An Unsuitable Job for a Woman by P D JAMES

Cordelia Gray was just 22 when she had to take up the responsibility of a detective agency run by her partner, Bernie. He killed himself as he was ailing from cancer. The detective agency was not a huge success. It was then a famous scientist Mr Ronald Callender approached her to solve a case for him.

His son, Mark Callendar who was a dropout from Cambridge committed suicide. He wanted to know why he did so. After opting out of Cambridge, he had taken up a job as a gardener in the house of Markhlands. He was living in a small cottage in their compound. It was there he hanged himself.

When the police found his body, he was wearing jeans and had a smear of lipstick on his lips. Cordelia decided to shift to this cottage so that she could investigate the surroundings including the Cambridge. From Miss Markhland, she came to know that a girl had visited him before his death. Inside the cottage, she found freshly prepared stew and a coffee pot with coffee, definitely not the signs that indicated that he was contemplating suicide. It dawned upon her that it was not a suicide but murder.

Let me tell you, in the beginning, this is not a typical murder mystery. It can mar the fresh perspective, this particular one could offer. I did the same and it was when I reached the middle of the story  I realized that it had much more to it. It’s a Cordelia Grey mystery though Adam Dalgliesh would make his entry in the end.

What I liked about the book was the sheer sincerity of the character. Cordelia was not an expert like Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple and she knew that she was vulnerable and lacked experience. But that did not deter her from doing her bit.

Besides, it was also her story of survival. It was clearly said in the title of the book ‘ An unsuitable job for a woman’. Though many pointed out to her that the job was unsuitable, she was adamant about taking it up.

She did not have the experience but she was shrewd and knew how to confront a person during an investigation. Since his boss was dead, there was nobody she could rely upon with her instincts and intuitions. Still, she went ahead and did what she had to do.

This is my first P D James book. I am happy to know that this book comes first in the list of her works which one shouldn’t miss reading if one is a fervent murder mystery fan. I have watched many of P D James’ interviews and I would proudly call my teacher for she had taken me to a different level of the genre called the mystery.

I am sure that I will read this book again. Her writing was like honey dripping from the comb.

Dragonmede by Rona Randall

This book is one among the gems that I discovered from a thrift store.

" Dawn sliced through the curtains as the ghostly edges of a hoar frost," says Rona Randall in her Gothic mystery ' Dragonmede'. Eustacia Rochdale, the female lead in the story also experiences similar fate. Though she married the man she loved and wanted, it sliced her life as the ghostly edges of a hoar frost. When she married Julian Kershaw , little did she know that her yearning for a marital bliss would be a bane of her life.

The story was set in the London of 1800's, when every doors opened for the nobility. It was this privilege which brought Julian Kershaw to Luella's ( Eustacia's mother's )gambling house. A born nonconformist, Luella never wanted her daughter to have a bohemian life which she was indulged in. She gave anything and everything to her daughter which was required for a girl to be a lady. Luella's efforts also did not go in vain as  Eustacia grew up with everything needed to be a lady though born to a bohemian mother.

Luella was overtly delighted when Julian, the heir of Dragonmede reached her threshold. Gambling on his passion for cards and his attraction for Eustacia, Luella realised that the time had come for Eustacia to tie the knot. Unaware of her mother's manipulations, Eustacia married Julian and reached Dragonmede, her husband's home which offered her nothing but a house full of mysteries.

Though I am a die hard of Gothic fiction, the story initially failed to lure my interest. As any other mystery fictions, I was expecting a twist at the very outset which was completely absent in the story. The only cue, the writer leaves is that there is some mystery but not easy for the reader to identify it. No murder, stealing, kidnapping, murder attempts, deaths but an all pervading sense of mystery. But when the story progressed, I could feel my pulse raising and could close the book only after finishing it. The reader could definitely identify the culprit but only at the very end, with just two or three pages to complete.

 I felt a sense of satisfaction after reading 'Dragonmede'. The moment I finished it, I saw four stars shining.

Death at the Opera by Gladys Mitchell (1934)

 

It was the realisation on the importance of reading golden age crime fiction which led me to various renowned authors such as Daphne Maurier, Dorothy L Sayers, G K Chesterton, Gladys Mitchell etc. And it was 'Death at the Opera' by Mitchell, I chose to read first.

Since I was accustomed to the writings of certain authors whom I read incessantly, I always found it a bit difficult to adjust to the style of new authors at least for a couple of pages. To my surprise, Mitchell's writing did not pose any such hurdles before me. I was totally engrossed in the book right from the first page.

Miss Calma Ferris was dead. She chose to commit suicide on the night of opera in the Hillmaston school where she taught. She was found sitting in a chair with her head drowned in a wash basin full of water. Miss Ferris was supposed to play the potent role of ' Katisha' in the opera called ' The Mikado'. Since she was found missing on that night, her part was enacted by another staff, Mrs Boyle.

The coroner's verdict said it's suicide.  But Mr Cliffordson, Headmaster of the school had his doubts as he found the pipe of wash basin was tampered with. It was blocked with clay.

Without wasting much time he sought the help of an elderly and sly psychoanalyst Mrs Bradley to investigate the case. The first few chapters were devoted to showing the kind of person Miss Ferris was. She had none except an aunt who was running a lodge. Though kind on her face, the aunt never had a sincere liking for Ferris.

 Her life was colourless and moral values very high. But she was a sort of person who could be happy with all the goodness happening to others. Her life was sans expectations with little time for rantings and ravings.

It's rather surprising to know that an inoffensive woman like Ferris could get murdered.

Through her analysis, Mrs Bradley came across people who had the opportunity and motives to kill Calma Ferris. But she was caught on the horns of a dilemma for the people who had the motives to kill never had the opportunity and those with opportunity did not have the motives.

Even the motives did not seem like substantial ones that could make a person take somebody else's life. For instance,

 1) Ferris had destroyed a clay statuette, Mr Smith, the art teacher was making, not deliberate of course. He was given compensation by Mrs Boyle, later.

 2) She had witnessed Miss Cliffordson, another staff and Hurstwood, a student kissing. When the student was head over heels in love with Miss Cliffordson, she never forbade him from seeking any intimacy with her. She never loved him, though.

3) She had discovered the clandestine relationship between two senior staff Mr Hampstead and Mrs Boyle. The former's wife was an alcoholic and was admitted to an asylum and the latter was a widow. They were in a relationship for the past 11 years.

Just a few days before the opera, Ferris' aunt had sent a telegram warning him of a person called Helm whom she had met while staying in the lodge run by her aunt. That was the only clue which could make the reader think there was more to the plot. This took Bradley to Bognor and there comes the twist in the tale - Two more murders by drowning. ' An epidemic of drowning' as she would like to call them.

I cannot talk about my dislikes for the book as I was reading her for the first time. Mrs Bradley is new to me and I am sure I will get to know the kind of person she is through her other stories. I like the method  Mrs Bradley employs to deduce who's the culprit. It's helpful for a reader who wants to be a writer.

Even though Mrs Bradley was noting down the causes that could make someone a potential murderer, which also gave the reader a feeling that she/he was moving along with her in finding out the culprit, I failed to pinpoint the real murderer.

 I was clueless who the murderer was until the end. But what I could not come to terms with was the motive that made the culprit commit the murder. It sounded flimsy. But I would like to think that a human being cannot be expected to behave in a certain way. Sometimes feelings and emotions can be betraying.

Nobody Killed her by Sabyn Javeri

 I chose this book to meet the ' kickass heroine 'and whom I found was an unapologetic heroine with little hypocrisy. Now, that stirred my interest. Prior to it, I had hardly any experience with South Asian thrillers though I was a huge sucker for mysteries and suspense fictions.

Javeri's book prompted me to turn my attention to South Asia and I ended up reading Kalpana Swaminathan and Ashwin Sanghi. Needless to say, it was a good experience. Reviewing these books gave me immense pleasure for there were many serious issues to ponder upon. Javeri's debut novel was no different.

When the story opens, former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Rani Shah was assassinated and her confidante Nazneen Khan ( Nazo )was held accountable for the murder. For, she was the one who was with Rani during her last hours.

 “ Who killed her?”

The story which was narrated in the course of courtroom proceedings was unputdownable. A pacy thriller with a maze of elements – treachery, gender equality, corruption, politics and what not.

Javeri had put the narrative in the unreliable hands of Nazo and this made the maze more thrilling.

What I liked about the book was that Javeri had left no stone unturned to depict the real life situations and it shunned hypocrisy to the core. The author was right when she said she was tired of suitable South Asian heroines. Even many of us were tired of that. She had torn apart those false faces which hardly existed and it's a big relief.

Jhaveri's character would make us think twice before we put every woman under one category when it's pertaining to topics like women empowerment, gender equality and feminism. The reasons for misinterpreting these words were mainly because we often tend to forget that there are different kinds of women with different circumstances with Nazo and Rani being the perfect examples.

There are a good number of women who have manipulative skills to get what they want. I liked the way Javeri left her characters ( Rani & Nazo) without judging them. They are at times strong, sometimes vulnerable and they get disillusioned too.

When Rani was born into an affluent family of politicians and everything had been offered to her on a platter, Nazo's family was murdered in front of her eyes by the General who was ruling Pakistan. Strangely, even such a strong background could not help Rani to wriggle through the maze of politics. But Nazo once determined had pushed the envelope and told us the story of survival. 

She was a refugee and Rani was Nazo's icon, God, lover and everything. She offered her at Rani's feet thinking that only she could save the country from the treacherous role of the General. But she was wrong. The moment Rani got the power her ideals quickly started changing.

 Mysogyny was prevalent. But with her hard-earned power did Rani do anything to change that? She comfortablly placed herself where her society wanted her to be in.

The book created headlines even before it was released owing to Rani Shah's sharp semblance to the late Benazir Bhutto. It could not be denied but what amazed me was that even with a similar backdrop as of Mrs Bhutto, Rani Shah, all through the book hardly showed any traces of the late former premier. Now, that is something to be appreciated.

Once you finish reading the story, you will understand the quote mentioned by Sabyn Javeri at the outset of the book.

“I think you can love a person too much.You put someone up on a pedestal, and all of a sudden, from that perspective, you notice what's wrong - a hair out of place, a run in a stocking, a broken bone. You spend all your time and energy making it right, and all the while, you are falling apart yourself. You don't even realize what you look like, how far you've deteriorated, because you only have eyes for someone else.”

― Jodi Picoult, Handle with Care

Going to read her short story.

All Through The Night by Mary Higgins Clark

 Let me tell you....

I like Mary Higgins Clark a lot. It wouldn't be wrong to say that she kindled the love of reading in me. Hence, there would be reviews from her books. 

Since Christmas is round the corner. Let me start with the book ' All through the night'

It was a winter night. Christmas is round the corner and it's the night she decided to abandon her infant, nevertheless to say, with a heavy heart. She was just 18 years old. With no other alternative left, she decided to leave her baby at St.Clement's rectory. She wanted the baby to grow in New York with a lovely family. She loved the place and was wanting to come back once she could stand on her own feet.

Her plan was to leave the baby and then alert the monsignor from a phone booth.

It was the same night Bishop Santory's chalice was stolen. He had planned it but little did he know that he would find a baby along with the chalice in a stroller which he strolled back to his house. When the security alarm rang, he ran and conveniently put his backpack under the foot of a stroller which was kept in the rectory. 

Seven years after, her guilt made Sandra search for her baby but was shattered to know that the St. Clement vicarage never got such a baby. Thus began her search for her baby.

 Alvirah's friend Kate was in deep trouble as she found her deceased sister, Bessie left her house, in her will to a stranger husband and wife who recently, occupied one part of her house. Just two days prior to Bakers' informing her about her sister's will, Monsignor Ferris had informed Kate just the opposite of what the Bakers said - she left her house in the name of her younger sister and Kate was thinking of giving it to two nuns to run a shelter home for poor children. Alvirah found the will brought by Bakers phony. 

How these two puzzles are related, that reader has to find.

I would call this story a “ short and simple mystery” for Christmas. There's no murder and 'whodunnit' but two puzzles which are vaguely connected. But without establishing that faint connection, the whole mystery cannot be solved.

I enjoyed it. What attracts me to Mary Higgins Clark's book is always her language. It's so simple yet powerful to make you feel that you are not walking with the characters but running with them.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

 Twenty years ago, I was so excited for I was going to enroll myself in a library. Books were a distant reality until then. Strangely, I don’t remember the first two books which I took from the library but the one I bought from a shop keeper who had set up his shop on a portable cart. He was of my age and was selling second-hand books. With the meagre pocket money I was getting at that time, I could afford only second-hand books.

And I bought ‘ The Alchemist’. It changed my life. I knew about dreams but this book taught me how to dream. There’s a huge difference between the two. For the first time, I realised that by pursuing your destiny, you are coming into close contact with the creator. It gave me goosebumps when I absorbed that idea for the first time.

As Paulo Coelho says in his book ” Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than suffering itself. And no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of his dreams because every second of the search is a second encounter with God and with eternity.”

The story is about a boy called Santiago who had dreamt of a treasure and was in pursuit of it. He inspired the universe as he dared to pursue his destiny. Like him, the author says everyone has a destiny and to reach there, one has to listen to his heart. For that, he has to be truthful to himself.

“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.’

I think the story assumes different dimensions at different stages of your life. When I read it 20 years ago, I grasped only the basics because I was a naive girl with little experience. Time flew by and my experiences made me capable of comprehending the much more deeper meanings. I am sure, many years down the line, I would grasp more things.

Coelho says it is the fear that’s holding us back from achieving our destiny.

“Most people see the world as a threatening place, and, because they do, the world turns out, indeed, to be a threatening place.”

“We are afraid of losing what we have, whether it’s our life or our possessions or our property. But this fear evaporates when we understand that our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand.”

Along the way to your destiny, your determination will have to undergo several tests.

What you still need to know is this: before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream. That’s the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one ‘dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.’

“Every search begins with beginner’s luck. And every search ends with the victor’s being severely tested.”

Years later when I met the shopkeeper he owned two book shops. Perhaps that’s his destiny.

Some more quotes which I hold close to my heart:-

“When you possess great treasures within you and try to tell others of them, seldom are you believed.”

“Your eyes show the strength of your world.”

“When something evolves, everything around that thing evolves as well.”

” Anyone who interferes with the destiny of another thing will never discover the destiny of his own.

” Remember, the world is only the visible aspect of God. And that what Alchemy does is to bring spiritual perfection into contact with the material plane.”

” Where your treasure is, there also will be your heart.”

Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

 

Mr Shaitana was a person of dubious character. He was attending a snuff box exhibition when he ran into Hercule Poirot, the detective. Shaitana was quick enough to invite him for dinner and lured him to meet some strange invitees.

There was something peculiar about the invitation. A collector of many strange things, Shaitana also nurtured a macabre habit of extracting dark hidden secrets from people. Some of the invitees to the dinner invitation also had one. They were murderers who had gotten away easily.

 Finally, the fateful day had come. After the dinner, the guests decided to play bridge and divided themselves into two groups.

When the first group consisted of Dr Roberts, Major Despard, Mrs Lorrimer and Miss Anne Meredith, the second group consisted of Hercule Poirot, Superintendent Battle of Scotland Yard, detective fiction writer Mrs Adriane Oliver and Colonel Race, a retired secret service operative.

Both of the groups sat in two different rooms while Shaitana, the host did not take part in the game but sat in the first room by the fire, observing the players.

When they approached their host to bid goodbye, after the bridge, to their utter shock, they found him murdered in his chair. He was stabbed in the neck with a stiletto.

In no time, Superintendent Battle took charge of the situation. It was then, the players in the second room realised that Shaitana had carefully picked his guests. While the guests in the second room were associated with investigation and authority, his choice of guests in the first room was a hint from Shaitana that they were possibly murderers who had gotten away after committing it. Shaitana had suggested the same thing to Hercule Poirot when they met at the snuff box exhibition.

Never in the wildest of his dreams, he might have thought that by inviting such people he was inviting his own death.

According to Christie, this was Hercule Poirot’s favourite case though Hastings, his companion, found it dull. For a change, she had come up with three other sleuths along with Poirot to nab the culprit from among the four possible murderers. It’s not mostly the clues which had helped the four detectives in their sleuthing but pure psychology.

Though I understood the basic plot, the reading became a bit strenuous when Poirot decided to analyse the suspects from their bridge scores. I don’t know how to play bridge. Besides, there were many twists and turns.