This is a gripping locked room mystery that keeps you barreling along through fast-paced scenes of action and puzzlement. There are very few slow sections, which makes it a compelling case for finishing in one sitting, or at least one day (which is what I did!).
At the heart of the story are whisperings about a femme fatale – Lesley, the lovely new fiancée of Dick Markham. Why should Dick care that he knows absolutely nothing about her prior to the last six months? What could possibly be of concern? But when a neighbor masquerading as a fortune teller at a fair confides in Dick that he recognizes Lesley as a serial but unproven husband-poisoner, Dick's world is shaken. Especially when the fortune teller is immediately shot in the back by Leslie firing a gun, ahem, accidentally. What is happening?
The rest of the novel is a masterful kaleidoscope that leads you to believe first one thing, then another, then back again, then on to something else, and so on and so forth until a breathless finale.
This was my first book by John Dickson Carr, and I was impressed. Although his sleuth, Dr. Gideon Fell, is somewhat Poirot-adjacent but less appealing, the mystery itself and the core cast of characters are very good! I look forward to checking out more titles from this Golden Age author.

3.5

This is the second book by Carr that I've read, the first being 'The Hollow Man'; of the two, I preferred this one. He was apparently particularly good at locked room mysteries.

Dick Markham, a playwright, has just become engaged to Leslie Grant, a relative newcomer to the village of Six Ashhes. At the village fete, she becomes distressed by something the fortune teller has told her so Dick goes to confront him, handing Leslie the rifle he was holding from the shooting range, where upon she accidentally (or was it)?, shoots the fortune teller.

We later learn that the fortune teller is celebrated Home Office pathologist Sir Harvey Gilman, who has a tale to tell Dick when he goes around to check how he is after the shooting. It seems Leslie has been married twice before and both times, her husband has been found dead in a locked room from prussic acid poisoning, also, her previous fiance was found dead in the same circumstances, however, they have never been able to prove that she had a hand in it, so Dick is asked to help set a trap. Things take a turn when Gilman turns up dead in the same circumstances as Leslie's previous victims, and so Gideon Fell is called in.

I really enjoyed the first half of the book, and found it pretty atmospheric. I loved the setting. There were plenty of twists and turns and I certainly didn't guess the solution. I did find the motive a little disappointing and it felt that the puzzle was the most important aspect of the story and the why didn't really matter. Gideon Fell still hasn't really come to life as a distinct detective, but I do plan on reading more and hopefully getting to know him a bit better.

*Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a review copy in exchange for an honest opinion*

Playwright, Dick Markham is newly engaged to Lesley Grant and both are happy on the day of the village fete. Congratulations come from many village residents but some feel Dick is a cad since it had been thought he was wooing Cynthia Drew. Appearing at the fete is a fortune teller, billed as a famous pathologist. Lesley enters the tent to expecting to hear the usual generalities but she emerges in a state of turmoil and grabs a rifle from the shooting stall and shoots the fortune teller. Lesley and the onlookers think she has killed him. Dick later hears questionable things about Lesley's past that cause him to doubt her character. When the fortune teller is later found dead in his study apparently having committed suicide, the great detective Gideon Fell is brought in to assist law enforcement. This is a Golden Age Locked Room mystery with lots of twists and turns and multiple suspects. The typical English village characters appear, doctor, postmistress, Lord of the Manor, etc. Those not familiar with Golden Age mysteries should be prepared for stereotypes and a detective who keeps his cards close to his chest. This edition is a British Library Classic Crime selection with an interesting introduction by Martin Edwards. Many thanks to Net Galley and Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read this title.

Dick Markham has recently become engaged to Leslie Grant. He is informed by the Home Office Pathologist Sir Harry Gilman that Leslie has murdered three men using poison but the police have been unable to find any evidence to support charging her. When Gilman is found poisoned in a locked room later, it turns out he is an imposter. What was the purpose of his masquerade and why lie about Leslie's past? Who had reason to kill the imposter? An enjoyable read.
Thanks to Netgalley for a copy.

I’m a huge fan of locked room mysteries, and Till Death Do Us Part (reissued by British Library Crime Classics) does not fail to deliver. Set in the English countryside, a famous English pathologist is found murdered in a locked room situation. Ingeniously plotted by the author, one of the great locked room mystery authors, the book is a quick and fun read with lots of twists and turns. Quite enjoyable.

My thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and to Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book.

Wonderfully Entertaining…
A wonderfully entertaining golden age mystery from a master and featuring the enigmatic Dr Gideon Fell. The good doctor can never resist the allure of the seemingly impossible crime. Faced now with a locked room style mystery to solve, Fell pits his wits against a killer still at large. With a keen sense of time and place, a cast of perfectly crafted characters and an intricate and intriguing plot this is wholly enjoyable from start to finish. Mystery aficionados will no doubt rejoice at this reissue.

Mystery…thanks to Netgalley for sending me this book to review…and to the publisher…written by a talented and gifted author……the story moves quickly and comes to a satisfying end…great writing…

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Poisoned Pen Press and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

A historic cozy mystery that brings the glitz and glam of the era to today.

Free ARC | Somewhat frenetic, but good | I have read some of Carr's work, but not a lot, so I'm familiar with his style and with Fell, but I'm not likely to over-praise his work just because it's his. This was a very fast read, and I could imagine it having been turned into a classic film in the Arsenic and Old Lace vein. There's a similar combination of farce and menace, in which you easily suspend disbelief and let yourself be carried away by the story. But the idea that this is in any way realistic, that the killer would have worked out the terrifically complicated locked room in just a moment, that people would act in these ways, is ludicrous. It's frustrating that the four women in the story are all so cardboard. One never speaks and her eventual fate concerns basically nobody. One is just hired help acting as exposition, and the other two care more about respectability than about whether the man they love honestly thought they were a cold-blooded killer. Good for an afternoon read, but not a favorite.
Thanks to the publisher via NetGalley for providing me with an ARC free of charge. This did not in any way impact the content of my review or my rating.

Ashe Hall is the scene of a garden party resplendent with tents and attractions, including a mysterious and esteemed fortune teller. All is roses and daisies for recently-engaged couple Dick Markham and Lesley Grant until Lesley accidentally shoots the fortune teller through the tent. Well, well, well. It is said that the new girl in town has a rather poisonous reputation. Together with an assortment of characters there are multiple red herrings and more secrets than you can shake a stick at...or take aim at with a shotgun. Enter Dr. Gideon Fell, brainy detective extraordinaire. He wades through the clues and sniffs out the chaff.

Though motive seems a bit lacking here, the locked room mystery really shines. Several aspects are improbable but that's part of the fun. Undoubtedly author John Dickson Carr spent many enjoyable moments dreaming up ingenius puzzles and solutions.

Till Death Do Us Part was originally published in 1944. Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press, crime classics are making a comeback. I am constantly searching for them in libraries, online and in used bookshops and am always thrilled to discover these golden gems. Whether you are a rabid fan of the genre or wish to see what all the fuss is about, do read John Dickson Carr, a master of impossible locked room mysteries.

My sincere thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this fabulous book.