murders + mysteries

"Cheer up, Poirot. We can't have a nice juicy murder every time."

[derinthescarletpescatarian]

Everyone: Agatha Christie's mysteries are generally very surprising

Me reading the Mysterious Affair at Styles: That was probably very true when they were written, but there's a whole genre based on her work now. It's probably more predictable to those of us who have experienced so many derivatives of her work in the hands of other authors.

Me finishing the Mysterious Affair At Styles: Oh hot damn. Those were literally the only candidates I didn't suspect even once in the entire book.

[consulships]

i do think theres something sad about how largely only the literature that's considered especially good or important is intentionally preserved. i want to read stuff that ancient people thought sucked enormous balls

[literaryreference]

Time to take this post entirely too seriously:

I often wonder if this is why you so commonly see the sentiment that we are in an era of uniquely bad literature, or at least that the fact that most books don't have artistic aspirations and are not aiming to be anything other than mindless entertainment is new. In fact what's new is the idea that everything is worth preserving (and also the internet making it easier to preserve it). The dumb artistically unambitious trash books of the past have survived only sporadically, because people thought of them as literally disposable.

When I was in college I had a professor who was an expert on detective fiction. He had a longstanding beef with the idea that "Murders in the Rue Morgue" was the first detective story. He thought that it seemed way too polished to be inventing a new genre, and also that the whole orangutan business had the vibe of someone subverting preexisting audience expectations and maybe engaging in a bit of stealth parody. With the help of some student volunteers, he went trawling through old magazines and newspapers and found hundreds of detective stories from the early 1800s that just hadn't garnered enough individual attention to be remembered. This was because most of them sucked balls. He created an online archive of them, so you too can read these mostly terrible stories.

[tricky-pockets]

I've spent a ridiculous amount of time on Project Gutenberg sifting through forgotten old fiction and lemme tell ya. a lot of that stuff sucks ass.

[markthexenaaddicted]

Again, Xena is that you?!

1995: Xena Warrior Princess (1.11)

2025: My Life is Murder (5.05)

[eddie-redcliffe]

[haveyouseenthisseries-poll]

Have you seen My Life Is Murder (2019-present)?

Yes

Partially

No, but I've heard of it

Never heard of it

Voting ended onJul 12

[anicejuicymurder]

This blog is largely for fictional murders, but I thought this project was cool and some others following me might find it interesting.

A project mapping medieval England’s known murder cases has now added Oxford and York to its street plan of London’s 14th-century homicides, and found that Oxford’s student population was by far the most lethally violent of all social or professional groups in any of the three cities.

Project maps murder cases in medieval London, Oxford and York - Medievalists.net

A project mapping medieval England’s known murder cases has now added Oxford and York to its street plan of London’s 14th-century homicides,

Welcome to Medieval Murder Maps

The interactive Medieval Murder Map gives unique insight into danger, violence, and justice in medieval London, York & Oxford.

[danielsarmand]

And what if I think the Bishop is wrong?

Murder Before Evensong 1.02

[danielsarmand]

(neil chuckles softly)

Murder Before Evensong 1.02

[danielsarmand]

Murder Before Evensong 1.01

[housethatsailedaway]

Amit Shah as DS Neil Vanloo Murder Before Evensong (2025–)

[inadequate-nefelibata]

He said he was from The Telegraph.

MURDER BEFORE EVENSONG (2025) ∙ 1.02

[danielsarmand]

Canon Daniel Clement & Father Jud Duplenticy + “allegation of misconduct” speeches

Murder Before Evensong (2025) Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery (2025)

[kazz-brekker]

my favorite sequence in gosford park is the one where ivor novello is playing the piano and singing and it shows all of the different places in the house where the servants are listening in and pretending to be working if anyone comes by while the upper-class people mostly ignore him, but the most relatable scene is the one where tom hollander's character is sitting sadly in the basement eating jam straight out of the jar with a spoon while lamenting the state of his life

[importantcatpics]

[haveyouseenthisseries-poll]

Have you seen New Tricks (2003-2015)?

Yes

Partially

No, but I've heard of it

Never heard of it

Voting ended onJun 20

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

Have you seen Death on the Nile (1978)?

Yes

No

Haven’t even heard of this movie

Voting ended onJun 16

[haveyouseenthisseries-poll]

Have you seen Wallander (2008-2016)?

Yes

Partially

No, but I've heard of it

Never heard of it

Voting ended onJun 15