The Fashion in Shrouds (Paperback)

by Margery Allingham (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
Allingham, a contemporary of Agatha Christie, wrote highly detailed, stylish mysteries. Like Christie's Hercule Poirot, Allingham's Albert Campion became a dominant character in her many novels. In The Fashion in Shrouds, Campion finds himself caught up in a series of murders that surround the well-known actress Georgia Wells. As the story progresses, suspects abound. Even Campion's sister, Val, begins to look guilty. After all, Georgia's latest conquest had been Val's beau. The author's writing style is brilliant and witty, although at times the language is a bit dated. She maintains the reader's interest through her well-defined and intriguing characters and her absorbing plots. Francis Matthews does a wonderful job in his performance, catching all the many dialects of the players. Sure to be fashionable with mystery lovers who prefer Christie to Spillane. Recommended for all public libraries. Theresa Connors, Arkansas Tech Univ., Russellville
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review
Top ranking whodunit in Dorothy Sayers tradition. Mr. Campion rides a merry-go-round while trying to figure out how a lovely actress manages to have opportune deaths remove the wrong men from her life. Campion's sister is implicated in the current husband's death. Ultimately, Campion catches his criminal in the act - and almost loses his own life. Plus sale for non-mysteryites as first rate novel of fashionable London. Suspense - humor - well planned, well written. (Kirkus Reviews) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Vintage Books (January 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0099492792
• ISBN-13: 978-0099492795
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 4.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #939,966 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to Dress for Murder, May 16, 2001

By	Marc Ruby™ "The Noh Hare™" (Warren, MI USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Fashion in Shrouds (Hardcover)

The delightful tale finds Albert Campion working his way through a Chinese puzzle of fashion designers, theatrical and entertainment people trying to solve the disappearance and death of the son of a friend. Richard Portland-Smith, a successful attorney, engaged to the beautiful actress Georgia Wells, disappeared without a trace several years ago, and his remains have finally been found by Campion, apparently having committed suicide. Campion gets the help of his sister, Val, a well-known designer, in meeting the actress, hoping to unravel the reason for Richard's death.

Instead, Campion is drawn into the glittery world of high fashion and theater, where appearances are often confused with reality. When Georgia's husband Sir Raymond Ramillies dies under suspicious circumstances Val is implicated and Albert goes into high gear. He uncovers one ugly secret after another, but the pieces never seem to quite fit together. Motives such as blackmail, greed, drugs and jealousy all abound but Campion is unable to pinpoint a suspect who has both means and opportunity.

This is one of Allingham's longest novels, and certainly is the most complex. It provides glimpses into London's fashion and theatrical world as well as some shattering demonstrations of the prejudices and flaws of the Great Britain's rich and famous. Written in 1938, the book reflects the morality of the times. A sensitive reader may find some statements that are, to put it mildly, politically incorrect. These are unfortunate, and provide an insight into the thinking of the upper classes on either side of the Atlantic, but should not be permitted to detract from the overall quality of the novel.

One of the special delights of this novel is the reappearance of Amanda Fitton, heroine of the "The Gyrth Chalice Mystery." She comes to Albert, seeking help, after a hiatus of six years, and manages to become engaged to him in the space of one evening. She becomes Campion's loyal, if irreverent, assistant and very nearly steals the whole novel. Lugg also gets in his share of grumping and grousing. "The Fashion in Shrouds" is one of Allingham's best, serving up mystery, humor, suspense and social commentary in great big, heaping doses.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best mystery novels I have ever read., April 15, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fashion in Shrouds (Hardcover)

The Fashion in Shrouds is a wonderful novel and one of Margery Allingham's best Campion mysteries. One of the things that distinguishes it from your run-of-the-mill mystery is that it focuses clearly (and sometimes brutally) on the main characters and subtly draws the reader into their world. The author also provides some stunningly honest viewpoints on relationships between men and women that are relevant and insightful even today. A great book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Murder: I think it's unethical and ungentlemanly and unkind.", June 25, 2006

By	Mary Whipple (New England) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

This review is from: Fashion in Shrouds (Hardcover)

As talented and popular in the 1930s and 1940s as fellow mystery writers Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham is now, inexplicably, almost forgotten, except by mystery aficionados. Writing a series of novels featuring Albert Campion, a man of mysterious background who moves comfortably both in aristocratic circles and in the seedy underworld of thugs and criminals, Allingham sets up elaborate plots that cross class lines and entertain the reader with their cleverness. Campion, often aided by Lugg, a former burglar, manages to remain friendly with local police inspectors while operating as a private detective, often hired by the titled nobility with whom he associates.

This novel, written in 1938, opens with the discovery of the fully clothed skeleton of a man who disappeared three years before. A lawyer hoping for a judgeship, the deceased was the fiancé of Georgia Wells, a stage actress and seductress who married someone else just six months after his disappearance. Campion's sister Val, who runs a high fashion design house, is also involved in the mystery, as are the man she loves, who runs an aircraft company trying to sell planes to a foreign country, and Georgia's present husband, a self-important snob who works for the government. The mystery is unusually intricate, and when two more deaths occur, Campion must investigate questions of blackmail, secret relationships, drug shipments, an out-of-the-way restaurant, and characters who look like other characters. He must also deal with a former acquaintance, Lady Amanda Fitton, who has returned--and unexpectedly announced her engagement to him.

Highly entertaining and very fast paced, the novel is cleverly written and full of intrigue, populated with characters who have more substance than the cardboard characters one finds in most mysteries. Allingham's ability to incorporate details of time and place--and class--give this novel a lively sense of the atmosphere of prewar England and the attitudes of its population, not all of them admirable. Elitism, bigotry, and class prejudice are all given voice in this novel, and play a part in the mystery.

Far more literary in style than Agatha Christie, Allingham employs a good deal of humor and irony, though Albert Campion is more phlegmatic than Lord Peter Wimsey (Dorothy Sayer's detective) and less exaggerated than Christie's Hercule Poirot. Allingham, a fine writer, creates well developed plots and memorable characters, and one hopes that her work will be reprinted for a new audience. n Mary Whipple