Published in 1931 this is a classic golden age of crime thriller. Set in an old house along peaceful Grantchester Meadow, the beautiful city of Cambridge near by, a gruesome murder is committed but by whom and why?
Socrates Close is a large country house where the unfortunate Faraday family have lived for many years. Inside the house a group of ill-matched siblings try to rub along, outside the world is full of bounders and cads and particularly brutal murders (though not, thankfully, in the herbaceous borders). There was a good mystery to unravel, an amiable sleuth, (a bit of a mystery himself) and lots of characters – some fun, some sad and some downright despicable and plenty of period charm:
“I suppose you must embarrass everybody?” he remarked. “Kissing before lunch is like drinking before breakfast, damned bad taste.” 
Love it!!
Unfortunately, 1931 also carries with it some shockingly racist attitudes and the ending was marred by this.
This was my first read for the TBR Challenge
I’m trying to remember if I have read this one. I mostly enjoy Margery Allingham’s novels but sometimes they are jarringly racist or sexist.
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The language was quite sexist but the women were as strong as characters as the men, but the ending was quite a shock! It’s good to see how far we’ve moved on, at least to some degree.
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Yeah, reading dated literature can really make me appreciate the modern-day!
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