Author: Sharon

Episode 3: CLOUDS OF WITNESS, part 1

~ Sharon

In which Charis and Sharon discuss the first half of CLOUDS OF WITNESS, wherein Peter must defend his brother, the Duke of Denver, after the latter is accused of murdering their sister’s fiancé.

We cover British vs. American detective fiction traditions and what CLOUDS OF WITNESS owes to the Victorian country house mystery. We also talk about Sharon’s theory of epigraphs, depictions of marriage in the novel, options (or lack thereof) for independent women in the 1920s, and what a mystery with Charles Parker as the protagonist might look like.

This episode covers up through chapter 8 of the book and does not spoil the whodunnit.

(An alert for our listeners: this episode contains the sound effect of a rifle firing. If you wish to avoid hearing it, skip past minute 1:10.)

Download the episode 3 transcript.

Shownotes:

  • “The Simple Art of Murder”; Raymond Chandler’s essay on British detective fiction (in which we think he was quite unfair to Sayers). Spoiler alert, the essay does give away the murder method for BUSMAN’S HONEYMOON, so don’t read it if you’d like to be surprised!
  • We reference Edgar Allan Poe as the progenitor of the detective story with “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and “The Purloined Letter” (full texts in the links).
  • “Love a good diagram!”; The floorplan of Riddlesdale Lodge from the book:
Picture of the floorplan of Riddlesdale Lodge
  • “She’s really like the Maris Crane of the Denver family”; Sharon is referring to the American sitcom FRASIER, in which there’s a running joke that the character of Maris Crane (also immensely unpleasant and whom none of her in-laws like) is never shown onscreen because the descriptions of her are so ridiculous.
  • We reference THE MOONSTONE and THE WOMAN IN WHITE, two novels by 19th-century writer Wilkie Collins, in our discussion of influences for CLOUDS OF WITNESS. Charis’ homework from this episode is to read THE MOONSTONE and see if she thinks Rachel Verinder is a model for Mary Wimsey.
  • We also briefly touch on THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (Arthur Conan Doyle) as another literary reference for the novel.
  • New Zealand writer Ngaio Marsh is considered one of the Golden Age “Queens of Crime” (along with Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers). Sharon’s homework from this episode is to read some of Marsh’s Inspector Alleyn novels and see if he reminds her of Parker.
  • We touch on how the title of CLOUDS OF WITNESS is a reference to the Biblical book of Hebrews, chapters 11 and 12.

Episode 2: WHOSE BODY?, part 2

~ Sharon

In which Charis and Sharon discuss the second half of WHOSE BODY? We cover shellshock, literary Modernism, the novel’s experimentation with narrative form, and Sayers’ interest in theology, vocation, and social responsibility. Additionally, we reveal the culprit, our favorite lines, and what else we were reading at the time we recorded this episode!

Download the episode 2 transcript.

Shownotes:

  • The Tumblr post about Poirot that Charis loves is this one.
  • Sharon mentions THE COUNTRY AND THE CITY (Raymond Williams) in relation to our discussion on the false binary in literature between pastoral and urban spaces.
  • The Sherlock Holmes story that Charis brings up in relation to secrets in the countryside is “The Adventure of the Copper Beeches” (full text available online here).
  • In the discussion on Modernism, Sharon references THE GREAT WAR AND MODERN MEMORY (Paul Fussell), an influential book of literary criticism. Fussell’s thesis is that the trauma of WWI necessitated the changes in poetic language and narrative representation that gave rise to Modernist forms. Sharon also very cheekily brings up Virginia Woolf’s claim that “in or about December, 1910, human nature changed,” from Woolf’s essay titled “Mr. Bennett and Mrs. Brown” (full text available online here).
  • Sharon’s example of the type of formal experimentation most closely associated with Modernism is ULYSSES (James Joyce).
  • When we recorded this podcast, Sharon was also reading MAGIC FOR LIARS (Sarah Gailey), wherein a non-magical PI is hired to investigate a murder at a magic school.
  • Charis was reading THE FOREST UNSEEN (David George Haskell) and NIGHT WATCH (Terry Pratchett) when we recorded this podcast. THE FOREST UNSEEN chronicles Haskell’s year of observing one square meter of an old-growth Tennessee forest over the course of a year. NIGHT WATCH is a Discworld novel that also deals with themes of justice and social responsibility.

Episode 1: WHOSE BODY?, part 1

~ Sharon

In which Charis and Sharon discuss WHOSE BODY? as an introduction to the Lord Peter series, the uncomfortable anti-Semitism contained in the book, some biographical details about Sayers’ life, and how hideously underpaid Bunter is.

This episode covers up to chapter 7 of the book and does not spoil the whodunnit.

Download the episode 1 transcript.

Shownotes:

via GIPHY
[caption: the character Lucille Bluth, who is extremely wealthy, asks earnestly, “I mean, it’s one banana, Michael. What could it cost? 10 dollars?”]