The Late Scholar: A Gripping Oxford College Murder Mystery (Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane series Book 4)
£4.70
‘Cleverly plotted . . . Walsh’s pitch-perfect re-creation of the charismatic leads is a delight’ – Publishers Weekly
‘Delicious’ – Booklist
Lord Peter Wimsey is delighted to discover that along with a dukedom he has inherited the duties of ‘visitor’ at an Oxford college. When the fellows ask him to resolve a college dispute, he and Harriet are all too keen to spend some time in Oxford.
But the dispute quickly turns sour. The voting is evenly balanced between two passionate parties, and the Warden – who has the casting vote – has mysteriously disappeared. Even worse, several of the fellows begin dying unexpectedly.
And the deaths of the deceased fellows bear an uncanny resemblance to the murders in Peter’s past cases – murders that Harriet has used in her published novels . . .
Read more
Additional information
| Publisher | Hodder & Stoughton (5 Dec. 2013) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| File size | 915 KB |
| Text-to-Speech | Enabled |
| Screen Reader | Supported |
| Enhanced typesetting | Enabled |
| X-Ray | Enabled |
| Word Wise | Enabled |
| Sticky notes | On Kindle Scribe |
| Print length | 296 pages |
by S Riaz
Having read the last (so far) in the novels featuring Peter and Harriet Wimsey (now the Duke and Duchess of Denver), by Jill Paton Walsh, I feel I have come to the end of a journey. Having stopped, and started, the series many times, I have finally now completed all of the Wimsey books and enjoyed being in the company of the characters created by Dorothy L Sayers. Some of the books I loved, others I liked, but I have not disliked any of them and that is the same for these continuing the series by Walsh.
Peter and Harriet are now living at Denver, with Peter’s elderly, and increasingly frail, mother. One day, to his surprise, Peter receives a letter informing him that he is the Visitor for St Severin’s College, Oxford; and the Duke of Denver is obligated to perform certain functions. These include appointing fellows, a new Warden and also acting as a referee of last resort if there is irreconcilable conflict among the fellows. Now there is, indeed, conflict in St Severin’s. The problems began when the college was offered the chance to acquire land – as the College is in financial difficulties, they need to raise money. This led to the suggestion that they sell an invaluable manuscript, which is costly to insure and keep. This has led to a deep rift in the College and so Peter and Harriet set off to Oxford, accompanied by Bunter, to try to heal wounds and solve the dispute.
This is easier said than done, as the divisions in the College are deep. More worryingly, there have been disturbing incidents since the disagreement erupted – including Dr Dancy being locked in a bell chamber and a Senior Fellow who claims he had an intruder in his room… Will those trying to influence the decision resort to murder? Are they copying methods that have occurred in Harriet’s detective novels and Peter’s investigated crimes?
I enjoyed this novel, set in Peter and Harriet’s beloved Oxford. I felt that the essential characters were there, if changed by time and events. I liked the academic setting and the colourful crimes, which will lead to lovers of the previous novels looking for clues. I hope there will be another in the series as I have enjoyed them all and would be happy to read a new mystery featuring Lord Peter Wimsey.
by C. E. Utley
The negative points first. Not that there are many. I fear the author has been slightly lazy on occasion. For instance, we are told that Peter and Harriet are so busy doing their own things that they can’t meet to discuss their plans until dinner. We are then told what they are each up to until we get to their meeting. But, lo and behold, it is not over dinner, it is over lunch. And I am not clear as to why Charles Parker starts off as Assistant Chief Constable (which he would surely have become by the time that the story is set) but then is constantly referred to as Chief Inspector Parker. I rather liked the references to famous Oxford characters of the 1950s. But why was it necessary to refer to A.L. Rowse and then explain he was a famous historian, or to spell out that C.S. Lewis wrote books on religion as well as children’s books? The reader really shouldn’t need those explanations.
But those are minor points. The charm of this book lies in its theme. Peter (now the Duke of Denver) discovers that he is Visitor of a not very well known Oxford college. A dispute has arisen between the fellows of the college as to whether an ancient manuscript should be sold to enable the college to buy some land thought to be ripe for development. The votes are evenly balanced. The Visitor is asked to come and resolve the dispute. No sooner does Peter get there than it transpires that two fellows have died in mysterious circumstances in the previous few months. The bodies begin to mount. And there are other, failed, attempts at murder. What fascinates us, and Peter and Harriet, is that the murders and attempts at murder bear an uncanny resemblance to past murders investigated by Peter and made the subject of detective stories written by Harriet.
It is true that there are no great surprises in the story. We find it almost as easy as Peter does to work out what is going on. But that is no drawback. We can happily wallow in our recollections of past Lord Peter Wimsey stories as we enjoy joining with the Duke in solving the mystery.
Yes, a charming book.
Charles