in the history of the crime fiction genre.
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I received a copy of The Conjure-Man Dies from the publisher via Netgalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for sending me an ARC!

Another thank you to the Publisher for spending the time to give this book another chance in the market by reprinting it, if only more out-of-print books could receive this fate!

I have no idea how anyone could guess the perpetrator in this story. The mystery was so well-crafted I was honestly expecting a totally different outcome and didn't even think of them as a possibility. The cast of characters was also well-done, like I felt each had their own distinct personality. I do wish the women got more spotlight on them, but it also makes sense why they didn't. I was honestly surprised to see how well-paced this is, given that almost half all takes place in the span of one night. I will say that the second half, the pacing can get kinda hit or miss and it can get kinda confusing with medical terminology, but I was still invested and curious enough that I did finish it.

Honestly, it just makes it even more heartbreaking to see that the author WANTED to writer sequels, and we'll never see more of Dart & Archer. They have such an interesting dynamic, and I was happy to see it again in the included short story "John Archer's Nose". Legitimately, we are worse for not having more novels written by Fisher. He was definitely a talent.

I wish the author had been able to write more mysteries before he died…

The Conjure-Man Dies is a piece of history: its introduction says it’s the first detective novel written by an African-American. That tends to put it under a bright spotlight, and might make it hard for the book to live up to its billing. But it did, and I found The Conjure-Man Dies to be thoroughly enjoyable on many levels.

First, author Rudolph Fisher was an accomplished man – a doctor, writer and musician. This shows throughout the book, whether it’s in the elegant writing style or in the tongue-in-cheek medical terminology that Dr. Archer, one of the two main protagonists, uses to deliberately tease his friend (and the other main protagonist), Perry Dart. For example, when Dart mentions sending out an alarm for “the tall dark gentleman with the cock-eye”, Dr. Archer murmurs in the background, “external strabismus is the term”. “The hell it is”, replies Dart.

And the humor wasn’t limited to the medical realm. I realized early on, probably when the undertaker’s wife mentions quite matter-of-factly that her husband doesn’t really have to worry about his business premises being robbed, that this was going to be a book that I was going to have to read alone, since I’d be laughing out loud a lot.

Second, the plotting was tight, and full of clues. In true Golden Age style - and after all, this was written during the Golden Age - several characters get put in the hot seat, one after the other, for the reader’s consideration. And they mostly seem as if they might fit pretty well. So, although when I later went back and looked, the clues were there, the identity of the culprit at the end was a surprise to me.

I also really liked the glimpses into the Harlem of the time, with its bars, churches, numbers runners, small business men, and club scene. The book was written for a contemporaneous audience, but it now reads like a historical mystery, and a pretty good one at that. As Stanley Ellin’s long but insightful introduction warns, some of the language and mores are jarring today, but even those helped paint a picture that I found fascinating.

And finally, there’s a nice bonus at the end – a lengthy short story that also features Dart and Dr Archer. Taken together, the book and the story make me quite sad that author Rudolph Fisher died so young, before he was able to write more books in the series. I wanted to give this four-and-a-half stars, and in fact, I did so on my blog. But in the end, when forced to choose here between four and five stars, I decided that I enjoyed it enough to go with five, which is sort of rare for me!

And my thanks to the publisher, Collins Crime Club, and NetGalley for the advance review copy.

When I learned this book was originally printed in 1932, I was intrigued. I did some homework on the author, Rudolph Fisher, and was amazed at how much he accomplished in the few short years of his life. He died at the age of 37 from abdominal surgery; I don’t discount that this type of surgery was high risk in the ’30s, but would he have had a greater chance at survival if he had been a white man? He certainly didn’t get the accolades he deserved for his various writing talents, so it’s a gift to us in this century to get our hands on this reprinting.
As if that isn’t enough to make one want to read this uncanny mystery, then reading the introduction written by Stanley Ellin will push you over the edge. I really like his perception of the treatment of Black Americans, “It was ironic and inevitable that neither the racist nor the sentimentalist knew how nicely they were cooperating in the destruction of a people’s identity and individuality by barring the way to the honest exploration and discovery of them.” He wrote this in 1971. Fifty years later, the destruction of Black Americans’ identity continues, but at a slower rate. Hopefully, we can look back, look forward, and realize with open eyes and heart that we still have a long, long way to go for an equitable opportunity for development.
Now to the book- what a hoot! I was laughing out loud at the characters’ personalities. The honest and open dialogue is so refreshing, yet at times completely startling. The plot consists of numerous suspects, and as Detective Perry Dart moves through his off-the-cuff yet well-thought-out interviews, the bright light of guilt shines on one and then the other. I’ve never been quick to figure out “who-done-it” in Agatha Christie's books, and this plot seems so much more multi-layered. I gave up on trying figuring who the guilty party was and lost myself in the laid-back environment, dialect, and colorful stories behind each character. It was like watching a fast-paced New York play: enjoyable, shocking, suspenseful, and wildly hilarious at the oddest moments.
An added bonus at the end of the novel is a short story by Fisher printed in Metropolitan Magazine a month after the author died. This short story brings us back to Detective Dart and Dr. Archer, whose keen sense of smell comes into play.
What a sad loss to mystery writers and readers was the death of Rudolph Fisher. Not just because of its untimeliness but also because this talented author never stood a chance of national recognition and honor in the 30’s simply because of the color of his skin.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper 360/Collins Crime Club for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The release date is January 7, 2021.

I received this book from NetGalley for my honest review.

This was a mystery that had a bit of Agatha Christie, a bit of Columbo, and a bit of a cozy mystery.

While a good book--I found a couple of things interesting.

The writing style from so long ago.

The way people were depicted. While most would be unacceptable at this time. It was the norm at the time of the writing. This made me wonder about how we demonize some people for their words of many years ago. I know when I was a kid we used (eeny, meeny, etc.) to pick between things. Were we in the wrong for the time?

Back to the book, lots of twists and turns. The two main characters (detective and doctor) were likable and played off each other very well. Kept you guessing (at least me) until the end.

The Conjure-Man Dies: A Mystery Tale of Dark Harlem is a reissue of the first known mystery novel (published in 1932) with an all-Black cast of characters. This alone makes it worth reading—but it's also a solid mystery novel worth reading in its own right and not just notable for the publishing watershed it represents.

The cast of characters includes a police detective, an undertaker, a medical doctor, a Pullman porter, a small-time numbers runner, an aspiring P.I., and, of course, the conjure-man of the title. The Conjure-Man dies during a spiritual "reading" and is initially examined by the police detective and M.D. Then his body disappears. Then he returns alive, explaining that since his mind was outside his body when he was killed, he came back to life when his mind reentered that body. It's a clever conundrum that keeps readers guessing.

The real heart of the novel, though lies in the relationships between characters. The detective and the M.D. are quirky and well acquainted with each others' foibles. These are intelligent, driven men who push one another, tease one another, and combine their intelligence with purpose. The aspiring P.I. and his friend who discovered the Conjure-Man's death engage in ongoing verbal sparring that can't hide their mutual affection.

A second, novella-length story focusing on the detective and the M.D. is also included in this book—a much appreciated bonus.

Whether or not you enjoy discovering milestones in detective fiction, you will enjoy this novel. It's a good read.

I received a free electronic review copy of this book; the opinions are my own.

This novel was originally published in 1932, and is being reissued. There's a disclaimer in the beginning that terminology which might be considered unacceptable today has been retained for authenticity I've read quite a few books by Harlem Renaissance authors, but was unfamiliar with Fisher's work. This is considered to be the first detective novel written by an African American, and is unique in that all of the characters are Black. Frimbo is a conjure-man in Harlem, an African immigrant who graduated from Harvard. The police and a doctor are called to his home when it appears that he has been murdered. But is he really dead, or does he really have the ability to cheat death as some claim? Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC.

“Accordingly, the brisk air was tempered a little, and the flocks that flowed out from the innumerable churches could amble along at a more leisurely pace than winter usually permitted. This gave his celestial majesty time to observe with greater relish the colourful variety of this weekly promenade: the women with complexions from cream to black coffee and with costumes, individually and collectively, running the range of the rainbow; the men with derbies, canes, high collars, spats, and a dignity peculiar to doormen, chauffeurs, and headwaiters.”

The author was a doctor/musician/writer who graduated from Brown University and published novels and short stories during and after the Harlem Renaissance. Sadly, he died at the age of 37 two years after this book was published, following exposure to his own X-ray machines. This book, his second, was set in Harlem and was the first detective novel to feature an all Black cast of characters. It brought alive the Harlem of the period.

The book features Dr. John Archer and police detective Perry Dart who are investigating the murder of Frimbo, a fortune teller who died as he was in the process of telling a fortune. There was witty interplay between Archer and Dart. The plotting and structure of the book are very Christie-like. The story includes hidden passageways, multiple suspects and unrevealed motives. I was glad that I was reading this on my kindle with its built in dictionary, otherwise I would have had more trouble with “the lofty hue of his integument” or “it’ll take a little active cerebration“. The author’s medical background turned up in Archer’s explanation of blood testing. There was a sort of slapstick interlude involving one of the suspects about two thirds of the way through the book that didn’t seem to fit with the rest of the book. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this.

The author had planned on writing 2 sequels featuring Archer and Dart but he didn’t have a chance to write them. This new edition includes the short story “John Archer’s Nose” which was published posthumously. Again Archer and Dart solve a murder, this time aided by Archer’s recognition of an odor present at the crime scene. I also enjoyed this story and I’m really sorry that the author didn’t get to write more.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read "The Conjure-Man Dies: A Harlem Mystery" by Rudolph Fisher. I really enjoyed the book. I particularly like the chemistry and camaraderie of Detective Dash and Dr. Archer. It is a classic mystery story coupled with the richness of the culture of Harlem in the 1930's. I recommend the book!