It’s
Christmas Eve. A train headed north from London becomes blocked by a massive
snowfall that shows no sign of letting up. In a third-class compartment,
occupied by a brother and sister, a psychic researcher, a young rather nervous
young man on his way to visit a rich aunt, a rather obnoxious man who seems
full of hot air and himself, and a show girl, discussion turns to what to do.
Finally,
the psychic researcher suddenly bolts from his seat to go look for human
habitation nearby. Four of the others follow, leaving the obnoxious man behind.
Fighting their way through swirling snow, the group eventually finds a rather
large house, its door open, fires burning in the fireplaces, and water boiling
for tea.
And
no one is in the house. But there is a body buried in the snow outside.
While
this may sound like an Agatha Christie story like Murder on the Orient Express or And Then There Were None, the
similarities are slight and superficial. Instead, it is Mystery in White: A Christmas Crime Story by J. Jefferson
Farjeon.
Originally published in 1937, it was republished late in 2014 as part of the British Library
Crime Classics series,
and became a surprising hit in
U.K. bookstores.
Farjeon
was the son of Benjamin Farjeon, a popular and prolific novelist in the 19th
century who was inspired to write by Charles Dickens accepting one of his
stories for publication. The son wrote numerous mystery novels, including on, No. 17, that was made into a movie by
Alfred Hitckcock. Farjeon’s sister, Eleanor, was a poet and writer of
children’s stories. Writing clearly ran in the family.
 |
| J. Jefferson Farjeon |
Mystery in White is rather light
holiday fare, even (as it turns out) a murder on the train and the body in the
snow. There’s a bit of holiday levity, particularly with the brother and sister
characters, David and Lydia Carrington. The psychic researcher turns out to be
a fairly decent detective, and he’s instrumental in eventually solving the
murders as well as another murder buried 20 years in the past.
The
British Library has published some 25 novels in
the Crime Classics series, including two additional stories by Farjeon: The Z Murders and Thirteen Guests.
Mystery in White is a rather fun
read, particularly if it’s the holidays and it’s snowing outside.
Related: My reviews of other British
Library Crime Classics
Photograph by Bobbi Jones via Public
Domain Pictures. Used with permission.
Ooooh Yummy! This sounds like something I can download and read while savouring a port and sitting curled up by the fire! Thanks Glynn!
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