Lord Peter October: Murder Must Advertise

This month we're reading Murder Must Advertise wherein Lord Peter gets to play at a job!

Sorry I was pretty much out of the loop last month. I'll do better this month. What with the hurricane, Mr Majkia coming down sick and then ending up in hospital, I was a bit distracted. Things are looking up here, so let's read Lord Peter!

I've been slowly reading the Lord Peter Wimsey series in publication order over the past few years, and Murder Must Advertise is next up for me, so I'm excited to join you all!

My favourite Wimsey, yay!

>2 majkia: It's amazing you found time to be around at all with so much going on!

>3 christina_reads: it's my second favorite Wimsey, after The Nine Tailors.

LOL, I read this last month (and now tackling the short stories in Hangman's Holiday)! My favorite book in the series so far.

Finished! I'm enthusiastic about the office setting, less so about the criminal plot.

>5 fuzzi: I think I'd just put them in the opposite order, but it's tight. One of them always features on my top 10 list.

I finished this one a couple days ago and really liked it! It might be my favorite in the series so far; there's a ton of superfluous detail about the ad agency, but I found myself chuckling at all the humorous and completely realistic office arguments! I was a little less patient with the cricket match, since I know nothing about the game, and except for one or two (admittedly important) details, the match doesn't affect the plot.

I got a little impatient with Peter's Harlequin antics also. Has he always been this acrobatic? Is he actually Spiderman?

Also, was anyone else disappointed by the resolution to the drug plot? They figure out who the mastermind is, but it's a character we only meet in one brief scene, and we don't know anything about his motives or personality or anything! To me, that was the more interesting mystery, because Victor Dean's murderer gets easier and easier to spot as the book goes on.

But aside from those gripes, I really did enjoy the book, I swear! :) And I loved the sneaky little reference to Harriet Vane -- can't wait for Gaudy Night!

>9 christina_reads: I too was surprised by the acrobatic stuff. Did you catch the 3 cartwheels in the office hallway? And I agree on your hidden question.

>9 christina_reads: Christina's remark that she really did enjoy Murder Must Advertise reminds me of a comment made by Jacques Barzun and Wendell Hertig Taylor in A Catalogue of Crime about Unnatural Death:

"That is the trouble with all the great masters—they accustom us to such dazzling performances that when they give us what would seem wonderful coming from other hands, we sniff and act choosy."

Sayers is so good that it's worth our while to point out the little things that bug us among all the wonderful things she offers.

>10 NinieB: Yes, those cartwheels! Plus climbing and diving off the fountain at the party. Whenever he's not solving crimes or collecting rare book editions, he must be working out! :)

>11 NinieB: Ha, that quote definitely makes sense to me! Also, I find that it's easier for me to express what I didn't like about a book than what I did like. I really liked about 95% of this book, but I don't know what to say about those parts other than "It's great, I loved it!" But with the 5% I disliked or had questions about, I can be more specific.

I requested the e-book. Estimated delivery is 2 weeks. No audiobook (if there is one) was available at either library. I have a stack of books checked out so I should be fine!

I started it last night, got about a chapter in before my eyes started closing on their own...due to fatigue, not the book!

I'm listening to an audio version, read by Nadia May. One of my favorites in the series.

Finished the book yesterday. Loved it! Interesting to read that Sayers was an advertising copywriter for a while; I think she was deft at showing the work environment. Loved to see Lord Peter as a working person!

Karen O.

I think that Murder Must Advertise is one of my favourite Wimsey’s. It’s good to see Lord Peter going incognito and rubbing shoulders with working men and women. The advertising campaigns were a highlight.

Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers

In this addition to the Lord Peter series we find the protagonist working undercover at an advertising agency. The reader not only gets a thoroughly entertaining story but also an insider's look at the advertising industry of the 1920s. Included is a secondary plot involving illicit drug culture and smuggling which I found interesting. While I remembered some details from my last read, 35 or so years ago, I still enjoyed the characters and the plot. Definitely recommended, even as a standalone.

I'm such a fan of the piffle.

>19 majkia: I love that word, too!

I'm roughly 1/2 finished with it. I suspect I'll finish it in the hotel tomorrow evening.

November thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/325703

>22 majkia: thanks!

I have finished it and enjoyed every minute of my re-read.

I started very late this month (i.e. today) but I retain a very clear memory of the book. Now about halfway through my reread...

I had forgotten all the little references to Wodehouse in the beginning, including one description of Bredon as a "Cross between Ralph Lynn and Bertie Wooster."

I had to look up Ralph Lynn - he was an English actor who was at the height of his popularity in the 1930s (this book was first published in 1933). Here is a photo of Lynn in the early 1930s from Wikipedia:

>25 leslie.98: Oh, that looks a lot like I imagined Peter!

>26 MissWatson: here's a screenshot from the BBC series with Ian Carmichael:



Looks a bit the same, mmm?

>27 fuzzi: Very much so. I should rewatch the series.

>28 MissWatson: I should, too. I found the set in DVD a few years ago, but have not watched them all.