I have given The Deadly Truth by Helen McCloy three out of five stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I love a good cosy mystery with the who-dun-it? trope, it makes me yearn for the autumn season with early evenings, hot chocolates and rainy days.

This book was first published in 1941, which I only found out after having read this story. It was well-written with, what I would call, an “old-fashioned and proper” dialogue, it made the mystery of this book even better although I did find it a little confusing at times.

I didn’t guess correctly to whom the murderer was going to be which made the book enjoyable on a whole new level as I find it’s always fun to gasp or to be surprised by a plot reveal.

The characters were very secretive and although they were well-written in this story I didn’t feel drawn to any of them becoming my favourite character in the book.

This is the second Dr Basil Willing book that I've read from the republished series by Agora Books. I enjoyed the first book, but I really loved this one. The Long Island seaside setting was very memorable as I have enjoyed many holidays there and can picture the scene very easily. I loved all the deliciously dysfunctional characters and the experimental truth serum plot. None of the guests want their dirty secrets revealed, but which one killed to hide the truth? A quick, very entertaining read and a satisfying denouement. Just what I wanted. (Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a review copy in exchange for honest review).

This is the second book by Helen McCloy featuring Dr Willing’s that I have read and loved it just as much. It again transports you back to the Golden Age in America with members of the high society and this time a truth serum is at the heart of this classic murder mystery. With characters that are well written, flaws and all, it had twists and turns right up until the end and definitely held my attention. It is a good easy read with plenty of red herrings and I would highly recommend it.

Helen McCloy's Dr. Basil Willing takes a vacation on Long Island that turns out to be a busman's holiday. The woman who rented him his bungalow gets more than she bargained for when she adds truth serum to everyone's drinks at a party. Each of her party guests has a reason to want her dead - and that's exactly what she gets. Basil uses his wits and intuition to catch the killer and discover all the hidden secrets. I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys classic crime stories that aren't gory and provide a good puzzle.

Another excellent mystery by Helen McCloy and I'm happy her books are being republished because they are excellent.
The plot is complex, full of possible culprits and secretes. There is a very original idea at the start of the book and there's a group of dysfunctional and interesting characters.
We get to know something more about Basil Willing and I like these more human sides.
The author is a good storyteller and her plot/character development are excellent.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

The deadly Truth is a cozy mystery with a good set-up. The mystery was intriguing to read about and the characters were interesting. The book did drag a bit and I think it would have worked a lot better as a short story. Overall, it was a good mystery it isn't at the top of my recommendation list but it is on there.

I read the first two books of the series quite recently and was pleasantly surprised when I saw this particular instalment available. Since there are no particular references to the events of the previous two books, I do not think they are required to enjoy this one.
The whole book, from cover to cover, felt very short and crisp. I expected more melodrama, obfuscation, or red herrings, but things went a lot more systematically with just a hint of a possible twist that does not exactly pan out the way I expected it to.
We begin with a woman who feels powerful enough to toy with the people around her. She is hosting a dinner party and has big plans for them all. We see the individual characters on their own and then in combination with the soon to be deceased. The idea of a truth serum being used on unsuspecting dinner guest felt unique and limited the actual data involved in the case. Dr Basil Willing skips the dinner but ends up just in time to possibly identify the murderer. Each person is investigated in their turn, and in all the cases, I was intrigued by the conversations and the picture painted. We have a standard format for the denouement, and it took me by surprise because I was not ready for things to be wrapped up.
I am looking forward to the next release in the series. I rated this book the way I did solely because I wanted more from this book; I enjoyed the pace.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley, the review is entirely based on my own reading experience of this book and the previous works by the author.

I really enjoyed this Golden Age mystery. Generally, I stay far away from any mystery that involves psychology, but I make an exception for these Dr. Basil Willing mysteries b Helen McCloy, who certainly deserves to be better known. This is the second one that I’ve read, and I liked this one even more than the first one. Dr. Willing is connected with the New York district attorneys office, but in this case, he is vacationing at the seaside, discovers a dead body, and manages to get involved, despite the fact that he has no standing with local law enforcement. I found this novel to have a well thought out, somewhat unique plot involving an experimental truth serum, interesting, somewhat dysfunctional characters, lots of clues and plenty of suspects. I was kept guessing until the end, which fit in well with everything that had happened.
Highly recommend if you are looking for a quick, and entertaining read.

Helen McCloy's The Deadly Truth, published in 1941, is part of Agora Books’ Uncrowned Queens of Crime series and the third Dr. Basil Willing mystery. While there are references to Dr. Willing's colleagues and past work which will resonate with those who have read previous books in the series, the book works as a standalone. A group of ill-assorted guests are gathered on Long Island for a weekend party which turns into a confessional of dark secrets followed by murder.
Ms. McCloy's dialogue is occasionally awkward, especially in the early part of the book when characters tend to long speeches. And the denouement requires Dr. Willing's specialized knowledge, which the lay reader will not have. But Dr. Willing is an engaging protagonist and takes the reader along for an entertaining ride, ready for more of the doctor's adventures and Ms. McCloy's tales.

The Deadly Truth is the second mystery I have read by Helen McCloy which features psychiatrist Basil Willing. Although I do not think this book is plotted as skillfully, or written as effectively, as Dance of Death, I did enjoy it. The plot device which triggers the murder - a vial of truth serum, stolen and served in cocktails by a woman with a perverse, even cruel, sense of humor - stretches credibility. However, it also raises thought-provoking issues about truth, lies, and motivations for transparency or falsehood.

Of the five evident suspects in the murder, only one was likeable as a person. At least they were dislikeable in distinct ways, and had enough complexity to make them plausible and to allow the author to create unexpected but usually convincing plot twists. The circumstances which allowed Dr. Willing to draw some significant conclusions did, however, seem forced to me.

In spite of the shortcomings of this book, I liked it well enough that I recommend Helen McCloy as an author, and hope to read additional mysteries featuring Basil Willing.

You don't read books like this for the forensics. You read them for the wit and the atmosphere. The Deadly Truth delivers that. Terrific plot and marvelous characters.

This was my first book from this author but it will not be my last. I believe that if you are a fan of cozy mysteries this book is not for you. Many characters are shown honestly, with all their imperfections and flaws. However, if you enjoy the more cerebral type mystery, you will quite enjoy it.

Usually it takes a bit of time to get into a book but this one had me hooked from the beginning. The victim was sufficiently nasty enough to understand why she was killed, but she was not a one note character. Learning the backgrounds of each character was a great part of this book. The psychological aspect struck just the right balance, keeping them realistic and relatable. I wasn’t overly concerned with trying to solve it too soon as I was just enjoying the ride.

Thank you to NetGalley and Agora Books for providing a copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review.

I just read the last page of this mystery and I am still trying to figure out how I feel about it. I detested all of the characters except the MC. I didn't hate Dr. Willing. I am simply indifferent. I think perhaps I have been spoiled by reading cozy mysteries is why I did not care for this one. Warm & fuzzy it is not! The characters had too much of the ugly bits of human nature. #TheDeadlyTruth #NetGalley

This is the third Basil Willing mystery for me and definitely the best. The plot moved well, the characters, while a bit over the top personality-wise, were still believable, and the ending satisfying. It definitely kept me engaged as I read it in two sittings!

This is the third Basil Willing book that I have read and I enjoy them all. This one was very intriguing and I felt I got to know Basil better as he was essentially doing most of the sleuthing himself. Again, the plot was well paced with suspenseful twists and turns and the characters were well drawn and plausible.
I would recommend this to readers who enjoy well written classic crime. There are plenty of red herrings and I was, like Basil, unsure who was guilty. Though unlike him I was kept guessing up until the end!

It is August 1940. On Long Island, New York, a society hostess is murdered. She and all her guests had dark secrets. A newly-tested truth serum has led to many dangerous revelations.
This third Dr Basil Willing mystery by Helen McCloy is one of my personal favourites. Her writing sparkles with irony, and the in-depth characterization gives tantalizing glimpses of a bygone way of life. Even when one is given the clues at the beginning it is still impossible to guess the denouement. A particularly fine example of Golden Age crime fiction.

The latest book from the Crime Classics Review Club is The Deadly Truth by Helen McCloy. This is another mystery featuring psychiatrist Dr Basil Willing. In this book, Dr Willing is on holiday by the sea, living in a fisherman’s hut, his nearest neighbours a house party in a big house. How hard it is for a detective to get any peace! Of course, there’s a murder and he has to get involved. I’ll be honest, what I like about these books is that they’re American and therefore very different from the usual British village/country house murder. I like to read that when Willing returns to New York, women have stopped wearing white shoes (must be after Labor Day!) and other aspects of life which the American reader would take for granted.

3.5 stars

Devious mystery for fans of vintage books -- this one first appeared in 1941 and features series lead Dr. Basil Willing, a psychiatrist who helps out the NY D.A. with forensic investigations.

Willing is renting a Long Island retreat, and gets embroiled in an investigation when he stops to check out a possible fire in a mansion while on his way home. He discovers a nearly dead murder victim and a houseful of suspects. The victim is a vicious and manipulative rich woman who has cruelly tricked her house guests by slipping them an experimental truth serum. But the plan backfires when she learns some unpleasant facts. By the end of the evening, she has been murdered.

The mystery itself is cleverly done and Willing is interesting to watch. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Agora Books and NetGalley for a review copy.

Dr Basil Willing applies his up-to-date 1940s medical knowledge and trained habit of observation to solve a murder amongst his acquaintances, a thoroughly unpleasant group of socialites whose cocktail habit results in them imbibing a truth serum.

It is (only) the interest of the application of the scientific methods in a particular historical context that keeps me reading this series. Neither the setting, nor the characters hold my interest. This is a group of self-centred, hedonistic and shallow socialites living in a place defined only by comfort and an indoor and an outdoor stage setting.

The reader’s engagement is with Dr Willing and the science. It’s enough to keep me reading. Just.

I just couldn't get into this book. The first few pages were boring, in my view. That was enough for me not to read the rest of the book. That's why I am giving this such a low rating.