Chinese Shawl by
Patricia Wentworth
pbk out September 05
(Hodder)
at £6.99
The enduring appeal of Patricia Wentworth's Golden Age whodunits is undeniable, if
only because there is evidently still enough of a demand for them for reprints – like
this and other Miss Silver books recently published by Hodder - to continue to appear
on the shelves. The appeal is, I think, to readers who like lashings of romance with
their mystery and who seek nothing more than the elementary in terms of plotting and
characterisation. Miss Silver first went detecting before Miss Marple arrived on the
scene, and the two are sometimes compared, but Marple, with her nose for evil, is
much the subtler creation. Agatha Christie also wrote romantic fiction, but she
recognised that, in a detective novel, ingenuity is more important than love interest.
Here, the only mystery is which of several people with reason to hate horrid man-
eater Tanis Lyle actually wins the race to kill her first. The star-crossed lovers, Laura
and Carey, are among the suspects, but it is giving nothing away to say that they are
not guilty. Miss Silver coughs a great deal and investigates with only limited
efficiency, failing to save the life of the second victim, someone foolish enough to
boast about blackmailing the culprit. When one recalls the many more ingenious
books from the 30s and 40s that have never been republished – the novels of Rupert
Penny are a fascinating example – the popularity of Patricia Wentworth, workmanlike
though her books are, becomes as puzzling as any murder that Miss Silver ever
solved.
(
Martin Edwards
- author of the highly acclaimed Harry Devlin Mysteries)
Chinese Shawl by
Patricia Wentworth
