tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post8924960823120920390..comments2024-03-27T22:32:02.739+01:00Comments on Beneath the Stains of Time: The Strange Case of Harriet Hall (1936) by Moray DaltonTomCathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-9481240302782284222019-02-20T02:49:38.714+01:002019-02-20T02:49:38.714+01:00I think you might indeed. Hope so. I definitely wa...I think you might indeed. Hope so. I definitely want to see all her books reprinted.The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-8172130442290196912019-02-20T02:48:46.198+01:002019-02-20T02:48:46.198+01:00Yes, I think that title is unique. Some other GA ...Yes, I think that title is unique. Some other GA mystery writers wrote post-apocalyptic novels, but as far as I know Dalton was the only one to merge the genres. Mad, I tell you! There's another one by her that reminded me so much of a Ruth Rendell.The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-62840758099485055132019-02-20T02:17:30.176+01:002019-02-20T02:17:30.176+01:00Thanks for these elaborations, Curt. As someone wh...Thanks for these elaborations, Curt. As someone who likes his mystery/detection paired with graceful style and attention to characterization, I expect that Dalton will be to my liking.Christophehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01978885973806549838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-78748485295501589682019-02-19T15:42:14.382+01:002019-02-19T15:42:14.382+01:00"Certainly it's not one of the finest nov..."<i>Certainly it's not one of the finest novels of detection,but it is one of my favorite detective novels.</i>" <br /><br />This is what you should have said in the introduction. I would have been less nit-picky as far as the plot goes. :) <br /><br /><i>The Night of Fear</i> is a Christmas mystery. So I will keep that one for the end of the year, but will definitely take a look at <i>Death in the Cup</i> when it comes out. I still hope DSP will republish <i>The Black Death</i>. I want to read a classic detective story with a post-Apocalyptic world. Just the premise alone sounds awesome. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-50750865592384389712019-02-19T09:59:21.463+01:002019-02-19T09:59:21.463+01:00Certainly it's not one of the finest novels of...Certainly it's not one of the finest novels of detection,but it is one of my favorite detective novels. I think for detection you might prefer The Night of Fear or Death in the Cup. I personally lobbied for Cup. You might even prefer the first two, though they have some thriller elements. The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-22436165017124118142019-02-19T00:22:53.072+01:002019-02-19T00:22:53.072+01:00You don't have to defend yourself, Curt. I kno...You don't have to defend yourself, Curt. I know what you mean and characterization is important, but I just expected something very different from "<i>one of the finest detective novels</i>" of the Golden Age (e.g. <i>Death on the Nile</i>). What can I say? I'm a plot guy who likes clues and such. But don't you worry. I'll definitely take you up on those recommendations. You haven't seen the last of Dalton on this blog. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-57276607374996335452019-02-18T22:57:25.432+01:002019-02-18T22:57:25.432+01:00To go a little further for me what makes Dalton un...To go a little further for me what makes Dalton unique I think is that when I read her I really have to keep reading--to see how the mystery is solved, yes, but also to see how her characters turn out. I actually find myself worrying about her characters. So, yes, that does make her unusual for the period, when so many mysteries are drier academic exercises. Now, you know I wrote the book defending "mere puzzles" (Masters of the "Humdrum" Mystery), and I love my John Street, etc., but I love my Dalton too. There's room for both sorts of mysteries. I think John Street produced some of the finest Golden Age mysteries too, and had been asked to choose and introduce some to reprint I would have said so. I don't mind comparing Dalton to James, with the caveat that it would be the earlier, not the later, James. Later James in my view simply adds more words, more descriptions, without adding to the narratives in any way. Her first four novels are masterpieces, in my view, but the later books I can live without.The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-17052046658002463282019-02-18T22:32:33.768+01:002019-02-18T22:32:33.768+01:00I worried about praising this book so highly as it...I worried about praising this book so highly as it sets us up to get sidetracked into debating that point, but I Dalton really is one of my favorites and I've been wanting to get her reprinted for years. I think for you the best choices might have been The Night of Fear or Death in the Cup, both of which I love too, just as I do the books of Agatha Christie. Both are for me at their best compulsively readable authors (more so than Dorothy Bowers, actually). I think Dalton like Margery Allingham is one of the finest Golden Age exponents of the character-driven mystery and deserves an honored place in the history of the genre, though to the contrary she's been forgotten. Getting her reprinted has been one of my top goals of the last decade. I know I mentioned PD James in my introduction and the last chapter very much reminded of her, but Dalton makes for fleeter reading than James!The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.com