At first glance, Cyril Hare’s 1951 novel An English Murder, seems to be a fairly typical example of a certain type of golden age detective story. A group of guests are snowed in at an isolated country house over Christmas when a mysterious death occurs and they find themselves involved in a murder mystery. The murderer can only be one of the occupants of the house. So far, so familiar, with a hint of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None.
What sets this apart is the more realistic tone, the deeper characterisation and the political theme of the story, which is set during the years of the 1940s Labour government. Hare was a lawyer who became a judge and his precise, dry and ironic prose style means that although the novel is only some 200 pages, an awful lot is packed in and it does not feel short.
Lord Warbeck is ill, so this small gathering of family and friends over Christmas may be his last. The guests include his son, Robert, who is the leader of a Mosley-style fascist party, and Lady Camilla, Robert’s on–off girlfriend, who would like their relationship to be resolved one way or the other. Then there is his cousin Sir Julius, Chancellor of the Exchequer, who is responsible for the punitive tax regime making post-war country-house life so difficult. Also present is Mrs Carstairs, daughter of the local vicar and wife to the man who would like to succeed Julius as Chancellor. The stage is set for tension and disagreement.
The party is completed by Dr Botwink, a Czech academic historian and survivor of the concentration camps. He is present in the house because he has been carrying out research on historical documents held there. Botwink is a fascinating character, with a keen interest in the nuances of the English language and the distinctive English way of doing things. In both these fields he proves rather more knowledgeable than his hosts.
After the death that at first appears to be suicide and is then confirmed as murder, the investigation is carried out by Sergeant Rogers, the Special Branch detective assigned to Sir Julius, because the local police are unable to get through the snow to reach the house. However, it is Botwink who is the real investigator here, and who is led to the solution of the case by something he finds in a book from the library.
Another crucial clue is provided by his outsider’s ear for the oddness of English expressions, and the precise meaning of the phrase “to have words with someone”.
The explanation of what has taken place is a comment on the England of that time, which is described as a curious mixture of modernisation and anachronistic survivals. An ancient legal oddity means that the crime could not have happened the way it did in another European country, hence the appropriateness of the title. This is almost a “state of the nation” novel, rather than simply a detective story.
The character of the butler, Briggs, is developed in more detail than is usual in this sort of story. He is a man who has devoted his life to the old way of doing things and must now try to adapt to changing times, struggling to keep up standards with a much-reduced complement of staff. He is rather reminiscent of the butler in Kazuo Ishoguro’s novel, The Remains of the Day.
One thing puzzled me, though. Was it normal in upper-class households at that time to have the Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve?
The Good Reader 