The Mysterious Mr. Badman

October 15, 2023
Fans of the classic horror stories "August Heat" and "The Beast With Five Fingers" will welcome their author's return with a sedate Yorkshire detective story out of print since its first publication in 1934. Blanket manufacturer Athelstan Digby is minding the bookshop owned by his landlord, Daniel Lavender, when the Rev. Percival Offord, of Worpleswick Vicarage, enters to ask whether the shop has a copy of John Bunyan's The Life and Death of Mr. Badman. Digby doesn't know, and a search through the shelves turns up only copies of Bunyan's Holy War and Pilgrim's Progress. But Digby doesn't need to look when another customer arrives an hour later asking for The Life and Death of Mr. Badman, or when a chauffeur turns up toward evening seeking the same title. The series of non-coincidences is capped half an hour later when a boy follows the three customers to sell a parcel of books he's been given by Diana Conyers of Deepdale End, one of which just happens to be The Life and Death of Mr. Badman. Before Digby and his curious nephew, Dr. Jim Pickering, can venture more than a few guesses as to why Bunyan's book would suddenly be such a hot commodity, one of its prospective purchasers is found dead, followed by another. By the second murder, Digby and Pickering have already branched off in different directions in search of answers. They both get hoodwinked by their quarry, neither of them shines as a detective, and the repeated conversations in which they review the evidence keep much suspense from building. But the story maintains a low-key charm that makes it well worth sticking with till the final anticlimax. Harvey makes a strong case for the existence 90 years ago of a cozy procedural.

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November 1, 2023

This classic mystery by Harvey (1885-1937) was first published in 1934. While his nephew, Dr. Jim Pickering, considers taking over a local doctor's practice, Athelstan Digby holidays nearby in Yorkshire. When Mr. Digby's landlords need to attend a funeral, he offers to watch their bookshop for the day. That afternoon, three customers (a vicar, a chauffeur, and a stranger to the area) all ask for a copy of the same book, John Bunyan's The Life and Death of Mr. Badman. Late in the day, a young boy shows up with books to sell, including the Bunyan. Digby takes it to his room to check it out and finds a letter stuck between the pages. He realizes the contents of the letter could change the course of English politics. When the book and letter are stolen, Digby, his nephew, and the stepdaughter of the Home Secretary set out to recover them. The trio face a wily foe who won't hesitate to use blackmail, kidnapping, and murder to achieve his goal. VERDICT Fans of Golden Age mysteries and the British Library Crime Classics will enjoy the adventure and humor represented by the shrewd Mr. Digby.--Lesa Holstine

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December 1, 2023
This delightful book, originally published in 1934 in the UK, is part of the British Library's Crime Classic series. Athelson Digby, a blanket manufacturer, is combining a vacation with an opportunity to help his nephew, Jim, decide whether to take over a medical practice in Yorkshire. He is staying in the home of bookseller Daniel Lavender and offers to watch the shop while Daniel and his wife attend a funeral in a nearby town. The shop is quiet until three strange people come in asking for the same book--The Life and Death of Mr. Badman, by John Bunyan--which is not in stock until the next day, when a boy brings in a box of books to sell. That night, a burglar breaks into the shop and steals the volume. Later, while out on a walk, Digby discovers the body of one of those strange customers. The rest of the story unfolds, involving a corrupt clergyman and with colorful characters adding to what becomes a politically sensitive case. A treat for fans of British mysteries and those who love All Creatures Great and Small.

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