Rating:
Date added: 6.4.2015
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Im reading Allinghams Campion series in order, and this was next on my list - interesting, but I had a hard time getting into it. I think it was because of the Palinode family, around whom the mystery (such as it is) evolves. I kept getting the impression I was supposed to find them charming and whimsical, but I just found them rather pathetic and obnoxious (made it hard to be sympathetic to them as characters, needless to say).Also, the previous two installments of the series (Traitors Purse and Pearls Before Swine) had rather heroic, James Bondesque plots with the monolithic menace of World War II overshadowing the action, and it felt as if Campions action (or failure to act in time) would lead to some horrific, unspeakable event. Here, Allingham takes us to Apron Street, a tucked away corner of dreary post-war London. Mysterious deaths cant be explained away by Scotland Yard, so Campion and a very welcome Lugg are recruited to move into a boarding house and infiltrate the locals. Colorful characters abound, and my favorite scenes are those with Lugg and Campion- having said that, I just couldnt sink my teeth into this one! Other reviews Ive read have pointed out the rather esoteric conversation of the Palinodes as the reason some readers might be put off- I didnt have a problem comprehending them and their crumbling sense of entitlement and class-consciousness, I just didnt find them very engaging characters. More Work for the Undertaker (Albert Campion Mystery #13) by Margery Allingham
