Richard Cadogan, poet and would-be bon vivant, arrives for what he thinks will be a relaxing holiday in the city of dreaming spires. Late one night, however, he discovers the dead body of an elderly woman lying in a toyshop and is coshed on the head. When he comes to, he finds that the toyshop has disappeared and been replaced with a grocery store. The police are understandably skeptical of this tale but Richard's former schoolmate, Gervase Fen (Oxford Professor of English Language and Literature), knows that truth is stranger than fiction (in fiction, at least). Soon the intrepid duo is careening around town in hot pursuit of clues but just when they think they understand what has happened, the disappearing-toyshop mystery takes a sharp turn...
The Moving Toyshop
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"A clever, funny and rightly famous story set in Oxford 30 years before Morse started pounding the beat" (The Times, 100 Best Crime Novels of the Twentieth Century )
"The characters were so engaging and the writing so mischievous, that I thoroughly enjoyed it" (Miles Kington Independent )
"Hilarious adventures" (Washington Post )
"One of the undiscovered treasures of British crime fiction: Crispin's storytelling is intelligent, humane, surprising and rattling good fun" (A.L. Kennedy )
"A classic crime novel with a surreal streak... It's a clever, energetic romp, written with wit" (Val McDermid The Week )
"The characters were so engaging and the writing so mischievous, that I thoroughly enjoyed it" (Miles Kington Independent )
"Hilarious adventures" (Washington Post )
"One of the undiscovered treasures of British crime fiction: Crispin's storytelling is intelligent, humane, surprising and rattling good fun" (A.L. Kennedy )
"A classic crime novel with a surreal streak... It's a clever, energetic romp, written with wit" (Val McDermid The Week )
Book Description
TRY A VINTAGE MURDER MYSTERY
As inventive as Agatha Christie, as hilarious as P.G. Wodehouse - discover the delightful detective stories of Edmund Crispin. Crime fiction at its quirkiest and best.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 28 people found the following review helpful
By ianbrown8
Format:Paperback
The Moving Toyshop was published in 1945, but is set in 1938. This makes for an interesting book in that it straddles two eras of crime fiction. It combines elements of the pre-war classic English detective story (whimsicality, literary allusion, a range of satisfyingly eccentric supporting characters) with hints of the sadistic violence of American pulp fiction. Whimsicality wins by a mile however, and Edmund Crispin's authorial voice and talent for characterization are quirky and appealing. Crucially he also understands the value of brevity.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By wolf
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
A body in a toyshop that isn't there, an investigation by a poet and an Oxford don, clues based on limericks, with diversions for car chases, punting and discussions of unreadable books - all are included in this fun little novella.
Not one for those interested in gritty crime stories or for getting bogged down in plausibility, this will appeal to those with a sense of humour, an affection for the Golden Age detective stories and, perhaps, a faintly literary bent.
Not one for those interested in gritty crime stories or for getting bogged down in plausibility, this will appeal to those with a sense of humour, an affection for the Golden Age detective stories and, perhaps, a faintly literary bent.
14 of 17 people found the following review helpful
By L. Hulme
Format:Paperback
This book isn't exactly a heavyweight in the burgeoning crime genre. I discovered it quite randomly on a recommendation from a friend, after a slow start I found this book nearly impossible to put down. I do however have a nostalgic love for all things 'English' and i love the 1930's. This book perhaps is a precursor to Morse, what with all the galavanting about Oxford. With two colourful characters both chasing a group of mysterious and muderous people who have benefitted from the will of a dead elderly woman, this book is good fun with no real dark undercurrent. What i really enjoyed was the unusual sounding story - the synopsis sounds a bit surreal to start with, but it all unravels in the end. Favourite antiquicated line from the book: "Oh my dear paws!" I shall have to try and use that more in general conversation!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Deservedly the best revviewed and praised of series
I made the mistake of reading the Gervaise Fenn series in the order of publication, and wasn't too impressed with the first two. Read more
Published 5 months ago by J. Severn
4.0 out of 5 stars
a fun and engagin locked room, crime farce
The Moving Toyshop is a locked room, crime farce. Crispin writes in taut, tight prose, that is all show and no tell so that the plot moves along a jaunty pace. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Rob Kitchin
4.0 out of 5 stars
Whimsical and eccentric little mystery
Definitely dated, but overall I enjoyed it. Some of it seems a little unbelievable now, and it's a bit overcomplicated in places, but quite a good romp. Read more
Published 9 months ago by snowqueen01
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Chronicles of Crispin Vol.3
Strangling, kidnapping, shooting, subterfuge, near-drowning, drunkenness, literary clues, foul-mouthed old ladies, chases in and around the streets of Oxford, not to mention mass... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Kenneth F. Mcara
2.0 out of 5 stars
Creaky and old fashioned
This book reads as if it had been written by a schoolboy in the Thirties. It doesn't descend to 'Yaroo' and 'Cripes' but comes close. It's not very ingenious either.
Published 12 months ago by M. S. Howells
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Don Dares Death
A romp of a murder mystery through the streets and Colleges of late 1930's Oxford. I say `romp'; there are some nasty bits - the murder itself, of course, and a dog gets killed,... Read more
Published 14 months ago by phoebes_mum
5.0 out of 5 stars
Welcome respite from reality crime fiction
In the days when one did not have to embed oneself with the local plod in order to write detective fiction, Edmund Crispin conjures up a delightful escapade full of humour, pace... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Mick Read
2.0 out of 5 stars
Very dated, complicated and improbable detective story
Well written with some nice imagery. The story however is wildly improbable - how could the contents and appearance of a shop be changed in an evening, then restored during the... Read more
Published on 24 Dec 2010 by Womble
4.0 out of 5 stars
A fun crime story :)
The book tells the story of a man, Richard Cadogen, who, walking in Oxford at night, finds a toyshop which has a body of a woman in it. Read more
Published on 12 Oct 2010 by miss_spookiness
3.0 out of 5 stars
University Challenged
A generation before Inspector Morse, amateur sleuth Gervase Fen was busy investigating ugly crimes in the beautiful setting of the University town of Oxford. Read more
Published on 2 Sep 2010 by Rotgut
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