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The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club: Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery | Dorothy L Sayers
19 posts | 29 read | 12 to read
A must-read for fans of Agatha Christie's Poirot and Margery Allingham's Campion Mysteries, Lord Peter Wimsey is the immortal amateur sleuth created by Dorothy L Sayers. Lord Peter Wimsey bent down over General Fentiman and drew the Morning Post gently away from the gnarled old hands. Then, with a quick jerk, he lifted the quiet figure. It came up all of a piece, stiff as a wooden doll . . . But how did the general die? Who was the mysterious Mr X who fled when he was wanted for questioning? And which of the general's heirs, both members of the Bellona Club, is lying?
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review
ImperfectCJ
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Pickpick

The ending of this one was, frankly, alarming. But aside from that alarm and the fact that the mystery is convoluted, and the moral seems almost to be "trust no one," I liked the novel overall. I really appreciate how Wimsey seems like just a silly guy, but he's actually empathetic and kind and complex. It's his character (and Sayers's style) that keeps me reading this series. I just hope this kind of ending doesn't happen often.

ImperfectCJ I probably should have said the ending was "unpleasant" to match the title, but while it was that, the alarmingness of it struck me more than the unpleasantness. 7mo
rubyslippersreads Is that the new Kobo Libra Colour? 7mo
ImperfectCJ @rubyslippersreads Yes! It was my Mother's Day gift. I very much like it. I have a Kobo Libra H2O that I've loved for a few years, and even aside from the color thing, this one feels more gentle on my eyes, and the case is more rounded and comfortable to hold. Not that the other is uncomfortable or tough on my eyes, this one is just "even better" 7mo
rwmg Do you find yourself using the stylus much?
7mo
ImperfectCJ @rwmg I use it pretty regularly, but I feel like I could use it more, especially for the ability to color code. On this book, I used it to keep track of characters and clues. There's a notebook function that I find myself using to take notes more often than I would have expected to. The handwriting-to-text function is decent, but I more often just write things without converting it to text. (Kind of a stream-of-consciousness review.) 7mo
51 likes5 comments
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ImperfectCJ
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What a weekend! Each day involved 2 hours of teaching (plus prep) and 4-6 hours of animation voiceover workshop. It was awesome, and I learned (and theoretically taught) a lot, but man, am I glad to get to spend some quality time with my Kobo, an aspirational stack of books, and a cold, dry cider before I fall asleep...and start the week over again tomorrow. Come on, summer break! I need you!

Ruthiella Memorial Day weekend is just around the corner! 7mo
ImperfectCJ @Ruthiella My son has orchestra concerts both Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, but at least I don't have to work...and there's Monday off, which will hopefully be restful. 7mo
46 likes2 comments
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ImperfectCJ
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My plan worked! My family got me a color Kobo for Mother's Day and even remembered a sleep cover and threw in a stylus! Now to clear my schedule so I can spend some quality time with my new e-reader. 📚

dabbe 🤩🤩🤩 7mo
Clare-Dragonfly Awesome! 7mo
Ruthiella Picture Hannibal Smith “I love it when a plan comes together”! 😅 Glad you got what you wanted . 7mo
rwmg Did you have a black and white Kobo before? If so, please let us know how they compare 7mo
ImperfectCJ @rwmg I do have a b&w Kobo Libra H2O I got a few years ago (and Kindle Paperwhite...I like the Kobo better). I'll definitely make a point of posting my impressions of each after I've had a chance to play around with the Libra Colour. So far, the stylus is really cool, but I'm not sure how much I'll actually use it. Setting up Overdrive was super easy, though. And I like the colors a lot so far. 7mo
44 likes5 comments
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Smarkies
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Pickpick

Book 4 in the Lord Peter Wimsey series. The first half sets up the pieces (a little bit slowly), but the last quarter really hurtles along as Wimsey solves the mystery.
Picked this up for #roll100 but it also fits #52books23 for the #aboutaninheritance prompt.

batsy I enjoyed this one! Love the edition you have. I have a very worn edition of Gaudy Night in that edition 🙂 2y
Smarkies @batsy I tried to get second hand copies of all my peter wimsey series. Unfortunately I think only this one is in this edition. 2y
35 likes3 comments
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BarbaraJean
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Pickpick

I‘ve been enjoying the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries, and this was a really good one. Sayers deepened Lord Peter as a character here, more so than in the previous books, and it was nice to see a bit more behind his often-flippant manner. The other characters were well-drawn as well, and I was intrigued by how the mystery played out. I had issues with the final wrap-up, but other than that—a pick! And my December #BookSpin complete. 🥳

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! 2y
32 likes1 comment
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rwmg
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Pickpick

An elderly member of the Bellona Club is found dead of heart failure in a chair at the club. But did he die before or after his sister? Who inherits his sister's fortune of half a million pounds depends on the answer.

Good mystery. The obvious (and correct) answer only gets you half way to the solution. Lord Peter's silly ass dialogue did get on my nerves at times.

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Lucy_Anywhere
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Pickpick

Although I didn't entirely follow the mystery in Wimsey's fourth outing, I did like the more sombre tone. Behind Wimsey's sleuthing, this is a book full of jagged edges with the characters sniping and snagging against each other. The disabilities and shell shock of WW1 underpin the story and, for the first time, Wimsey has to choose between catching a criminal and his own loyalties.

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PickwickPlockPlock
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Pickpick

While I had read a Wimsey novel before, I couldn't remember much about it. So I was surprised that Wimsey reminded me of Bertie Wooster, only with brains and a backbone. I could see the first twist early on, but the rest surprised me. I don't think that I will read the whole series, but I have already started the next one.

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saresmoore
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One more #shelfie, just for fun. These are the shelves in my front room/library, where I‘m currently sitting in a comfy chair, enjoying a rare break with a bit of Lord Peter whimsy and a cuppa.

BarbaraBB Absolutely gorgeous 😍. 5y
llwheeler Beautiful shelves and I love that quote! 5y
marleed So beautiful! 5y
See All 29 Comments
youneverarrived Beautiful! 5y
Lindy Oooh! Aaaaah! 👏 5y
Cathythoughts So lovely ✨✨✨✨✨ 5y
Amandajoy Those are gorgeous! 5y
Kalalalatja Stunning! 5y
JennyM So beautiful! Good job!!! 5y
Bookzombie Those are beautiful! 5y
MicheleinPhilly So beautiful! Nicely done! 5y
Megabooks Love it!! 5y
AlaMich That‘s lovely! 5y
tracey38 Beau6 5y
batsy Gorgeous! And Lord Peter Wimsey and a cuppa is a perfect way to enjoy your hard work! 5y
Centique Oh my goodness! They are fantastic. I‘m so envious 😍 5y
LauraBeth I have shelf envy! 😻 5y
readordierachel I could stare at this all day 😍 5y
saresmoore @readordierachel I often want to! All these pesky life responsibilities get in the way. 5y
Branwen This is the loveliest thing I have ever seen! 😍📚 5y
readordierachel Silly life. Doesn't it know we have to read? 5y
ValerieAndBooks Beautiful! Thanks for sharing your shelfies. What's the paint color on your walls? 5y
saresmoore @ValerieAndBooks This is Sherwin-Williams “Cyberspace”—it‘s a deep blue-gray. I think it‘s my favorite ever wall color because it makes a statement, but is very versatile & looks lovely in every light. 5y
Cinfhen Oh, they look stunning 😍😍😍 5y
ValerieAndBooks Is it on just one wall? Or maybe two? So glad you‘re enjoying the color. I keep looking around my home wondering if I could pull off something similar— and it‘s hard to picture because it‘s a contemporary, built in 1980 with a lot of angles! 5y
Moray_Reads looking lovely 5y
emilyhaldi So pretty!!! ❤️ 5y
saresmoore @Moray_Reads @emilyhaldi Thank you, friends! ♥️♥️♥️ 5y
saresmoore @ValerieAndBooks I have it in the whole room, but it‘s a very open room with a big window and two wide case openings. I did an accent wall in my living room, which is really nice, but all the rooms in this house are pretty much basic squares. I think you should give it a try! It‘s really fun for me to play with drama and color in certain spaces—all the rest of my walls are pure white. 5y
122 likes29 comments
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Brie
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Pickpick

Sayers pokes fun at gentleman‘s clubs in this Lord Peter Wimsey mystery. When elderly General Fentiman is found dead in an armchair at the eponymous club, an investigation is launched into his exact time of death in order to figure out who receives a large inheritance. But a couple things seem funny about his death, from the lack of rigor mortis in his legs to the missing poppy on his lapel. Was the old military man‘s death hastened along?

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LeahBergen
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This was a tricky one, @Mitch ! I have several other unfinished series on the go but I already own the remaining books. You know how that is! 😆😆

I‘d love to win the tagged book; the fourth in the Lord Peter Wimsey series. Have you read them?

Congrats on your big Litsy milestone! 😘😘

#CompleteTheSeries

Aimeesue Those are lovely matchy-matchy covers! 6y
saresmoore I love these covers! 6y
rabbitprincess Ooh I just borrowed Clouds of Witness from the library in that edition! 6y
See All 13 Comments
Itchyfeetreader Beautiful covers 6y
ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled Im inspired! I need to start this! 6y
Melissa_J I love those editions! Mine are rather boring mass market paperbacks. 6y
Lizpixie I‘ve started collecting these editions too! I‘m up to Strong Poison so far.👍 6y
batsy I adore these covers! 6y
AlaMich These are fun editions! I‘ve never read any Sayers...I should probably remedy that...😊I‘m told Gaudy Night is a great one. (edited) 6y
Hooked_on_books Great covers! 6y
Sarah83 Love your editions 😍 6y
Mitch Very period looking covers....great choice Leah xxx 6y
Reviewsbylola What a cute series! 6y
100 likes13 comments
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thea-block
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Pickpick

This book highlighted Lord Peter‘s reputation and reticence to get involved in mysteries. Enjoyed the story, though the ending is a bit shocking.

⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

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Lizpixie
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#BookMail Pt4 This is my 5th book in Lord Peter Wimsey collection by Sayers. I‘m slowly acquiring the whole series in these gorgeous minimalist Art Deco paperback editions, they‘re going to look spectacular all lined up on my shelves. Written in the “Golden Age” Of crime writing, Wimsey is a gentleman detective. The 2nd son of a Duke, he enlists in the Great War & comes home at the end suffering “shell shock” & takes up detecting as a distraction.

kspenmoll Your review is making me want to reread this series- been ages since I read them. 6y
JazzFeathers I read that Sayer's husband really suffered from the war. Sayer is in my TBR and l'm considering acquiring this edition 😊 6y
66 likes1 stack add2 comments
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shanaqui
Pickpick

Reread. Just fancied some Wimsey, really, and this was the next in line. Not a favourite, but Sayers is always witty.

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shanaqui

"Books, you know, Charles, are like lobster shells. We surround ourselves with 'em, and then we grow out of 'em and leave 'em behind, as evidences of our earlier stages of development."

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Thekelburrows
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I was so very afraid of Google image searching "London gentlemens club" but mostly the results were what I hoped for. #nostrippers

Lynnsoprano ❤️Lord Peter 8y
LeahBergen 😂😂 8y
49 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Abailliekaras
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Pickpick

A pleasant read, well-crafted story & interesting characters. My favourite line: "Why is it, Lord Peter, that men are so cowardly about speaking to servants?" The dialogue hasn't aged as well as in P. G. Wodehouse, story not as cosy as Christie, but it has more depth. Nice London / flight read.

zembla "More depth" is a very good way of putting it! Sayers's books strike me as more like full-blown, complex novels than most detective fiction. 9y
4 likes1 comment
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Abailliekaras
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"I'm determined never to be a parent. Modern manners and the break-up of the fine old traditions have simply ruined the business."
Good weather for a classic English detective story (= escapism) ....

3 likes1 stack add