Scan barcode
bookminx's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
floristseatfree's review
Just too many stories. Also Montague Egg is no Lord Peter Whimsey (I did finish all the Whimsey stories)
mikepage7176's review
4.0
The Lord Peter Wimsey stories are great. The stories are driven by the characters which are what make the stories and are not necessarily "whodunnit" type stories where you can guess the outcome prior to the reveal.
The Montague Egg stories are rather dull. He's mildly idiosyncratic, but nothing really special.
The other collected stories are great. A kind of catch or surprise at the end of each. Some are fun, others are morbid and grim. It's a great mix and quite witty.
The Montague Egg stories are rather dull. He's mildly idiosyncratic, but nothing really special.
The other collected stories are great. A kind of catch or surprise at the end of each. Some are fun, others are morbid and grim. It's a great mix and quite witty.
kittykornerlibrarian's review
5.0
Oh, I adore Lord Peter. I'm so happy to have all the Lord Peter stories together in one volume. Some of the other stories, well, they are creepy and I don't enjoy them as much. I own this and could read it again and again.
judyward's review
5.0
I absolutely loved this collection of short stories by Dorothy Sayers featuring Lord Peter Wimsey and Montague Egg. A must read for all Sayers fans.
kjboldon's review against another edition
3.0
I would say this book is for Peter Wimsey completists (of which I guess I now am) only. The Lord Peter stories aren't great, though I did finally get what I wanted, out of The Haunted Policemen and Talboys, which was the surrounding life of Harriet and Peter. Talboys, I think, is worth the price of admission. It's funny and human and layered in a way that many of these dark and clever stories are not.
In their favor, they are devourable, but even the better ones I found not quite satisfying. Perhaps this is me. I love the long sprawl of a novel over a short story. Then again, there is a dark, rather nasty edge to some of them that is perhaps why I favor the Wimsey/Vane escapades, for their common thread of decency.
It also could be that just getting through all 800+ pages of this was just a bit much. Perhaps reading the stories in littler chunks, as released, would've felt more manageable. In any case, I'm settling on 3 stars. My advice is to know that they're not great, and to read the shorter collections rather than this big honkin' one.
In their favor, they are devourable, but even the better ones I found not quite satisfying. Perhaps this is me. I love the long sprawl of a novel over a short story. Then again, there is a dark, rather nasty edge to some of them that is perhaps why I favor the Wimsey/Vane escapades, for their common thread of decency.
It also could be that just getting through all 800+ pages of this was just a bit much. Perhaps reading the stories in littler chunks, as released, would've felt more manageable. In any case, I'm settling on 3 stars. My advice is to know that they're not great, and to read the shorter collections rather than this big honkin' one.
stagasaurus's review
5.0
These really are superb. Took me over a year to read (alongside other things) but well worth reading this nearly 800 page collection of short stories. I think Lord Peter Whimsey and Montague Egg are my favourites.
elianachow's review against another edition
5.0
I've never been a fan of mystery/detective stories, but Sayers has such an amazing literary prowess that I can't help liking her stories. Her character development is the best I've encountered in a while. Within one page I feel like I've know a new character for my whole life. As a Christian author, she doesn't feel the need to go into every gory detail. Loved every story. (The one nightmare I had resulted from reading it before bed. Remind me not to do that again!)
ampersunder's review
4.0
The Wimsey stories are of course the best, "The Learned Adventure of the Dragon's Head" one of my favourites. I more or less plowed through the majority of the book, until I hit the Montague Egg stories, which took me a bit to appreciate (I kept imagining him as a literal egg in a suit, like Humpty Dumpty), and then the last handful of stories were interesting but not enough.