Customer Reviews

Die Laughing (Daisy Dalrymple Mysteries, No. 12)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Newly wed to the rather longsuffering Chief Inspector Alex Fletcher, the Hon. Daisy Dalrymple is coping with a disapproving mother-in-law and a nagging toothache. Since at least one of those is repairable, she sets off for a dental appointment only to have her usual luck prevail. The dentist is discovered stone dead in his chair, the victim of an overdose of nitrous oxide.

Although his wife, who is with Daisy when she finds the body, assumes the death was a suicide, Daisy notices some significant signs that suggest otherwise. Neither she nor Alex is surprised when it turns out the good doctor is a victim of foul play. So, who is the most likely culprit? The unfaithful wife who is pregnant with her lover's child? Her lover, who had been told the affair was over? The dentist's own lover, who had been informed of the same? Her bad-tempered former military husband? Talk about an embarrassment of riches...

The Daisy Dalrymple series, set in the years following the first World War, are the sort of mysteries that these days get overshadowed by the Hannibal Lecters and Gary Sonejis. For those who just want to be entertained by amusing characters, scintillating dialogue and a good solid puzzle to unravel, that is a shame. DIE LAUGHING is not only delightfully British but has a marvelous hint of farce throughout that makes the reader wish he or she could jump right into the fun. It isn't difficult at all to envision the action taking place on a stage or a movie screen-perhaps with Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant as Daisy and Alex.

What's even better-and something that is all-too-often missing in angst-ridden modern mystery series obsessed with serial killers-is that Ms. Dunn provides all the hints and information necessary for the reader to solve the mystery and identify the culprit. Half the fun of reading this latest installment is finding out if you're right.

Daisy Fletcher dreads seeing her dentist and has put off the appointment as long as her aching tooth allows. But when she arrives at the office, the dentist seems to be missing--missing until the ever-curious Daisy insists on looking in his office and discovering his body. Apparently the good dentist had a habit of abusing nitrous oxide and has poisoned himself. But Daisy sees evidence that it isn't just an accident--that it just might be murder. Could it have been the unfaithful wife? The wife's lover? Or possibly the dentist's lover or her husband? Daisy isn't sure, but she isn't going to rest until she's found out more--and shared the information with her husband, a Scotland Yard detective chief inspector.

Set in 1920s England, DIE LAUGHING investigates the habits of a society where people discuss 'people one knows,' complain about the problems finding servants but keep several on staff, and still defer irrationally to the smallest hint of aristocracy. Although this was a different world, the motives for murder remained the same. And someone who has murdered once just may do so again.

Author Carola Dunn writes with a light touch that kept me smiling. Daisy can't stop her curiosity even though she knows that it drives her husband crazy (fortunately for both of them, it is her curiosity that brings out most of the evidence). The relationship between these characters stands in contrast to that of the victims and suspects, most of whom seemed to be involved in illicit relationships with one another.

I found the beginning of DIE LAUGHING a bit slow and bogged down with social references but Dunn soon picked up the pace and delivered a charming story. Readers will enjoy spotting the killer and then watching Daisy and her husband work their way to the truth.

Daisy and her family make such a great story! I love this book as Daisy settles into her new life as Alex's wife. The characters are wonderful, the humor excellent and the setting is magnificent! This is a definitely an excellent series!

The honorable Daisy Dalrymple, daughter of a viscount, has taken a job writing for a magazine and has married widower Alec Fletcher, a Chief Inspector at Scotland Yard. On a visit to her neighborhood dentist, she discovers the man dead in his chair, a nitrous oxide mask clamped to his smiling face. Suspicious of the cause, Daisy and her husband, in separate ways, manage to uncover clues that direct them to a cold blooded murderer.

Gathering gossip about illicit affairs is a useful addition to Daisy's sleuthing skills. Sometimes this is difficult since she refuses to fit into the social expectations of middle class matrons. Her clashes with her mother-in-law occur frequently. Daisy's ease with servants, her writing, which is viewed as "adventurous" rather than an important part of her life, her choice of up-to-date clothes and music, are only forgiven because of her upper class status.

While this 1920s "new woman" character is likable enough, the story limits itself to an examination of British middle class social forms and styles. This is number twelve of sixteen books in Dunn's Daisy Dalrymple series, with more to come! I suspect that a read of the entire series can offer a fuller depiction of the many changes occurring in England between the wars.

Not unlike Agatha Christie, Carola Dunn writes a cozy mystery series to please an avid mystery reader. Her main character in this series, Daisy Dalrymple has a unique advantage as the detective's wife and even with the social restrictions of England in the 1920's, the dismay of her mother-in-law plus that of her own mother, Daisy manages to solve crimes, a pursuit close to her heart.
Daisy's own dentist, Dr. Raymond Talmadge is known for his magnetic draw of the ladies, but hidden well is his bad practice of inhaling laughing gas which may have led to his accidental death.
Though it looks like suicide or accidental death at first to Daisy's husband, Chief Inspector Alec Fletcher, Daisy has keenly observed it was nothing short of murder. Both the victim's wife and his mistress seek out Daisy in order to persuade her and her husband they are innocent of the crime.
I consider myself an Agatha Christie fan and I can truly say Die Laughing is a gratifying and fun read. Enjoy!

Author J.D. Holiday

Carola Dunn's series are new to me (but won't remain that way!)
Her stories are warm and delightful (Daisy has stolen my heart!)
and it's comforting to know when you pick up one Dunn's books
you will not be offended!

Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher has a knack for stumbling upon bodies. This time, she discovers the local dentist dead in his chair. As Daisy and her husband Alex, a Chief Inspector with Scotland Yard, investigate, they discover that some of their respectable neighbours are hiding some rather scandalous secrets.

This is another solid entry in a consistently enjoyable series. Set in 1920s England, peopled with colourful characters, and with a subtle skewering of the upper class, these books remind me a little of the works of P. G. Wodehouse.

If you enjoy light historical mysteries, you might want to make Daisy's acquaintance.