Murder at Beechlands

Rating:
Summary: It is just crying to be used as a Hollywood script
Review: Maureen Sarsfield wrote a total of three books, which were picked up by American publishers, in the 1940's. Two of them are murder mysteries starring Scotland Yard's Inspector Lane Parry, a handsome and undeniably married detective. Murder at Beechlands, the sequel to Murder at Shots Hall (originally called Green December Fills the Graveyard) was originally called A Party for None in England and A Party for Lawty in the United States. Sarsfield's life itself is a bit of a mystery, as no one seems to know what became of her.

Inspector Lane Parry finds himself alone in a raging blizzard after he accidently drove his car into a ditch. He comes upon Beechlands, a hotel filled with what he at first takes to be inmates of a mental institution. But the dead body of Wing Commander Lawton (Lawty) Lawrence appears in the snow, and the hunt is on. Even though the crime is not in Parry's jurisdiction, he realizes he is going to have to keep the "inmates" around until the proper authorities can be called...and the phone lines have been cut to the hotel:

"Two miles there, two miles back. That would mean leaving all these people (and Lawty's body) by themselves, to get up to their own devices and occasions, lawful or unlawful, for at least two hours, by the time he'd done explaining everything to the Ditchit policeman, who was worse than useless, according to Miss Killigrew."

Murder at Beechlands is a cross between an Alfred Hitchcock story, and an Edgar Allen Poe tale. Intensely psychological, each character and each moment of the ungodly long night that follows the murder is filled with lurking, crashing, smashing, and deep fear. Sarsfield does a great job of keeping the reader "in the dark," even as she supplies clues and counter clues for the clever Inspector Parry to sift through. Her characterization is simply wonderful...very nineteen forties, and one could see either Betty Davis or Marilyn Monroe in starring roles.

The Rue Morgue Press has chosen wisely once again with this Maureen Sarsfield thriller. It is just crying to be used as a Hollywood script, but until that day arrives (if it ever does), it simply exists as a genuine mystery told in the original vein of the genre. A great read!

Shelley Glodowski
Reviewer