A review of Murder Intended by Francis Beeding – 231206

One of my finds of 2023 has been John Palmer and Hilary St George Saunders who collaborated under the nom de plume of Francis Beeding. Murder Intended was originally published in 1932 and is their take on an inverted mystery, albeit with a twist. It is another novel to feature a tontine arrangement where an inheritance is shared by the surviving heirs, always a recipe for murder.

Agatha Delft is a domineering old woman who, under the terms of her late husband’s will, is obliged to hold a dinner on her birthday, November 17^th, and each of her heirs is equally obligated to attend in order to receive their annuity of £200. It is a manifestation of Jaspar’s perverted sense of humour, requiring his wife to carry out a task for which she has no appetite and the potential beneficiaries to toast the longevity of their host, even though they fervently hope she will soon die as they are all cash strapped.

On this particular occasion, Agatha lets it be known that she is too ill to make an appearance but all the rituals, the serving of port by the butler, Rush, and the distribution of the cheques are observed. Without the brooding presence of their host, the guests talk about what would happen if Agatha was no longer around and about murder in general and what were the chances of committing the crime and getting away with it. Not unreasonably, Miss Peebles, Agatha’s companion, feels that the subject with its implied threat to Agatha’s well-being is in poor taste and brings proceedings to a premature end, while informing Agatha of what went on.

That night there is a suspicious death, but it is not Agatha who has met her Maker. The victim is one of the heirs, Rupert, who has a drink problem and who has helped himself during the night to some port which has been laced with poison. The subsequent inquest is treated to a detailed account of the quirkiness of Agatha’s house where liqueur is carefully measured and checked as a precaution against unauthorised consumption, even though she has a fine wine cellar, inherited from Jaspar, kept in another residence which is left vacant. The significance of this house becomes apparent as the story moves towards its denouement.

As other heirs die in suspicious circumstances, it is clear that there is a serial killer at large. Their identity is not difficult to spot, especially as it is all but given away in the first chapter, but the interest in the book lies in whether they will be able to kill everyone on the list or will they be caught. The police, led by Inspector Pilcock, are slow off the mark, but they eventually begin to put the pieces of the jigsaw together.

There is the inevitable damsel in distress, an heir trapped in a wine cellar – surely one of the better fates – a spot of medical archaeology and the lucky chance of some vital records being retrieved just before they are consigned to pulping. The narrative is laced with humour, the dialogue convincing and witty, the characterisation is good, Beeding investing time in the early stages of the book to bring their characters to life, and the general style makes it an easy book to read.

It is an interesting twist on the inverted murder genre and while it does not reach the heights of the other books by Beeding that I have read, it is well worth looking up, especially as the Kindle version is available at a knockdown price. I am sure I will be reading more Beeding in 2024.