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Molly Thynne

The Crime at the ‘Noah’s Ark’: A Golden Age Mystery (Dr Constantine Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Molly Thynne (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.3 316 ratings

Book 1 of 3: Dr Constantine

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“There’ll be blue murder here before Christmas!”

A number of parties heading for a luxurious holiday spot, are forced by severe winter weather to put up at the ‘Noah’s Ark’, a hostelry they will share with Dr. Constantine, a shrewd chess master and keen observer of all around him. Other guests include bestselling novelist Angus Stuart, the aristocratic Romsey family, a pair of old spinster sisters, and a galloping major whose horseplay gets him into hot water – and then gets him murdered.

Who is the masked intruder who causes such a commotion on the first night? Who has stolen Mrs van Dolen’s emeralds, and who has slashed everyone’s (almost everyone’s) car tyres? And are the murderer and thief one and the same, or are the guests faced with two desperate criminals hiding in plain sight in the snowbound inn? Dr. Constantine, aided by two of the younger guests, is compelled to investigate this sparkling Christmas mystery before anyone else ends up singing in the heavenly choir …

The Crime at the ‘Noah’s Ark’ was first published in 1931. This new edition, the first in many decades, includes an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.

Book 1 of 3

Dr Constantine
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219 pages
Language

English
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On Kindle Scribe
Publication date

5 September 2016
File size

954 KB
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Product description

About the Author

Mary 'Molly' Thynne was born in 1881, a member of the aristocracy, and related, on her mother's side, to the painter James McNeil Whistler. She grew up in Kensington and at a young age met literary figures like Rudyard Kipling and Henry James. Her first novel, An Uncertain Glory, was published in 1914, but she did not turn to crime fiction until The Draycott Murder Mystery, the first of six golden age mysteries she wrote and published in as many years, between 1928 and 1933. The last three of these featured Dr. Constantine, chess master and amateur sleuth par excellence. Molly Thynne never married. She enjoyed travelling abroad, but spent most of her life in the village of Bovey Tracey, Devon, where she was finally laid to rest in 1950. --This text refers to the paperback edition.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01KQ3TKDS
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dean Street Press (5 September 2016)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 954 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 219 pages

Best Sellers Rank: 565,033 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- 4,700 in British Detectives
- 6,739 in Traditional Detective Mysteries (Books)
- 12,159 in Cosy Mystery

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4.3 316 ratings

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S Riaz

The Crime at the Noah's Ark

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 November 2017

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Published in 1931, this re-published Golden Age crime mystery, was one of six written by Molly Thynne and the first featuring her chess playing amateur sleuth, Dr Luke Constantine. The story begins with a group of people, who are all heading for the exclusive resort at Redsands (though why someone would really want to go to the British seaside at Christmas is beyond me!). Of course, the weather, already bad, turns worse and our central character, author Angus Stuart, finds himself stranded in the snow. Rescuing two, elderly sisters, he is directed to a local inn, the Noah’s Ark, and welcomed by the landlord, Mr Girley.

Stuart is a likeable character; he has recently become a success and is still a little unsure of himself. Before long he has been introduced to Dr Luke Constantine, the drunken Major Carew, commercial traveller, Soames, Lord Romsey, his son and two daughters, the attractive Mrs Orkney Cloude, the brash Mrs van Dolen, an American widow who is known for her famous emeralds, Mrs van Dolen’s secretary, Miss Hamilton, the gigolo Felix Melnotte and the shy young chartered accountant, Trevor.

What we essentially have here is a typically closed house mystery. Our characters are stranded by the snow, there are some expensive emeralds, just crying out to be stolen, lots of secrets and, of course, murder. There is also a great deal of chasing around in the night, with masked men being seen, and Stuart, who joins up with Constantine and Soames, to investigate the goings-on at the hotel, spending almost all of their time climbing in and out of windows, chasing up and down staircases, banging on doors and keeping watch. Overall, this is a fun mystery, with a good setting, interesting characters, but a slightly weak plot. I would try more by her and I do applaud publishers for bringing so many ‘lost’ Golden Age authors back into print.

One person found this helpful

sigrunT

Typischer englischer Weihnachtskrimi.

Reviewed in Germany on 12 January 2017

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Dieses 1931 erschienene Buch ist der 4. von insgesamt 6 Krimis, die die Verfasserin zwischen 1928 und 1933 veröffentlicht hat; andere Romane veröffentlichte sie bereits seit 1914. Bei dem Buch handelt es sich um einen typischen Krimi aus dem Goldenen Zeitalter des englischen Krimis und wird allen Lesern gefallen, die solche Krimis mögen.
Der Held dieses Buches ist ein sympathischer junger Mann aus relativ bescheidenen Verhältnissen, der als Schriftsteller ein sehr mühseliges Auskommen hatte, aber vor Kurzem einen Bestseller veröffentlich hat. Auf Grund dieses neues Wohlstandes hat er sich nun ein kleines Auto gekauft und einen Weihnachtsurlaub in einem schönen Hotel an der Küste gebucht. Dieses Hotel erreicht er aber nicht, da es ununterbrochen schneit und die Straßen deshalb blockiert sind. Glücklicherweise findet er einen großen alten Gasthof in der Nähe der Straße, die "Noah's Ark", wo er unterkommen kann. Nach und nach findet sich dort eine größere Gruppe von Reisenden ein, die alle wegen des Wetters nicht weiterkommen können. Die Gruppe ist sehr gemischt und besteht aus Geld- und anderem Adel und deren Sekretären, Chauffeuren und Dienstboten, entzückenden alten Damen, pensionierten Offizieren usw; man findet also das ganze Spektrum der englischen Gesellschaft. Alle erwarten eine langweilige Zeit bis die Straßen wieder frei sind, aber so kommt es nicht. In der 2. Nacht wird sogar einer der Reisenden ermordet und für die Ermittlungen steht nur der völlig überforderte Dorfpolizist zur Verfügung. Dies führt dazu, dass sich eine Gruppe von Männern, darunter unser Freund, der Schriftsteller, zusammen tun um herauszufinden, wer für diese Tat und weitere verantwortlich ist. Das ist nicht einfach, weil der eine oder andere wahrscheinlich nicht der ist, den er vorgibt zu sein, aber wer? Und wem kann man trauen?
Diese Fragen werden von unseren Reisenden sehr erfolgreich geklärt.
Insgesamt ein sehr schönes Buch mit skurrilen Typen, interessanter Atmosphäre und viel trockenem Humor. dass man sehr empfehlen kann.

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Vivienne

3.5 stars

Reviewed in the United States on 4 December 2016

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Most of the books by Molly Thynne get four stars from me, but I took half a star off this one because I thought it was more unwieldy than her other books. Having said that, I did enjoy this book which has a very complex plot that had me highlighting passages so I could go back and check whenever I felt lost. There are two crimes in this story; a murder and a theft - are they connected or not? There is a limited cast and I felt that only half of them were three-dimensional, but those were extremely well-described and easy to visualise and understand why they acted as they did, and that always makes a book easier to read. There is one glaring anomaly in the story but I think if I put it in my review, it will be a spoiler, so I'll leave it out and let other readers find it as I did. The story is told in the third person, but seemed more from the perspective of Stuart, one of the characters in the book, and this literary device served to make the story come alive for me and I felt as if I was part of the cast (but only as an onlooker). I thought Dr Constantine was working more in the background than the editorial suggests and the principal characters seemed to be Stuart, an author and Soames, a commercial traveller and a delightful character; although it is Dr Constantine who unravels the mystery of the stolen emeralds. Towards the end it got a bit convoluted but everything was eventually sorted out neatly and justice seen to be done. All-in-all, a good story, well-written (albeit a bit wordy in places) as is usual with this author, and a few digitisation problems if I want to be picky. Recommend this book as I do all of Miss Thynne's.

One person found this helpful

Patto

Robbery & murder in a snowbound country inn

Reviewed in the United States on 22 January 2017

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Unexpected guests stream into Noah's Ark in a relentless snowfall. The inn is warm and welcoming but not especially fashionable. The guests include, among others an aristocratic family, a richly bejeweled American widow and her entourage, two little old ladies, a dance hall dandy, a newly successful young author, a traveling salesman and an elderly chess champion.

Because of isolation and boredom, democratic camaraderie arises among people who might normally never meet. When an immensely valuable piece of emerald jewelry is stolen, Constable Bates takes charge. But a band of amateur sleuths forms as well. Chess champion Dr. Constantine, author Angus Stuart, and salesman Soames put their minds to the problem. To complicate the burglar hunt along dark rambling passages and back staircases, one of the guests is murdered in his bed.

Molly Thynne keeps our suspicions floating from one guest to another, while mixing in a bit of romance to relieve the mounting tension. Dr. Constantine is a particularly charming figure, quietly and genially observing everything that goes on, and approaching the puzzling crimes as if they were a chess problem. Stuart and Soames contribute both brains and muscle to the sleuthing. Constable Bates is doing his best, but this investigation is clearly above his pay grade.

First published in 1932, The Crime at Noah's Ark is a classic of Golden Age crime fiction. The writing style is urbane and engaging, the characters vividly realized, and the puzzle difficult to penetrate. Despite the claustrophobic atmosphere that Thynne builds up so skillfully, the inn itself is so appealing (cozy fires, comfortable beds, solicitous innkeeper), that I kept wishing I could stay there!

2 people found this helpful

Linda

THE CRIME AT THE 'NOAH'S ARK', Molly Thynne, 1931

Reviewed in the United States on 13 January 2019

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First published in 1931, the new edition that I read includes an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans. This is a "Golden Age" mystery, one of the oldies but goodies! I've been reading a lot of pre-1945 mysteries lately, and enjoying them very much. This story makes use of the plot wherein a bunch of random strangers are gathered together and forced by the elements (in this story, a snowstorm) to stay together for a length of time. Naturally, crimes occur including a masked intruder, stolen gems, slashed car tires, and eventually, murder. The people can't leave, and it seems as if the thief and the murderer--are they the same person?--must be one of them. But who? One of the guests is Dr. Constantine, a chess master who enjoys watching and observing all that happens around him, and he serves as the "detective" in this story.

I quite enjoyed my stay at the Noah's Ark. This is a "cozy" type mystery, but it is well-plotted and there are red herrings a-plenty! The characters are well-defined, and I like the easy, slower pace of the writings during this time period. I can't wait to try another Thynne book.

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The Crime at the ‘Noah’s Ark’: A Golden Age Mystery (Dr Constantine Book 1) Kindle Edition

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