Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1973
Description
A custom-made killer shocks the fashionable London set in "one of the finest murder books ever written" featuring gentleman sleuth Albert Campion (The New Yorker). Albert Campion's sister is a success in her own right. A top fashion designer, she works for a legendary couturier and dresses Georgia Wells, the best-dressed actress in the world. Albert also has a connection to Georgia, but his is based on failure, not success. Georgia's former fianc� disappeared nearly three years ago, and Campion has never been able to find him. Until now . . . The victim's remains-discovered by Campion in a deserted country house-point to suicide. But the man's father assumes it was foul play. In a rarified world of wealth and privilege where silence and secrets can be bought, the investigation won't be easy, especially when another death takes center stage. This time, the victim is Georgia's current husband-and starring in the role of prime suspect: Albert's sister. "Top ranking whodunit in Dorothy Sayers tradition . . . Plus sale for non-mysteryites as first rate novel of fashionable London. Suspense-humor-well planned, well written." -Kirkus Reviews Praise for Margery Allingham "Margery Allingham stands out like a shining light." -Agatha Christie "The best of mystery writers." -The New Yorker "Allingham was a rare and precious talent." -The Washington Post "Don't start reading these books unless you are confident that you can handle addiction." -The Independent.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member MyopicBookworm
I found this rather heavy going, trying to work out what was going on from a dense cobweb of allusive and oblique dialogue between a fair number of characters, few of whom are at all sympathetic: mainly wealthy people being unpleasant to each other in a context of stifling social snobbery and
Show More
hypocrisy. The stereotyping of various foreign characters was no big surprise in a London-based crime novel from 1938, but the convoluted pontificating about the nature of the feminine and the relation of the sexes was almost entirely indigestible. (Val: "We can't be conventional or take the intelligent path except by a superhuman mental effort... We're feminine. you fool!" Campion: "This is damned silly introspective rot. What you need, my girl, is a good cry or a nice rape [sic]." And I don't like either the ex-convict sidekick Lugg or the casually abusive manner in which he and Campion deal with each other. There were a couple of nice set pieces, such as the prank in which the wayward actress, at a fashionable place of entertainment with her paramour, is confronted with her husband entertaining a young look-alike model dressed to match her. One or two descriptive lines also caught the eye: She was plump and gracious and succeeded in looking like a very exotic film star unsuccessfully disguised as Queen Victoria. Overall, I am clearly not a natural Allingham fan: I prefer Agatha Christie or Dorothy L. Sayers. MB 7-i-2013 Show Less
LibraryThing member souloftherose
After the wonderful humour of The Case of the Late Pig and the brooding introspection of Dancers in Mourning this book was a shock - once again we see a completely different side to Albert Campion. And it's not pleasant.
We enter the world of fashion in the 1930s; Campion's sister Valentine is a
In this book we see another side to Albert Campion. Throughout most of the gruesome and dangerous cases he's looked into before, Campion has remained unruffled by events; murder and danger don't seem to have an emotional impact on him. But here we see him unsettled by the job he's been asked to do, unsettled by his sister and unsettled by the reappearance of Lady Amanda Fitton; it's not something he copes with well. Although it's clear he cares for Valentine there are passages in the novel where he thinks about hitting or shaking her and one conversation/argument where he says things to her that would be almost unforgivable by today's standards. Unlike some reviewers, I didn't see this as symptomatic of his general attitude towards women, or as Allingham saying that this sort of behaviour was acceptable, but rather an indication of Campoin's own extreme discomfort with the situation. Nothing in his behaviour towards women in earlier books prepared me for the way he behaved towards Valentine (and occasionally other women) in this book.
According to the frontispiece of my copy, an Observer review of The Fashion in Shrouds said that 'to Albert Campion has fallen the honour of being the first detective to feature in a story which is also by any standard a distinguished novel'. From following Liz's reading for the last couple of years, I'm very wary of someone declaring something to be a 'first', but I think it is fair to say that this book is more than just a good detective novel (although I don't think there's anything wrong with being just a good detective novel either). Allingham uses the world of fashion and the characters of Valentine, Georgia and to some extent, Lady Amanda, to explore the position of women in society in the 1930s, in particular the position of women who had careers. This aspect of the book has generated a lot of controversy, which is completely understandable given the views some of the characters express. From my reading of the novel, I don't think that Allingham is saying she agrees with the controversial statements that her characters make, but I'm also not sure I would agree with Allingham's views on femininity and women either. From a first reading I would say that Allingham thinks women have equal abilities to men's in the field of work but that they are disadvantaged by being more emotional beings, particularly where romance is concerned. I don't think this is fundamentally very different from the views a lot of people hold today, although modern views wouldn't be expressed in the same way Allingham's are. I found this element of the book fascinating and it hugely increased my enjoyment of the novel, but I can understand that others may either not be interested or find these ideas make the novel almost repulsive to them.
One of the less controversial quotes:
'They were two fine ladies of a fine modern world, in which their status had been raised until they stood as equals with their former protectors. Their several responsibilities were far heavier than most men's and their abilities greater. Their freedom was limitless. There they were at two o'clock in the morning, driving back in their fine carriage to lonely little houses, bought, made lovely and maintained by the proceeds of their own labours. They were both mistress and master, little Liliths, fragile but powerful in their way, since the livelihood of a great number of their fellow beings depended directly upon them, and yet, since they had not relinquished their femininity, within them, touching the very core and foundation of their strength, was the dreadful primitive weakness of the female of any species. Byron, who knew something about ladies if little enough about poetry, once threw off the whole shameful truth about the sex, and, like most staggeringly enlightening remarks, it degenerated into a truism and became discountenanced when it was no longer witty.
"Love really can rot any woman up," Georgia observed contentedly. "Isn't it funny?"
"Dear God, isn't it dangerous!" said Val.'
We enter the world of fashion in the 1930s; Campion's sister Valentine is a
Show More
very successful fashion designer and Georgia Wells, the famous actress, is one of her largest clients (as well as being one of her closest friends). Georgia is charming and fascinating but seems to have no idea of the effect she can have on other people, so when she steals Valentine's lover no-one really bats an eyelid. But when Georgia's husband dies in a suspiciously convenient manner and Georgia seems to be spreading rumours that implicate Valentine in her husband's death, Albert Campion steps in to try and solve the mystery and protect his sister. In this book we see another side to Albert Campion. Throughout most of the gruesome and dangerous cases he's looked into before, Campion has remained unruffled by events; murder and danger don't seem to have an emotional impact on him. But here we see him unsettled by the job he's been asked to do, unsettled by his sister and unsettled by the reappearance of Lady Amanda Fitton; it's not something he copes with well. Although it's clear he cares for Valentine there are passages in the novel where he thinks about hitting or shaking her and one conversation/argument where he says things to her that would be almost unforgivable by today's standards. Unlike some reviewers, I didn't see this as symptomatic of his general attitude towards women, or as Allingham saying that this sort of behaviour was acceptable, but rather an indication of Campoin's own extreme discomfort with the situation. Nothing in his behaviour towards women in earlier books prepared me for the way he behaved towards Valentine (and occasionally other women) in this book.
According to the frontispiece of my copy, an Observer review of The Fashion in Shrouds said that 'to Albert Campion has fallen the honour of being the first detective to feature in a story which is also by any standard a distinguished novel'. From following Liz's reading for the last couple of years, I'm very wary of someone declaring something to be a 'first', but I think it is fair to say that this book is more than just a good detective novel (although I don't think there's anything wrong with being just a good detective novel either). Allingham uses the world of fashion and the characters of Valentine, Georgia and to some extent, Lady Amanda, to explore the position of women in society in the 1930s, in particular the position of women who had careers. This aspect of the book has generated a lot of controversy, which is completely understandable given the views some of the characters express. From my reading of the novel, I don't think that Allingham is saying she agrees with the controversial statements that her characters make, but I'm also not sure I would agree with Allingham's views on femininity and women either. From a first reading I would say that Allingham thinks women have equal abilities to men's in the field of work but that they are disadvantaged by being more emotional beings, particularly where romance is concerned. I don't think this is fundamentally very different from the views a lot of people hold today, although modern views wouldn't be expressed in the same way Allingham's are. I found this element of the book fascinating and it hugely increased my enjoyment of the novel, but I can understand that others may either not be interested or find these ideas make the novel almost repulsive to them.
One of the less controversial quotes:
'They were two fine ladies of a fine modern world, in which their status had been raised until they stood as equals with their former protectors. Their several responsibilities were far heavier than most men's and their abilities greater. Their freedom was limitless. There they were at two o'clock in the morning, driving back in their fine carriage to lonely little houses, bought, made lovely and maintained by the proceeds of their own labours. They were both mistress and master, little Liliths, fragile but powerful in their way, since the livelihood of a great number of their fellow beings depended directly upon them, and yet, since they had not relinquished their femininity, within them, touching the very core and foundation of their strength, was the dreadful primitive weakness of the female of any species. Byron, who knew something about ladies if little enough about poetry, once threw off the whole shameful truth about the sex, and, like most staggeringly enlightening remarks, it degenerated into a truism and became discountenanced when it was no longer witty.
"Love really can rot any woman up," Georgia observed contentedly. "Isn't it funny?"
"Dear God, isn't it dangerous!" said Val.'
Show Less
LibraryThing member bcquinnsmom
First, let's get this part out of the way: who would like this book? If you are following Allingham's delightful series, this one is not to be missed; it is one of the most complex mysteries so far with a very good central plot. And if you are starting the series with this book, you'll miss
Enough to whet your appetite with no spoilers: Georgia Wells is a successful actress who was once engaged to a Richard Portland-Smith, a barrister who disappeared years earlier. Campion had been commissioned to find Portland-Smith, which he does, but by the time he catches up to him, he's dead. While trying to figure out what exactly happened to Portland-Smith, Campion is drawn into the often not-so-nice world of haute couture, in which his sister Val has become a successful designer. Wells is Val's best client, and Campion finds himself also joining the party set that includes Wells. However, another death, virtually under Campion's nose, seems to implicate Val; Campion must now figure out whodunit to help clear his sister's name.
I really enjoyed this one; a very well thought out and well-plotted mystery. Some may find it a bit "racist" in parts, but do remember as you're reading it the times & context in which these ideas occur.
Lovely book and I can't wait to get to the next one!
Show More
something, because Amanda Fitton makes her return in this installment, so go back and read them one by one from the beginning.Enough to whet your appetite with no spoilers: Georgia Wells is a successful actress who was once engaged to a Richard Portland-Smith, a barrister who disappeared years earlier. Campion had been commissioned to find Portland-Smith, which he does, but by the time he catches up to him, he's dead. While trying to figure out what exactly happened to Portland-Smith, Campion is drawn into the often not-so-nice world of haute couture, in which his sister Val has become a successful designer. Wells is Val's best client, and Campion finds himself also joining the party set that includes Wells. However, another death, virtually under Campion's nose, seems to implicate Val; Campion must now figure out whodunit to help clear his sister's name.
I really enjoyed this one; a very well thought out and well-plotted mystery. Some may find it a bit "racist" in parts, but do remember as you're reading it the times & context in which these ideas occur.
Lovely book and I can't wait to get to the next one!
Show Less
LibraryThing member saroz
Well, that was...different.
Having read all of the Campion books up to this point, in order, I find myself wondering just what Allingham set out to do with The Fashion in Shrouds. It's not a particularly smooth novel. In fact, although I don't have any evidence for the theory, it reads like a book
It's possible, then, that Allingham really didn't want to write about Campion any more, much as Agatha Christie became sick of Hercule Poirot and tried to sideline him in his later novels as much as possible. Shrouds almost reads as if it was envisioned as a romance, not a mystery, with Campion's sister Val and her client Georgia taking most of the spotlight if not the actual lead. Other reviews have chastised the book for its racism (historical but undeniable), but the jaw-dropper really is the anti-feminist rhetoric, which frankly forms most of the narrative voice. It's hard to read today, all the more because without the strange ruminations on women's minds, their flights of emotion, what they could and should give up for a man, and some remarkably biting chauvinistic dialogue, there's not much of a narrative left! This is a melodrama, a late 1930s "B" picture about star-crossed lovers that just happens to have the peculiarly dark cloud of Albert Campion wandering through it and prompting people for exposition. As Allingham certainly penned pure romances, it would be interesting to know if Shrouds was intended as just such a novel - wish-fulfillment stuff for a very different kind of reader - before she realized she needed a new Campion adventure. Campion's infamous line to his sister that she may need "a good cry or a nice rape," in context, is clearly the equivalent of someone saying "You just need to get laid" today, but it still has the awkward, harsh sound of someone speaking in a cheap romance novel, not easygoing, upper-class detective fiction.
Yet, Shrouds isn't particularly easygoing, anyway. The whole book is notably grim compared to earlier Campion novels, too. In Dancers in Mourning, the previous thriller, Allingham started to suggest a certain seediness to the lifestyle of the young and wealthy which the aging Campion found distasteful. Now she is making that very clear, from her overly lush descriptions of the fashion industry and its workers to the macabre details of the murdered bodies. Bright artifice and dark reality are being constantly contrasted, and both Mr Campion and his author seem troubled by everything they see. With World War II on the horizon, it's hard not to wonder if Allingham saw an end to frivolity - and, perhaps, an end to the usefulness of her Harlequin-esque hero entirely. As it is, between 1933 and 1938, Allingham published six Campion novels or collections, the last being Shrouds. She would not return to the character until Traitor's Purse, three years later, and she would never write about him with such frequency again.
What's to enjoy about The Fashion in Shrouds? The novel boasts one of Allingham's best titles, after a run of rather plebeian ones like Mystery Mile and Sweet Danger. It's fun to watch Allingham juggle characters, as usual, although in this case there may simply be too many to really follow. Perhaps most winningly, in the midst of the muddled anti-feminist focus, Allingham has tomboy Amanada define two types of relationship: "cake-love" versus "bread-and-butter love." It's the kind of practical, gentle wit that characterizes so many of the previous Campion novels - and it's sorely felt for its relative absence here.
Having read all of the Campion books up to this point, in order, I find myself wondering just what Allingham set out to do with The Fashion in Shrouds. It's not a particularly smooth novel. In fact, although I don't have any evidence for the theory, it reads like a book
Show More
that may not have been originally intended for Campion at all. He's a brooding presence, far from the faux-Harold Lloyd figure affected in the earlier novels, and he only really shines in a few interactions with Lugg, his manservant, and Amanda, his fiance. Otherwise, his function is largely a mechanical one as the investigator - he is almost always called Mr Campion, not Albert, as if to increase audience disaffection - and his overall attitude is more than a little dour.It's possible, then, that Allingham really didn't want to write about Campion any more, much as Agatha Christie became sick of Hercule Poirot and tried to sideline him in his later novels as much as possible. Shrouds almost reads as if it was envisioned as a romance, not a mystery, with Campion's sister Val and her client Georgia taking most of the spotlight if not the actual lead. Other reviews have chastised the book for its racism (historical but undeniable), but the jaw-dropper really is the anti-feminist rhetoric, which frankly forms most of the narrative voice. It's hard to read today, all the more because without the strange ruminations on women's minds, their flights of emotion, what they could and should give up for a man, and some remarkably biting chauvinistic dialogue, there's not much of a narrative left! This is a melodrama, a late 1930s "B" picture about star-crossed lovers that just happens to have the peculiarly dark cloud of Albert Campion wandering through it and prompting people for exposition. As Allingham certainly penned pure romances, it would be interesting to know if Shrouds was intended as just such a novel - wish-fulfillment stuff for a very different kind of reader - before she realized she needed a new Campion adventure. Campion's infamous line to his sister that she may need "a good cry or a nice rape," in context, is clearly the equivalent of someone saying "You just need to get laid" today, but it still has the awkward, harsh sound of someone speaking in a cheap romance novel, not easygoing, upper-class detective fiction.
Yet, Shrouds isn't particularly easygoing, anyway. The whole book is notably grim compared to earlier Campion novels, too. In Dancers in Mourning, the previous thriller, Allingham started to suggest a certain seediness to the lifestyle of the young and wealthy which the aging Campion found distasteful. Now she is making that very clear, from her overly lush descriptions of the fashion industry and its workers to the macabre details of the murdered bodies. Bright artifice and dark reality are being constantly contrasted, and both Mr Campion and his author seem troubled by everything they see. With World War II on the horizon, it's hard not to wonder if Allingham saw an end to frivolity - and, perhaps, an end to the usefulness of her Harlequin-esque hero entirely. As it is, between 1933 and 1938, Allingham published six Campion novels or collections, the last being Shrouds. She would not return to the character until Traitor's Purse, three years later, and she would never write about him with such frequency again.
What's to enjoy about The Fashion in Shrouds? The novel boasts one of Allingham's best titles, after a run of rather plebeian ones like Mystery Mile and Sweet Danger. It's fun to watch Allingham juggle characters, as usual, although in this case there may simply be too many to really follow. Perhaps most winningly, in the midst of the muddled anti-feminist focus, Allingham has tomboy Amanada define two types of relationship: "cake-love" versus "bread-and-butter love." It's the kind of practical, gentle wit that characterizes so many of the previous Campion novels - and it's sorely felt for its relative absence here.
Show Less
LibraryThing member ben_a
Wonderful monstrous, self-absorbed actress. And one does like Amanda Fitton. Not memorable otherwise. (3.7.08)
LibraryThing member hazelk
I don't quite know what it was but I didn't enjoy this as much as the other of Allingham's Campion stories.
I don't know if it was the milieu, the frankly dated speech or just that it was rather overwritten.
I don't know if it was the milieu, the frankly dated speech or just that it was rather overwritten.
LibraryThing member Figgles
One of her better Albert Campion mysteries. Campion's sister Val, a successful fashion designer has her man stolen from under her nose by the actress Georgia Wells. When Georgia's husband turns up dead after taking a cachet of asprin that Val gave to Georgia things look dodgy for Val. And then
Show More
there's the mystery of the suicide of Georgia's previous fiancee. Plus Albert's own tangled love life. Great read, though sometimes Allingham's style is a bit elliptical. Show Less
LibraryThing member sonofcradock
Most certainly one of the best written mystery novels I've ever encountered, both in style and form. I was writing down favorite bits of exposition the whole time I was reading. It can be a bit off-putting in its treatment of women. Ms Allingham seemed very conflicted over her ideas of how "modern"
Show More
women should behave, and it came across as very angry and almost downright ugly a few times. Maybe it was her reactionary attitude to the times in which she wrote or maybe it was her self-consciously overcompensating writing as herself a successful modern women, especially given the setting of this book - fashion, with lots of strong, central female characters. Like I said, a bit off-putting, but it actually adds a layer that makes me want to re-examine the whole thing and see what she was getting at exactly. It's my first novel length of hers (aside from some Campion short stories), so I will continue and see if it pervades all of her writing. As for the story itself, character development, tone and style, really great. Show Less
LibraryThing member RedQueen
Campion is always a delight and this is a great example. Including his sister, his almost fiancee, a small boy & Lugg, this is a story as much about the sort of people involved as about the deaths and who did what. I'd spend time with any of them & you should too!
LibraryThing member ChazziFrazz
Albert Campion finds himself in the middle of a mystery. Not unusual for him, but what is unusual is that involves his sister Val.
Val is an established designer in the fashion industry. She works for a high end fashion house and has some high end clients. Among them is Georgia Wells, a well known
Georgia is currently married and known as Lady Ramillies. Interesting that her previous fiancé disappeared and his body was found 3 years later — by Mr. Campion. When Georgia decides she wants something or someone, she usually get is. When she takes a fancy to Alan Dell, a little later her current husband, Ramillies, conveniently dies of a coronary. Hmmm…
Campion feels the deaths of Well’s husband and fiancé are linked and there is more to it than meets the eye.
Various characters have the possibilities of being the murderer. Even Wells!
Written in 1938, it is the product of the “Golden Age” of British mysteries. It is an enjoyable read from an author who was known and respected along with Christie, Sayers, Tey and a few others.
Val is an established designer in the fashion industry. She works for a high end fashion house and has some high end clients. Among them is Georgia Wells, a well known
Show More
and respected stage actress. A woman who is quite a manipulator and expects and gets what she wants.Georgia is currently married and known as Lady Ramillies. Interesting that her previous fiancé disappeared and his body was found 3 years later — by Mr. Campion. When Georgia decides she wants something or someone, she usually get is. When she takes a fancy to Alan Dell, a little later her current husband, Ramillies, conveniently dies of a coronary. Hmmm…
Campion feels the deaths of Well’s husband and fiancé are linked and there is more to it than meets the eye.
Various characters have the possibilities of being the murderer. Even Wells!
Written in 1938, it is the product of the “Golden Age” of British mysteries. It is an enjoyable read from an author who was known and respected along with Christie, Sayers, Tey and a few others.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Matke
A good Albert Campion outing with some great development of Amanda’s character. The story is somewhat hampered by too many characters, and by a disconcerting attitude toward the “essential nature of women.” But the humor and the convoluted plot make up for any faults.
LibraryThing member DeltaQueen50
I really enjoyed The Fashion in Shrouds by Margery Allingham, the 10th book in her Albert Campion series. I was intrigued by the characters which included both Campion’s sister, fashion designer Valentine as well as the reappearance of Amanda Fitton, who first made her appearance in book number
The mystery is quite complex as Campion tries to figure out how a popular actress manages to have the unwanted men in her life conveniently die. This actress is vain, selfish and self-obsessed but could she be intelligent enough to carry out a murder? Then when his own sister is implicated in the recent death of the actress’ latest husband, he realizes that he has to solve the mystery and find out who is the murderer.
As well as giving the reader more information about the mysterious Campion, and giving us clues to work through toward solving the mystery, the author uses this novel to expose some less than stellar truths about fashionable society in 1930’s London. There were a few racist and sexist statements that reflect the 1930s viewpoint but overall this was a very good addition to the series.
Show More
5, Sweet Danger. Amanda has now grown up and is working as an aircraft engineer. She and Albert decide to work together gathering information and so embark on a fake engagement but really they are fooling no one, these two are meant to be together.The mystery is quite complex as Campion tries to figure out how a popular actress manages to have the unwanted men in her life conveniently die. This actress is vain, selfish and self-obsessed but could she be intelligent enough to carry out a murder? Then when his own sister is implicated in the recent death of the actress’ latest husband, he realizes that he has to solve the mystery and find out who is the murderer.
As well as giving the reader more information about the mysterious Campion, and giving us clues to work through toward solving the mystery, the author uses this novel to expose some less than stellar truths about fashionable society in 1930’s London. There were a few racist and sexist statements that reflect the 1930s viewpoint but overall this was a very good addition to the series.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Helenliz
This isn't the best entry in the series. There are an increased number of characters here, a number of them female.Spolier ridden review follows.
The crimes seems to be centered upon Georgia Wells, an actress who is portrayed as voluptuous, a femme fatale who goes after what she wants and expect to
Also in the frame is Campion's sister, Val. She's the designer at a fashion house. While seeming, to modern eyes, to have a perfectly sensible career and her life in balance, she is repeatedly portrayed as being inferior to Campion and men in general. She has a suitor, Alan Dell, who also has a successful career as an aircraft designer. Along the way, he is seduced by Georgia Wells, before offering marriage of a form that would lead me to tell him to stuff it.
The third woman with a key part to play is Caroline Adamson, who starts the book as a model at the design house, until she leaks a new design for Georgia's latest dress and appears with Ramillies wearing the same dress as Georgia at a nightclub they all attend on the same evening. She is variously portrayed as a victim and a villain.
The final female comes off a bit better. Amanda is a young lady of good family, who gets herself involved with the investiagtion and, to explain her presence, engaged to Campion. By the end I remain unclear of this is still a fake engagement or not. It leaves an odd taste in the mouth, the age difference especially.
The murders start with the discovery of a 3 year old body of Georgia's previous fiance, Richard (later we find out that they were married), he vanished and not long after Georgia marries Raymond Ramillies, to whom she is married at the start of the book. The fact of her marriage leads you to the conclusion that she knew that Richard was dead, aiming to replace him with Raymond, When Raymond dies, there's the suspicion that she was trying to replace him with Alan. The idea that this is somehow Georgia's doing is played out against the constant repetition that she's not clever enough to carry off that kind of scheme without blabbing.
The book itself is rather complicated, with the police not getting involved until the third death. Then Oates comes along and the investigation takes on more structure. It feels rather like Campion is taking sides, trying to protect his sister and his circle in the middle of the investigation.
It went past quickly enough, but I;m not sure that the tone and the way that the women are presented doesn't leave a sour taste in the mouth.
The crimes seems to be centered upon Georgia Wells, an actress who is portrayed as voluptuous, a femme fatale who goes after what she wants and expect to
Show More
get it, while not being terribly bright, being rather vulgar and not at all classy. At times it seems that she is being set up as the villain, while also being portrayed as not bright enough to carry it off.Also in the frame is Campion's sister, Val. She's the designer at a fashion house. While seeming, to modern eyes, to have a perfectly sensible career and her life in balance, she is repeatedly portrayed as being inferior to Campion and men in general. She has a suitor, Alan Dell, who also has a successful career as an aircraft designer. Along the way, he is seduced by Georgia Wells, before offering marriage of a form that would lead me to tell him to stuff it.
The third woman with a key part to play is Caroline Adamson, who starts the book as a model at the design house, until she leaks a new design for Georgia's latest dress and appears with Ramillies wearing the same dress as Georgia at a nightclub they all attend on the same evening. She is variously portrayed as a victim and a villain.
The final female comes off a bit better. Amanda is a young lady of good family, who gets herself involved with the investiagtion and, to explain her presence, engaged to Campion. By the end I remain unclear of this is still a fake engagement or not. It leaves an odd taste in the mouth, the age difference especially.
The murders start with the discovery of a 3 year old body of Georgia's previous fiance, Richard (later we find out that they were married), he vanished and not long after Georgia marries Raymond Ramillies, to whom she is married at the start of the book. The fact of her marriage leads you to the conclusion that she knew that Richard was dead, aiming to replace him with Raymond, When Raymond dies, there's the suspicion that she was trying to replace him with Alan. The idea that this is somehow Georgia's doing is played out against the constant repetition that she's not clever enough to carry off that kind of scheme without blabbing.
The book itself is rather complicated, with the police not getting involved until the third death. Then Oates comes along and the investigation takes on more structure. It feels rather like Campion is taking sides, trying to protect his sister and his circle in the middle of the investigation.
It went past quickly enough, but I;m not sure that the tone and the way that the women are presented doesn't leave a sour taste in the mouth.
Show Less
LibraryThing member nordie
The Fashion in Shrouds by Margaret Allingham
Detective Albert Campion has a talented dress designer sister with celebrated clients. Georgia Wells is a glamorous actress who exemplifies the 1930s femme fatale. Vain, stupid, and selfish, she attracts men like moths to a flame. When these men die,
Purchased from Audible.
Published in the late 1930s, this is a book much of it's time - there's language and ideas in here that some modern readers might find offensive, so should be avoided if the reader is one likely to jump to indignation.
Richard Portland-Smith disappeared without a trace three years previously. Albert Campion has recently found his skeleton in some woods, with a bullet in the remains. The investigation of his apparent suicide, which turns out to be murder, leads to Richard's former fiancée, the actress Georgia Wells, and onto a further series of deaths. Albert Campion's involvement is more than just professional this time, because the case involves his sister Valentine, Georgia's dress designer and occasional friend.
Georgia's 2nd husband (3rd fiancée after Richard), is due to depart on a diplomatic mission to some Colonial Island State, but whilst his wife flirts with the chief aeronautical designer, the husband is found dead in the plane about to take him off. It's then for Campion and friends to work out whodunnit.
The book is published 20 years after WWI, and just before WWII. A lot can be said about how working women are portrayed - one of the women is a well thought of engineer - but considering this was published in the year proceeding WWII, there is no indication that anything is wrong in Europe. In fact the only people that could be considering trouble are the Colonial foreigners!
So, on the whole a decent crime novel with plenty of twists and turns. A few scenes and characters that had me twitching (but which I cant talk about without giving away some spoilers. Only tip is that you need to pay attention to *everyone*!
Detective Albert Campion has a talented dress designer sister with celebrated clients. Georgia Wells is a glamorous actress who exemplifies the 1930s femme fatale. Vain, stupid, and selfish, she attracts men like moths to a flame. When these men die,
Show More
Albert suspects Georgia is more deliberately fatale than alluring.Purchased from Audible.
Published in the late 1930s, this is a book much of it's time - there's language and ideas in here that some modern readers might find offensive, so should be avoided if the reader is one likely to jump to indignation.
Richard Portland-Smith disappeared without a trace three years previously. Albert Campion has recently found his skeleton in some woods, with a bullet in the remains. The investigation of his apparent suicide, which turns out to be murder, leads to Richard's former fiancée, the actress Georgia Wells, and onto a further series of deaths. Albert Campion's involvement is more than just professional this time, because the case involves his sister Valentine, Georgia's dress designer and occasional friend.
Georgia's 2nd husband (3rd fiancée after Richard), is due to depart on a diplomatic mission to some Colonial Island State, but whilst his wife flirts with the chief aeronautical designer, the husband is found dead in the plane about to take him off. It's then for Campion and friends to work out whodunnit.
The book is published 20 years after WWI, and just before WWII. A lot can be said about how working women are portrayed - one of the women is a well thought of engineer - but considering this was published in the year proceeding WWII, there is no indication that anything is wrong in Europe. In fact the only people that could be considering trouble are the Colonial foreigners!
So, on the whole a decent crime novel with plenty of twists and turns. A few scenes and characters that had me twitching (but which I cant talk about without giving away some spoilers. Only tip is that you need to pay attention to *everyone*!
Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1938
Physical description
288 p.; 18 cm
ISBN
0140007717 / 9780140007718