[Mrs. Bradley 01] • Speedy Death

The female sleuth introduced in this classic Golden Age mystery “is a cackling, leering, hooting delight—a boon to the country house murder mystery” ( The Guardian ).

It’s not often the eccentric Mrs. Bradley finds herself at an elegant country manor for dinner. It’s certainly the first time she’s ever tended to a corpse at one when the body of a woman, Mountjoy, is discovered in the bathtub upstairs. The initial cause of death is claimed to be accidental drowning, but the quick-witted Mrs. Bradley has other ideas. A psychoanalyst by trade and a natural sleuth by virtue of intelligence, Mrs. Bradley will find both a murderer and a motive among the guests. Unless, of course, the killer finds her first.

“Begins like a parody of a country house murder. But you soon see that the author means the jokes, and also develops both a tricky mystery and a quite solid argument about crime and its disruption of society. Then she brings it all to a head in a very remarkable conclusion. . . . Outstanding.” ― The Herald

“One of the Big Three women detective writers” ― The Observer

“A crime writer who, in her day, ranked with Christie and Sayers.” ― Daily Mail

“Extremely well-constructed story of murder and detection . . . Mrs. Bradley is the prize piece.” ― Daily News (New York)

“Gladys Mitchell can always be relied upon for a packed and meaty novel, and an intelligent one at that.” — The Guardian