Customer Reviews

Green for Danger

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This is one of the undoubted masterpieces of classic mystery fiction. At least 3 mystery classic collections have chosen it as a top book; I know no other book so chosen. (These are: Bantam Classic Mysteries, from the 1960's, introduced by Anthony Boucher; The Mystery Library, from the 1970's UCSD, with introductions and other features, including one by the author; and the Bantam Mystery collectio, hardcovered from early 1980's by Bantam Books, also with an introduction). Brand writes a clasically constructed tale, with definite victims and murderer (and sleuth). It is full of atmosphere, suspense, and finely constructed fair play. MUST NOT be missed by classic mystery fans.

Born in 1907 in Malaya, Mary Christianna Milne Lewis worked as everything from a governess to a nightclub dancer before discovering her niche as an author with the novel DEATH IN HIGH HEELS. Although she is now best known as the creator of the "Nurse Matilda" stories for children, by the time of her 1988 death she had written seventeen mystery novels; while not as well known in the United States as the works of Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, and Nygio Marsh, they have remained popular in England and Europe and are often considered classics of their kind.

Published in 1944, GREEN FOR DANGER is generally regarded as Brand's best work. Set in an somewhat impromptu English hospital at the height of the Blitz, the story opens with the unexpected death of a patient during what should be a routine surgery--a death which draws the unwilling attention of Brand's re-occuring detective Inspector Cockrill, who is more than willing to dismiss the idea of foul play until one of the nurses involved in the surgery is found stabbed to death on the same operating table. As the investigation evolves, it becomes clear that the killer must be one of six involved with the unexpectedly dead patient, a situation which allows for considerable tension as the story progresses.

Although the plot is remarkably clever and the characters extremely well drawn, GREEN FOR DANGER is particularly famous for its medical setting. Brand presents the surgical proceedures of the era with tremendous clarity and readability; few have equalled her presentation, much less bested it. The novel's war-time period also adds considerable interest to the story and is equally central to the work. These two elements interlock for a fascinating read from start to finish.

As already noted, Brand's novels are not particularly well-known outside of England and Europe. This is a pity: she is a witty, surprisingly ironic writer who knows how to spin a classic English mystery. Fans of the genre who come to her works for the first time are sure to be delighted.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Another book that can be read over and over, and one that the reader will enjoy even more after seeing the wonderful movie starring Alistair Sim as the detective. Set in a remote hospital in the English countryside during WWII, it's cleverly plotted and fun. A great way to be introduced to Ms. Brand's other entertaining reads.

A mystery who dunnit set in a World War II military hospital in England. Brand has a very similar style to Agatha Christie, she is a very accomplished writer in the genre in her own right and does not suffer in comparison with such elevated company. I am reluctant to spell out too much of the plot other than to say it revolves around the Doctors, Nurses and Patients. After all the point of mystery novel reading is trying to fathom out the real evidence from the red herrings yourself and I would hate to rob a potential reader of the fun of trying to solve the crime. I didn't figure it out myself until it was laid out before me by the detective at the end of the book. A worthwhile read from an excellent writer of murder mystery.

For anyone who likes a good old-fashioned mystery; this book even has illustrations. The focus is on Whodunit and not the detective's dysfunctional life or menangerie. The descriptions of a World War II military hospital are detailed and even shocking to modern notions of good medical practice. We've come a long way. The characterization is thin but believable. Unfortunately, the rest of her mystery novels seem to be out of print.

How delightful! After much reading of dark and sinister Nordic mysteries, GREEN FOR DANGER. It's a melodramatic yet farcical mystery with shades of late restoration comedy (think Sheridan's "The Rivals") and humour in time of war (think M*A*S*H) adding a dash of detective-in-rumpled mackintosh (think Peter Falk's Columbo).

Brandt's murder mystery, first published in 1944, is set in England during WW2 at a manor turned military hospital. She begins the novel like a playbill: listing the cast of doctors and nurses (and suspects) through their acceptance of service letters.

The comparison to "The Rivals" and farce comes early in the novel. Brand uses word blunders and intentional misspelling to accompany her use of language and colour to spice up her mystery. While the first victim's wife, Widow 'iggins, is a poor Mrs. Malaprop, the author creates many simple errors such as "syren" suits and "animiles." Yet other 50 cents words are spelled correctly: two in one paragraph - lugubriously and encomiums. She also employs use of such Britishisms as Box and Cox, Chalk and Cheese.

By Chapter 2, almost all the principals have nicknames. We have Woody, Freddi, Barney, Don Juan, and plump, little Major Moon showing "funny, little schoolboy expressions." The patients also have nicknames: the oldest is "Pop," the tallest is "Lofty," the shortest,"Tich," and the bald is "Curly." Even Detective Inspector Cockrill earns his childhood nickname of "Cockie."

Colour is dominant and offers a few red herrings. Many examples of the colour green serve as clues. Both patients and medical personnel wear long green gowns - some have green masks. The centre cylinder on Barnes' anaesthetic trolley has a green-coloured and dangerous cylinder of carbon dioxide. The operating theatre is a "shining green place," "a hot. green room." The very title of the mystery GREEN FOR DANGER is self-explanatory.

Sentimentalism also abounds. There are goodly examples of sentimental romantic attachments (shades of a less subtle Hot Lips and Frank pairing in MASH) but the one that pleased this reader was the hospital security guard's dismay over Joseph Higgins obituary stating erroneously that Higgins has Given his Life for Others in an air-raid. (This obit error is also a valuable clue!)

And Brand doesn't forget the double gallant aspect of restoration comedy. Remember the end and re-read the setting of the last paragraphs. Eden calls Woody a gallant person. Gay and gallant. Major Eden, the former Harley Street surgeon, has been all along a gallant of the Captain Absolute variety. Their tryst occurs amidst a sentimental setting: the paragraph that begins "The apples were young and green upon the boughs..."

This one is well worth the price and will stand a quick holiday-at-the-beach read or a more careful, detailed approach. The illustrations are an unexpected treat.

This book may not be as well known among mystery fans as it deserves to be. Wonderful plotting, touches of humor, a memorable detective, and a fascinating setting - what more can one ask for? I think one mark of a great mystery is that it can be re-read with pleasure, and this one qualifies - read it twice to catch all the red herrings you fell for the first time!

I am an absolute nut over Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, and I've read a number of their contemporaries as well such as Marjory Allingham and Ngaio Marsh. I thought I'd mined the entire Golden Age Detective story authors, and then I discovered Christianna Brand! Her Inspector Cockrill is a marvel, and this book definitely deserves to be rated as her masterpiece. It has a complex and intriguing plot, with a delicious sense of humour woven in between the pages. The novel takes place in England during the Blitz, and the setting is a country military hospital. You'd think they'd have enough natural deaths in such a setting, but it appears that a murderer is loose in Heron's Park hospital. Brand works with a small group of suspects (6 only), but even with that it's not easy to figure out. And small chain-smoking, dishevelled Inspector Cockrill is a gem. Need to read more of these!

Christianna Brand is one of the lesser-known lights of Golden Age detective fiction, which is a shame, because she has enough talent to be far better-known. This mystery, set at a military hospital during World War II, is one of my favorites. Brand knew her stuff when it came to military hospitals, and the details really serve to ground the plot; she knows exactly how the wards would have been laid out, how much medicine the patients would have been given, who did what, who went where... and, of course, there were the usual vagaries of the war: bombing, cramped shelters, black-out. The mystery itself is interesting. I think the story wouldn't have been half so powerful if she had taken a more minimalist approach, which is yet another reason to love her-- every detail matters.