The Herring in the Library
L.C. Tyler
London: Pan Macmillan, 2011.
I do love a good mystery, and when a writer contrives to write a series that spoofs The Great Mysteries of Yore, I’m in heaven. This book was hilarious. I started out with a pencil in hand, but soon realized that if I made note of every passage that made me laugh, I’d have the whole book marked up, which would rather defeat the purpose. The humour is arch, the narrators wonderfully unreliable, and although the allusions to Dame Agatha heavy enough to serve as murder weapons themselves, it is P.G. Wodehouse who is the presiding muse.
The comic series features mystery writer Ethelred Tressider, a woebegone man who is obsessed with his unsatisfactory amazon rankings, and his literary agent Elsie Thirkettle, an interfering chocoholic who reminds poor Ethelred endlessly that he’s a second-rate writer. In this one, the pair confronts a classic locked room mystery, and they take turns narrating (and undercutting each other’s progress) to the solution.
I will admit that the plot of this third in the series was a wee bit thin, but the characterization more than made up for it. The outcome of the investigation was also a foregone conclusion, but getting there was so much fun that I forgive all. I have every intention of reading the rest of the series, and am thrilled to discover that L.C. Tyler ranks with Sarah Caudwell for intelligent and witty comfort reading.
Nathalie Foy 
You can never have too much ‘intelligent and witty comfort reading’. This is a writer who has gone straight onto my library list. Thank you.
The first in the series is The Herring Seller’s Apprentice, so I suppose it makes sense to start there. Enjoy!
Me too, Nathalie, thanks.
Great!
I missed you, Nathalie: Reading just your last three posts have given me a plethora of ideas for future reading. Have you read Paul Adam’s “Rainaldi Quartet” ? A mystery about violins, well written and researched.
Thank you! That is so timely–The Globe and Mail just ran an article about the Canada Council’s competition for musicians to borrow precious instruments from their instrument library. They get rare and very, very valuable instruments for a three-year loan. I was fascinated by the article and remarked to myself how many books and movies are made out of stories about rare violins. I will add it to the wish list!
Hi Natalie! Many thanks for the lovely review. Delighted to be compared to Sarah Caudwell. A brilliant writer – very dry humour. I’d thoroughly recommend her books to anyone who hasn’t read them.
Delighted to compare you to Sarah Caudwell! It is a rare and precious joy to find a sure thing, an author who is bound to please, and you two are just that. Looking forward to more Ethelred and Elsie!
And, just like *that*, an entire series added to my TBR. Thanks!
Heh! You have only yourself to blame! You suggested the bookshop!