Ratings6
Average rating3.1
Horatio Leavenworth is a New York merchant whose material wealth is matched by his eminence in the community and reputation for good works. He is also the guardian of two striking nieces who share his Fifth Avenue mansion. Mary, her uncle's favorite, is to inherit his fortune at his death. As this mystery opens, that lamentable event has just occurred. Leavenworth has been shot to death and circumstances point to one of his young wards.
Circumstantial evidence points in one direction; but is that the trail to follow? Not to give anything away, but Yale University used this book in its law school to demonstrate the fallability of such evidence.
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First published in 1878, nine years before the debut of Sherlock Holmes in A Study in Scarlet, this atmospheric and suspenseful mystery well deserves a modern audience. When someone shoots Horatio Leavenworth, a wealthy retired merchant, through the head in his library late one night, the evidence at the inquest indicates that no one could have left the victim's locked Manhattan mansion before the discovery of the body the next morning. Suspicion thus falls on members of the household, specifically the dead man's nieces, Mary and Eleanore, only one of whom stands to benefit from their uncle's death. Everett Raymond, a junior partner in a New York law firm that had Leavenworth as a client, teams with unassuming official investigator Ebenezer Gryce to seek the truth. Green (1846-1935), whose smooth prose remains fresh, makes Gryce an interesting enough character to leave fans of traditional whodunits eager to see more of the detective in reissues of his further exploits.
Reviews with the most likes.
Important for historical reasons, but must be read in the context of being 140 years old, and as such, more akin to The Moonstone than any 20th century detective/mystery novel. It has the melodrama and faintly incredible aspects of the period. Enjoyable, and well-crafted, but must be read in a historical context in order to avoid seeming slightly ludicrous.
What a long winded bore. I stopped caring about who committed the murder, as it just kept droning on and on...The Moonstone dragged on at times too, but it wasn't nearly as boring as this!
Listened to this on the Phoebe Reads a Mystery podcast. I enjoyed her reading of it and the story itself.. I suspected who did it early on, but was misdirected effectively. It came as a surprise when all was revealed. This was an enjoyable read, and it's said that this author was influential in Agatha Christie's development as a mystery writer.
Featured Series
5 primary booksMr. Gryce is a 5-book series with 5 primary works first released in 1878 with contributions by Anna Katharine Green, Rosa Sahuquillo Moreno, and Susanna González.