Shedunnit

Ngaio Marsh was a master of the spooky and the macabre.

Support the podcast and get extra audio goodies by taking part in the Shedunnit Pledge Drive: https://shedunnitshow.com/pledgedrive

Many thanks to my guest, Alex Clark. Her first novel, Dovecombe, will be published in early 2027. It’s a twisted Gothic mystery set in a remote English manor house, and it’s available for pre-order now wherever you get your books. There's more information at her website, https://alexclarkauthor.com.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Dovecombe by Alex Clark
— Castle of Atranto by Horace Walpole
— The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe
— Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
— Dracula by Bram Stoker
— Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
— The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
— Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie
— Hamlet by William Shakespeare
— The Ingoldsby Legends by Thomas Ingoldsby
— Surfeit of Lampreys by Ngaio Marsh
— Macbeth by William Shakespeare
— Death in Ecstasy by Ngaio Marsh
— Vintage Murder by Ngaio Marsh
— Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh
— Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh
— Photo Finish by Ngaio Marsh
— Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
— Spinsters in Jeopardy by Ngaio Marsh
— Tied Up in Tinsel by Ngaio Marsh
— Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh

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There’s an art to bringing classic crime tropes into the 21st century.

Many thanks to my guest, Maureen Johnson. Check out the latest installment in her Stevie Bell mystery series, The Velvet Knife. Learn more about her books on her website at https://maureenjohnsonbooks.com.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village by Maureen Johnson and Jay Cooper (Illus.)
— You Are the Detective: The Creeping Hand Murder by Maureen Johnson and Jay Cooper (Illus.)
— Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
— Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson
— The Velvet Knife by Maureen Johnson
— The Murder at World's End by Ross Montgomery
— I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
— Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
— The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
— Gaudy Night by Dorothy L Sayers

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Why has Agatha Christie’s spinster sleuth endured?

This episode was recorded live at the 2026 International Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay, Devon. Alongside Caroline on the panel was Professor Michelle Kazmer from Florida State University and the historian Rachel Trethewey, with the journalist Sarah Ransome in the chair.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
— A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie
— The Mirror Crack'd by Agatha Christie
— A Pocket Full of Rye by Agatha Christie
— The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie
— The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
— An Autobiography by Agatha Christie
— The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
— Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman by Lucy Worsley
— They Do It With Mirrors by Agatha Christie
— Death Comes as the End by Agatha Christie
— 4.50 from Paddington by Agatha Christie

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Katie Lumsden joins Caroline to examine the swan song of A.J. Raffles.

No major plot spoilers until you hear Caroline say we are "entering the spoiler zone", at 13:03. After that, expect full spoilers.

Learn more about Katie Lumsden, her novels and YouTube channel, at Katie's website, https://www.katielumsden.co.uk/.

A full list of titles in the Penguin series can be found at https://penguinfirsteditions.com/. The next book discussed in this series will be The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Mr Justice Raffles by E.W. Hornung
— The Brotherhood of the Seven Kings by L.T. Meade and Robert Eustace
— The Amateur Cracksman by E.W. Hornung
— The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
— Trilby by George du Maurier

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Where does the tradition of younger women solving crimes begin?

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books and stories mentioned in this episode:
— The Leavenworth Case by Anna Katharine Green
— "Problem One: The Golden Slipper" by Anna Katharine Green, collected in The Golden Slipper, And Other Problems For Violet Strange

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Caroline rereads Christianna Brand's 1944 crime novel, Green for Danger.

Join my live event at the International Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay on Saturday, 19th September. Tickets are available at https://www.iacf-uk.org/.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Green for Danger by Christianna Brand
— "Dear Mr Editor..." by Christianna Brand, collected in Murder by the Book
— Death of Jezebel by Christianna Brand
— London Particular by Christianna Brand; alternate title: Fog of Doubt

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Let’s meet Agatha Christie’s strangest creation.

Join my live event at the International Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay on Saturday, 19th September. Tickets are available at https://www.iacf-uk.org/.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— The Mysterious Mr Quin by Agatha Christie
— The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie
— The Pale Horse by Agatha Christie
— Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie
— The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
— Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie
— The Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie

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Beyond the famous novels, there’s a whole world to discover.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitshow.com/join.

Sign up to the podcast's newsletter to stay in touch between episodes: https://shedunnitshow.com/newsletter

If you'd like to hear Caroline speaking at greater length about Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie, come along to her event at the International Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay on Saturday 19th September at 3pm. Tickets are available from the festival website, iacf-uk.org.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

— The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie

— Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie

— And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

— Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie

— Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie

— Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie

— The Pale Horse by Agatha Christie

— Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie

— The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie

— Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie

— Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie

— Curtain by Agatha Christie

— Absent in the Spring by Mary Westmacott

— Death Comes As The End by Agatha Christie

— Mrs McGinty's Dead by Agatha Christie

— Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

— A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie

— Destination Unknown by Agatha Christie

— Endless Night by Agatha Christie

— A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie

— Nemesis by Agatha Christie

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On science-driven crime fiction in the 1920s and the 2020s.

Many thanks to my guest, Kathy Reichs. The paperback of Evil Bones is published on 30th July in the UK. You can find out more about Kathy and her work at her website, https://kathyreichs.com.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books & sources mentioned in this episode:
— The Missing Moneylender by W. Stanley Sykes
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L. Sayers ad Robert Eustace
— The Bone Collection by Kathy Reichs
— Evil Bones by Kathy Reichs

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Why did Agatha Christie set her murders in villages?

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books & sources mentioned in this episode:
— "God Made the Country" by William Cowper
— The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side by Agatha Christie
— The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie
— The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie
— A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie
— A Pocket Full of Rye by Agatha Christie
— Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie
— The South Country by Edward Thomas
— The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
— An Autobiography by Agatha Christie
— The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
— The Condition of England by Charles F. G. Masterman
— The Strange Death of Liberal England by George Dangerfield
— Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie

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Why is this murder from 1910 still so fascinating to us?

Many thanks to my guest, Hallie Rubenhold. The paperback of Story of a Murder is published on 2nd July in the UK. You can find out more about Hallie and her work, including her previous bestseller about Jack the Ripper's victims, The Five, at her website https://hallierubenhold.com.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Story of a Murder by Hallie Rubenhold
— The Five by Hallie Rubenhold
— I Caught Crippen by Walter Dew

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There's a reason why Agatha Christie knew so much about poisons.

This archive episode of Shedunnit was first published on 1st April 2020.

Books and sources:
—The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
—A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie by Kathryn Harkup
—"In a Dispensary" by Agatha Christie from the collection The Road of Dreams
—Agatha Christie: A Biography by Janet Morgan
—An Autobiography by Agatha Christie
—Guardian Obituary: Rosalind Hicks by Janet Morgan
—The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
—Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
—"Dame Agatha's Dispensary" by Eunice Bonow Bardell in Pharmacy in History, Vol. 26, No. 1 (1984)

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Ronaldo Fagarazzi joins Caroline for a 1920s serial killer mystery.

No major plot spoilers until you hear Caroline say we are "entering the spoiler zone", at 21:21. After that, expect full spoilers.

Read more about John Rhode at Ronaldo's blog, https://witnesstothecrime.wordpress.com.

A full list of titles in the Penguin series can be found at penguinfirsteditions.com. The next book discussed in this series will be Mr Justice Raffles by E.W. Hornung.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Have His Carcase by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Murders in Praed Street by John Rhode
— Bloody Murder by Julian Symons
— Dead Men at the Folly by John Rhode
— The Secret of High Eldersham by Miles Burton
— Devil's Reckoning by Miles Burton
— The Thinking Machine by Jacques Futrelle
— Hendon's First Case by John Rhode
— Death in the Tunnel by Miles Burton
— The Lodger by Marie Belloc Lowndes
— The Silk Stocking Murders by Anthony Berkeley
— Murder Gone Mad by Philip MacDonald
— Some Must Watch by Ethel Lina White
— The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie
— The Case of the Monday Murders by Christopher Bush
— Howard's End by E.M. Forster
— The Paddington Mystery by John Rhode
— Dr Priestley's Quest by John Rhode
— The Mystery of Angelina Frood by R. Austin Freeman
— The Aluminium Dagger by R. Austin Freeman
— The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White
— Green for Danger by Christianna Brand

Related Shedunnit episodes:
— The Telephone Call
— The Detection Club

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Why did Dorothy L. Sayers hate the first Peter Wimsey film so much?

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— The Floating Admiral by the Detection Club
— Ask A Policeman by the Detection Club
— Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L. Sayers and Robert Eustace
— The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Five Red Herrings by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Busman's Honeymoon by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Blood and Sand by Vicente Blasco Ibañez
— "The Silent Passenger" by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Death at Broadcasting House by Val Gielgud and Holt Marvell
— The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers
— "The Mystery of the Spanish Chest" by Agatha Christie
— The Cask by Freeman Wills Crofts
— Lord Peter Views the Body by Dorothy L. Sayers

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Are Agatha Christie’s stories as chaste as they seem?

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Lady Chatterley’s Lover by DH Lawrence
— A Question of Proof by Nicholas Blake
— There’s Trouble Brewing by Nicholas Blake
— End of Chapter by Nicholas Blake
— The Sad Variety by Nicholas Blake
— Autobiography by Agatha Christie
— The Plumed Serpent by DH Lawrence
— Sons and Lovers by DH Lawrence
— The White Peacock by DH Lawrence
— Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
— The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
— The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie
— The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie
— They Do it with Mirrors by Agatha Christie
— What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw! by Agatha Christie
— Double Sin by Agatha Christie
— "The Herb of Death" by Agatha Christie
— A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie
— The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side by Agatha Christie
— A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie
— Nemesis by Agatha Christie
— Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
— "The Tuesday Night Club" by Agatha Christie
— Towards Zero by Agatha Christie
— The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie
— Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie
— Lady C: The Long Sensational Life of Lady Chatterley’s Lover by Guy Cuthbertson

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What George Orwell can teach us about detective fiction.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books and essays mentioned in this episode:
— "Decline of the English Murder" by George Orwell
— Animal Farm by George Orwell
— The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
— "The Vernon Murder" by George Orwell
— The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
— "The Ethics of the Detective Story from Raffles to Miss Blandish" by George Orwell
— No Orchids for Miss Blandish by James Hadley
— "The Simple Art of Murder" by Raymond Chandler

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The childhood nightmare that informed a crime writing career.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— An Autobiography by Agatha Christie
— Giant's Bread by Mary Westmacott
— Unfinished Portrait by Mary Westmacott
— "The House of Dreams" by Agatha Christie
— Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie
— Peril at End House by Agatha Christie
— Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie
— Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie
— Third Girl by Agatha Christie
— At Bertram's Hotel by Agatha Christie
— Elephants Can Remember by Agatha Christie
— Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie
— Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
— Absent in the Spring by Mary Westmacott

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Jim Noy joins Caroline for some Jolly Adventures in a castle.

No major plot spoilers until you hear Caroline say we are "entering the spoiler zone", at 14:58. After that, expect full spoilers.

Please note: This book contains the deliberate killing of an animal, which is discussed from 36:57 to 40:18.

A full list of titles in the Penguin series can be found at penguinfirsteditions.com. The next book discussed in this series will be The Murders in Praed Street by John Rhode.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— The Sanfield Scandal by Richard Keverne
— Carteret's Cure by Richard Keverne
— The Pretender by Clifford Hosken
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L. Sayers and Robert Eustace
— The Famous Five adventure novels by Enid Blyton
— The Abbey Girls Series by Elsie J. Oxenham
— The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie
— The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey
— The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie
— The Problem of the Green Capsule by John Dickson Carr
— The Murders in Praed Street by John Rhode

Related Shedunnit episodes:
— The Locked Room
— The Long Shadow of Edgar Allan Poe

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What could possibly go wrong?

Books and stories mentioned in this episode:

— "The Perfect Plan" by James Hilton

— Lost Horizon by James Hilton

— Goodbye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton

— Murder at School by James Hilton

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The fascinating history of divorce in detective fiction.

My guest was Dr Jen Aston, Associate Professor in Law at Northumbria University. In addition to her other academic work, she's currently leading a project looking at approaches to the history of divorce. Learn more about that at northumbria.ac.uk/divorce_history.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: http://shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— "Murder!" by Arnold Bennett, collected in Resorting to Murder
— Jumping Jenny by Anthony Berkeley
— “The Case of the Discontented Husband” by Agatha Christie, collected in Parker Pyne Investigates
— Death in High Heels by Christianna Brand
— Busman's Honeymoon by Dorothy L Sayers
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L Sayers and Robert Eustace
— Malice Aforethought by Francis Iles
— Holy Deadlock by A.P. Herbert
— Love All by Dorothy L Sayers
— Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L Sayers
— "The Incredible Elopement" by Dorothy L Sayers, collected in Hangman's Holiday

Related Shedunnit episodes:
— The Lady Detective

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