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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823
EAN: 9781933397443
ISBN: 1933397446
Label: Felony & Mayhem
Manufacturer: Felony & Mayhem
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 268
Publication Date: 2006-06-25
Publisher: Felony & Mayhem
Studio: Felony & Mayhem

With his first case (see The Crime at Black Dudley), Albert Campion, that chatty, peculiar young man, scored a genteely British coup. His new client, though, is the very American Judge Crowdy Lobbett. His Honor has come into possession of evidence identifying the criminal mastermind behind a gang that is terrorizing New York, and the gang, in response, has begun terrorizing Judge Lobbett. For safety, Campion sends the Judge and his family to Mystery Mile, a secluded house deep in the British countryside. But that safety is illusory: Soon after their arrival the local vicar is killed - a clear message from the gang. The gang, however, has underestimated Campion. Beneath his stream of banter is a razor-sharp detective's intellect, and while he always has a quip at the ready, he is soon sending deadly serious messages of his own. One of the top 50 mysteries of all time - Los Angeles Times

Customer Rating:
Review Summary: excellent plot
Review: Mystery Mile
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This is a wonderful mystery which keeps your attention right to the end. The only drawback for me was the use of various British dialects and slang of that period, which was distracting. Ms Allingham has a real gift for creating a menacing atmosphere. She also is a master of character description; Mr. Campion, Lugg and the other main players are very easy to visualize. The BBC Mystery series of a few years ago which featured some of her books, faithfully brought her characters to life.

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Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Campion steps out of the shadows
Review: This is technically the second Campion mystery, he was a secondary character in THE BLACK DUDLEY but here he steps up to center stage. As the story opens Campion is abroad a trans Atlantic liner headed to London from New York. He manages to avert a tragic accident with a magic act and strike up an acquaintance with a rather overbearing Turkish art dealer. These two seemingly unrelated incidents lead Campion to the role of bodyguard to a retired American judge and his family who are being threatened by a Master Criminal and his gang. Campion calls on old friends who live in an out of the way country village to shelter his charges but trouble soon follows, or was it waiting? Campion finds himself surrounded by death and destruction before he remerges bloodied but of course, triumphant.

This is a mystery thriller very typical of the late 1920 and '30's period complete with lovely damsel in distress, plucky girl sidekick, loyal companion, sinister master criminal complete with far flung network. The hero is always just a bit ahead of everyone else and of course knows just the right people to get the job done but not before he demonstrates his driving skill and great courage overcoming pain.

If you are a fan of the early Saint novels, or Lord Peter Wimsey then you will enjoy this series, Campion has a lot in common with both. He has a mysterious past like the Saint but has a rather loose working relationship with the police like Lord Peter. Like both he keeps up a lightheated banter and shows a mischevious sense of humor.

The flaws of this series are that it is rather dated at times. Some of Campions quips fall flat simply because today's readers just don't understand the 80 year old references. It is also obvious that Allingham is getting to know Campion here, he is very like Sayers' Lord Peter in this one, a resemblence that will diminish in time. Still the plot, while fantastic is clever, the clues to the mysteries are all present but challenging to the reader. The characters do all come to life, even the secondary ones, and the setting is described quite well. All of this comes together to make this a fun read and a great place to begin this series.

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Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Campion emerges as the leading man
Review: In the Black Dudley Murder, Allingham's first book, Albert Campion is one of an ensemble cast. In Mystery Mile, Campion emerges as the clear star - abet a somewhat mysterious and charmingly quirky one. I think I'm going to like Albert a great deal. He's already showing a wicked sense of humor and irony. He's clever but hardly perfect. And there is a real sense of mystery about him - what is his real identity?

This mystery is a solid example of a pre-Depression mystery with a family of swaggering Americans, a mysterious "oriental" (definately a pre-political correctness book), an English country house and a wonderful villian - Simister. Albert meets the Americans on ship when he saves the father's life. It turns out that it was the fifth attempt on the man's life - he's a judge who has a lead on Simister's identity. The book revolves around Albert's efforts to both protect the judge and track down Simister.

Bottom-line: a very pleasant read with enough twists and turns to keep a reader interested. The late 1920 atmosphere is particularly wonderful.

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Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Campion's First Starring Role
Review: One year after his initial appearance in Crime at the Black Dudley, Albert Campion is back. And what a difference a year makes. This Campion is completely fleshed out. He is now, officially the Universal Aunt (`your adventures undertaken for a fee'). Also present are his regular compatriots Lugg (his man) and Stanislaus Oates of Scotland Yard. And let's not forget Autolycus the Jackdaw (who lays an egg).

It is as if Campion has been reinvented out of whole cloth. And it's just wonderful. Campion keeps up a steady patter of nonsense, bad jokes and horrible puns, interspersed with the plants and plots the keep him and his fellow characters alive.

American judge Crowdy Lobbett is saved from one of a series of attempts on his life by Albert's timely intercession with a mouse. As a result Campion is taken on to save the judge from an early demise at the hands of Simister (see The Black Dudley). Lobbett has a clue to Simister's true identity and the evil mastermind intends to remove this threat.

In a stroke of brilliance Campion convinces the Judge to move himself and his family to Mystery Mile at the residence of his two friends Biddy and Giles Paget. This has an inauspicious start when Swithin Cush, the vicar, commits suicide after a session with a palm reader. In short order the Judge disappears and Biddy is kidnapped. The Judge's children Marlowe and Isopel get entangled with the Pagets and typical Allingham version of a Chinese fire drill comes to pass. Allingham's books rarely lack for action, and Mystery Mile is no exception.

Campion often loses in love, but Mystery Mile proves he can win our hearts. He lacks the brilliance of Sayer's Lord Peter Whimsey, but he is by far the cleverer. Bit players like Thomas Knapp and his terrifying mother never fail to enchant, as Allingham shows off a knack at capturing British dialects. This volume spells the establishment of one of mysteries most loved series. One that you will enjoy for many years to come.

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Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "Deserving cases preferred"
Review: When Judge Lobett's life is threatened with murder by a deadly gang that no one can stop, Campion takes on the challenge.

"Deserving cases preferred" takes on a whole new meaning when it becomes clear that the judge has a clue to the identity of the secretive gang leader. Campion has to protect the judge, decipher the clue, and find a killer in order to keep Lobbett from hearing the seventh whistle that would spell his doom...

Mystery Mile was the second Campion novel that Allingham wrote, and the first in which he really stands as the solitary hero of the piece. It has some roughness in the writing which she would work out later in the series, but is still a charming and witty book. Highly recommended.

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