Fannish 50 #50: Locked Room Mysteries

The best mysteries are locked room ones. They provide a puzzle aspect as well as the usual thrill of crime-solving. There is an element of fantasy or at least strong suspension of disbelief, but that's okay. Realism isn't very entertaining. Most murders are drugs, robbery, and/or gang related or domestic disputes.

A few minutes ago, I finished of re-read of Georgette Heyer's Envious Casca which is a Christmas locked room mystery with some of the usual suspects: old rich curmudgeon everybody hates, family gathered round with intrigue and irritating behavior, servants above and below reproach, an inspector and a sargent. I remember some of but not one of the crucial bits so I was surprised again.

The most prolific of locked room murder mystery authors was John Dickson Carr and in The Hollow Man (which I own) his detective gives a lecture on the possibilities:

1. it's accident not murder
2. it's murder but victim is compelled to commit suicide or perform the accident
3. it's murder by a trap/device set in the room earlier
4. it's suicide made to look like murder
5. it's murder masked by impersonation or illusion (the murder takes place before the door is locked, murder gives the impression the victim is still alive)
6. it's murder at a distance (the old icicle bullet fired through the window)
7. it's murder but takes place later than assumed (the victim is drugged and/or hid--when murderer has an alibi--and then later is truly murdered)

[I'm not certain where the snake or the orangutan fit into this list!]

Of course, I'd love to write my own locked room mystery. Shall 2024 be the year? Daunting prospect! I don't know if I am ready to commit to that!



And this makes my final Fannish 50 post! Yay!

Fannish 50 #1: Sherlock Holmes
Fannish 50 #2: Many Fandoms - Fannish Items I Own
Fannish 50 #3: Agatha Christie
Fannish 50 #4: Museums
Fannish 50 #5: Hard Boiled Detectives
Fannish 50 #6: Steampunk
Fannish 50 #7: Facial sheet masks.
Fannish 50 #8: J-hope of BTS
Fannish 50 #9: Collage materials
Fannish 50 #10: Holiday blend coffee
Fannish 50 #11: Inspector Rebus
Fannish 50 #12: Postcards
Fannish 50 #13: Jigsaw Puzzles
Fannish 50 #14: Holmesian Poetry
Fannish 50 #15: Miniature rooms
Fannish 50 #16: Jeeves & Wooster
Fannish 50 #17: The ocean
Fannish 50 #18: Audiobooks
Fannish 50 #19: The Tuesday Murder Club series by Richard Osman
Fannish 50 #20: Chocolate
Fannish 50 #21: BVM
Fannish 50 #22: Bees & honey
Fannish 50 #23: Agust D/SUGA of BTS
Fannish 50 #24: BTS
Fannish 50 #25: Snoopy
Fannish 50:#26: Detective Kosuke Kindaichi by Seishi Yokomizo
Fannish 50 #27: Jimin of BTS
Fannish 50 #28: The language of flowers
Fannish 50 #29: Tea
Fannish 50 #30: Lord Peter Wimsey by Dorothy L. Sayers
Fannish 50 #31: Moon
Fannish 50 #32: Jungkook of BTS
Fannish 50 #33: Tarot
Fannish 50 #34: RM of BTS
Fannish 50 #35: the KonMari Method
Fannish 50 #36: Short stories
Fannish 50 #37: Crowley of Good Omens
Fannish 50 #38: Autumn
Fannish 50 #39: the art of Edward Gorey
Fannish 50 #40: the works of Edgar Allan Poe
Fannish 50 #41: the teachings of Sri Eknath Easwaran
Fannish 50 #42: Jin of BTS
Fannish 50 #43: British Library Crime Classics
Fannish 50 #44: V of BTS
Fannish 50 #45: Christmas
Fannish 50 #46: bullet journaling
Fannish 50 #47: Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells
Fannish 50 #48: In the Seom BTS game
Fannish 50 #49: Lipstick
Fannish 50 #50: Locked room mysteries

Advent 26: Charades

I confess I am losing a bit of steam, but have a double drabble of Bertie Wooster playing competitive charades for the Drones (and, as always, Jeeves to the rescue).

( Read more... )