Tuesday 31 December 2013

Fireside Mystery Book Edited by Frank Owen

 I borrowed this short story collection from Openlibrary. I am not really a fan of short stories mysteries or otherwise and the reason I picked up this book is that it works out for many Reading challenges I have yet to complete this year. There are twenty stories in this collection published in 1947. Most of the authors in this collection are new to me except for Cornell Woolrich, Sax Rohmer and Ellery Queen. This was quite a mixed bag to me, I loved some of them, some of them were okay and some didn't work at all. The one's didn't work at all, that hardly held me my interest were the straightforward crime stories. 

My favourite is Pale Pink Porcelain by the editor himself set in China about two suitors for the hand of a beauty who wants a pale pink paint for her porcelain. She promises to marry the man who can bring her the pale pink colour. This has a nice twist in the end. I also liked Figure a Dame by Richard Sale set in India, where a man acts as a guard to a famous emerald bought from a small town in India. This also has a surprise ending. 

Interesting collection of mystery stories something to read in the cold winter. 

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