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3.28 AVERAGE
3.28 AVERAGE
It's old and aged but I still devoured it and liked it. It was a bagatelle and fun.
This has been the best of the three MRR mysteries I've listened to lately, as well as being the best Librivox record. Very enjoyable!
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Though “The Man in Lower Ten” by Mary Roberts Rinehart was originally published in 1909, this mystery kept me captivated more than many modern mysteries. Early on, I could see why this book is a classic in the whodunit genre. The main character, Lawrence Blakeley, is a young lawyer traveling on a Pullman train car with notes critical to a criminal investigation. The situation becomes odd when Blakeley discovers someone else is sleeping in his reserved Pullman berth number 10. When the man turns up murdered, suspicion points to him. There are many intriguing characters, false clues, and adventures packed into this book, along with an abundance of humor. I enjoyed the historical details, especially journeying back in time to experience train travel at the turn of the last century. There are scenes in dark rooms where Blakeley is desperately searching for a match, rather than looking for a light switch. My favorite scene takes place in the shuttered mansion, filled with spooky furniture draped in dustcovers. My favorite characters are the intrepid amateur sleuth and the eager law firm employee, both of whom are determined to “help” Blakeley. Trigger alert: Modern readers will be taken aback by some of the less-charming aspects of the past, such as the references to the Pullman porters, and Blakeley’s love interest, who is not exactly a strong female character. Even so, this well-crafted mystery is worth a read. I listened to the Tantor Unabridged Classics audiobook version narrated by Rebecca Burns on the Libby library app.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Sexism
Modern readers will be taken aback by some of the less-charming aspects of the past, such as the references to the Pullman porters, and Blakeley’s love interest, who is not exactly a strong female character.
mysterious
A fun who-dunnit, with some clever, amusing characters. There are just so many great pieces in the puzzle. We have a mix up in sleeping compartments, several mysterious women and a missing man, a train wreck, an amusing amateur detective. And of course the woman Blakely’s best friend hopes to marry, who is obviously mixed up in the whole situation, and who Blakely himself quickly falls in love with. Romance, mystery, danger, it’s got it.
A fun, lighthearted read. I shall seek out more by this author
Written by Mary Roberts Rinehart, "the American Agatha Christie," this was the first detective novel to crack national bestseller lists. According to The New York Times, "[Rinehart's] literary distinction lies in the combination of love, humor, and murder that she wove into her tales … She helped the mystery story grow up." The Man in Lower Ten was Rinehart's debut novel, and it remains a thrilling tale of homicide, mayhem, romance.
Attorney Lawrence Blakely is on a train bound to deliver some important papers to a client. While on the way he ends up switching train berths with another man who mistakenly falls asleep in his. The next morning that man is found murdered and the murder weapon is found in the berth that Lawrence was sleeping in. That's all I'm going to say about the plot setup because the whole switching berths thing becomes a little more complicated than that and you really just need to read it.
I found this picture of a train berth from the early 1900s that I imagine is just like the ones described in the book. It even shows the nets that passengers would put their personal belongings in.
This is only the second book I've read by Mary Roberts Rinehart and I liked it quite a bit. It seems a lot of people say this book is weak compared to her later books, but having previously read The After House I can say that story-wise I prefer this one. That's not to say that this one wasn't without its faults and I can see just from reading the two books how her writing improved over time. The dialog in this one was tedious to follow at times, and at a couple of points it was hard to follow what was happening. I also wasn't all that crazy about the romantic aspect of the book. It was a bit too insta-love for me and I really couldn't see why all the men were so crazy about the lady in question as she lacked personality. Thankfully that was a small part of the story.
The best part of the book for me was while they were on the train. After that there is a lot of running here and there to try to solve the mystery. The mystery itself was pretty good, but I never felt like it kept me guessing. From the very beginning there was no question in my mind as to the fact that the killer was one of three people, simply because of one particular item that was found that proved to be key evidence. In the end the solution to the mystery felt rather anticlimactic. I would like to read more of Rinehart's work because I feel like I just haven't yet read her at her best.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Dover for giving me a copy of this book for review.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
Attorney Lawrence Blakely is on a train bound to deliver some important papers to a client. While on the way he ends up switching train berths with another man who mistakenly falls asleep in his. The next morning that man is found murdered and the murder weapon is found in the berth that Lawrence was sleeping in. That's all I'm going to say about the plot setup because the whole switching berths thing becomes a little more complicated than that and you really just need to read it.
I found this picture of a train berth from the early 1900s that I imagine is just like the ones described in the book. It even shows the nets that passengers would put their personal belongings in.
This is only the second book I've read by Mary Roberts Rinehart and I liked it quite a bit. It seems a lot of people say this book is weak compared to her later books, but having previously read The After House I can say that story-wise I prefer this one. That's not to say that this one wasn't without its faults and I can see just from reading the two books how her writing improved over time. The dialog in this one was tedious to follow at times, and at a couple of points it was hard to follow what was happening. I also wasn't all that crazy about the romantic aspect of the book. It was a bit too insta-love for me and I really couldn't see why all the men were so crazy about the lady in question as she lacked personality. Thankfully that was a small part of the story.
The best part of the book for me was while they were on the train. After that there is a lot of running here and there to try to solve the mystery. The mystery itself was pretty good, but I never felt like it kept me guessing. From the very beginning there was no question in my mind as to the fact that the killer was one of three people, simply because of one particular item that was found that proved to be key evidence. In the end the solution to the mystery felt rather anticlimactic. I would like to read more of Rinehart's work because I feel like I just haven't yet read her at her best.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Dover for giving me a copy of this book for review.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
This book is quite old, but when I read it, I didn't get the sense that it was dated very much. Of course, the whole basis of it was the Pullman berth lower ten, which isn't a thing anymore. But, since I've never been on a train, and all my train travel in novels references this type of trip, that hardly makes a difference.
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
I was recently asked by a representative from Kazabo Publishing to read and review their Modern Reader Edition of The Man in Lower Ten, by Mary Roberts Rinehart. After finding out that this is a mystery that, in part, takes place on a train (one of my favorite settings) and is written by an author who has been compared to Agatha Christie, I became very intrigued. The Modern Reader Edition, has been rewritten in a more contemporary style, while maintaining the tone of the original. It sounded like the perfect introduction to Rinehart's work for me, so I agreed to read and review it.
The setting begins in Washington, D.C. in 1907 when attorney Lawrence Blakely (who narrates this story) sets out on what should have been a quick train trip. The first part of his trip runs smoothly, but that all changes on the return trip. This is a complex mystery involving missing documents and other personal belongings, a murder, a mysterious mix-up where Blakely somehow ends up in a different berth from which he started, and a budding romance. Everything points to Blakely as the prime suspect in the murder investigation. He and his team work together to try to untangle this mystery and clear his name.
I really enjoyed this Modern Reader Edition. It flowed well and the language was easy to understand. Instead of footnotes, there are explanations at the beginning of some of the chapters that help the reader understand some of the terms that are used, which I found helpful.
The mystery is strong and the characters were interesting to get to know. There are many threads to the mystery, which I did find confusing at times. The story is puzzling and I didn't even try to solve it, as I often do when I read mysteries. This time, I found more comfort in just letting it unfold. It all came together with a satisfying conclusion.
This Modern Reader Edition of The Man in Lower Ten won't be for everyone. If you're someone who prefers to stay true to the original with no changes, then this edition might not be for you. However, if you find the classics sometimes difficult to understand and you want the same story in simplified language, then I recommend this edition. Keep in mind that while it is a traditional mystery, it isn't a cozy. This edition will ease you into Mary Roberts Rinehart's work and, of course, if you wish, you can read the original as well.
Thank you to Kazabo Publishing for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder