Portrait of a Murderer: A Christmas Crime Story by Anne Meredith

 Reviewed by Jeanne

Mystery Scene Magazine has a feature entitled “Intriguing First Lines.”  I don’t think they come much better than the first sentence of Portrait of a Murderer:

“Adrian Gray was born in May, 1862 and met his death through violence, at the hands of one of his own children, at Christmas, 1931.”

After that shocking line, the reader has a brief introduction to the Gray family, from steely patriarch Adrian through his six children, including various spouses.  The narrative then breaks and we learn the circumstances surrounding Adrian’s death, including who committed the murder.  This all takes place in the first third of the book; the rest is devoted to portraits of the family as they react to the murder and try to figure out who might have been the perpetrator, though most have a suspect in mind.

To be clear, this isn’t a happy family gathering.  Patriarch Adrian is a vengeful, angry man who keeps his family under his thumb.  He requires attendance at Christmas mostly because he can.  He enjoys making his offspring and spouses trek to Kings Poplars, the remote family manor where both house and atmosphere are chilly, to say the least. All of the children have their own agendas as well.  Richard, the eldest son, wants money to buy a title, having over-extended himself financially in order to impress. Daughter Olivia married a financier, whose investments may not be doing as well as expected; son Brand is a starving artist, trapped in a disastrous marriage; Amy is a bitter woman, having spent her adult life looking after her father; Isobel’s husband has left her; and Ruth married a lawyer who is scorned by the family for having no ambition.  

The book was first published in 1933 and earned praise for the psychology and the plot structure, but did not earn the author—real name Lucy Beatrice Malleson-- wide-spread fame.  Instead, it was her books written under the name Anthony Gilbert that are best known among mystery readers. 

I have been thoroughly enjoying the reprints of classic British mysteries.  When I picked up Portrait of a Murderer, the manor house on the cover made me think this would be a country house mystery.  Instead, it’s more of a study of a family.  For some, Adrian’s death is a new beginning; for others, it’s the death of hopes and dreams.  Relationships within the family change. Even knowing the murderer didn’t stop me from wanting to know how things would turn out. If you’re looking for a pulse pounding thriller, look elsewhere; but if family dynamics and character studies are more your taste, I think you’ll like this one.  I certainly did.

Nevermore: Don't Make Me Pull Over, Portrait of a Murderer, Bonesetter's Daughter, Victoria, A Brief History of Everyone, No Friends but the Mountains,

Reported by Ambrea

Nevermore decided to kick things off with Don’t Make Me Pull Over!:  an Informal History of the Family Road Trip by Richard Ratay.  In his book, Ratay examines the family road trip from beginning to end, starting with the birth of America’s first interstate highways in the 1950s and the proliferation of vehicles.  Our reader said Ratay’s book was an interesting foray into the niche history of America; however, “it wasn’t as funny as I thought it was going to be.”  Although she found a handful of funny stories scattered throughout the book, she said it was comprised mostly of interesting history and, occasionally, a boring anecdote.  She didn’t think I was a bad book, merely one that wasn’t as amazing as it could have been.

Next, Nevermore explored Portrait of a Murderer by Anne Meredith.  A reissue of the classic mystery, Portrait of a Murderer explores the death of Adrian Gray during the Christmas of 1931—and the murderer who committed the dark deed.  Our reader said Meredith’s psychological mystery was dated, but very interesting.  It follows the process of uncovering a murderer, specifically how one family reacts to the murder of the family patriarch and what happens after the discovery.  Overall, our reader said she enjoyed the book immensely and she highly recommended it to her fellow Nevermore members, especially those who enjoy a good mystery or psychological thriller.

Nevermore also took a look at Victoria:  An Intimate Biography by Stanley Weintraub, which highlights the life and times of Queen Victoria, starting with her birth in 1819 to her death in 1901.  Our reader said Weintraub’s biography weighed in at a whopping 700 pages.  “I feel as if I have had a graduate program on British history,” she told her fellow readers.  Although it was very interesting, very in-depth, she found the pace dragged along and made reading difficult.  She didn’t recommend it, except as a possible sleep aid.

Shifting gears to take a look a more scientific perspective of history, Nevermore reviewed A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived:  The Stories in Our Genes by Adam Rutherford.  According to the inside cover, “This is a story about you.  It is the history of who you are and how you came to be…[but] it is also our collective story, because in each of our genomes we carry the history of our whole species.”  A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived takes readers on a journey through genetics, examining how genes can tell our history and, possibly, even predict our future.  Our reader said she really liked reading Rutherford’s book.  Although it takes an extended look at very difficult, very complicated subjects, it offers insights that are understandable and provides explanations that are easy to digest.  Our reader enjoyed A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived and she highly recommended it to the rest of Nevermore.

Next, Nevermore shared No Friend But the Mountains:  Writing from Manus Prison by Behrouz Boochani, translated by Omid Tofighian.  In 2013, Kurdish journalist Behrouz Boochani was illegally detained on Manus Island, an island in northern Papua New Guinea, and he’s been there ever since.  Typed out on a mobile phone, his memoir is a vivid and heart-wrenching look at incarceration, exile, and survival.  Our reader said Boochani’s writing is absolutely beautiful, even bordering on poetic.  No Friend But the Mountains is a fascinating look at one man’s experiences, as well as a vivid portrayal of injustice that affects a broad swathe of people.  Although our reader has only finished half of the book, she highly recommends it.

Last, Nevermore explored Amy Tan’s novel, The Bonesetter’s Daughter.  LuLing Young and her daughter, Ruth, have always shared a difficult relationship; however, as Ruth uncovers more about her other’s tumultuous life in China, she discovers more than she ever expected—secrets and terrible curses and profound hope.  Our reader said she was thrilled to simply sit and read The Bonesetter’s Daughter.  “If you’ve ever read Amy Tan,” she told the rest of Nevermore, “you fall in love with her.”  Like all of her writing, The Bonesetter’s Daughter captures a portrait of Chinese culture, human failings, and immigration experience.  Tan creates an involved, immersive story that’s “very, very good,” our reader continued.  She took a week to read Tan’s novel and she delighted in every minute.