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The Red House
by A.A. Milne1922 –
Read by William Sutherland – 6h 11m 
rating B+ / crime – puzzler
(both read and listened) 
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It’s very different to read a crime novel written in 1922 but  I enjoyed it.  The main thrust is that of a puzzler so the characters and setting are not developed terribly well because all focus is on the who, what and how of the puzzle – not the why and there are very few suspects.  The “detective” Is an amateur with his helper – specifically likened to Sherlock Holmes. – It takes place in an old rather nice hotel/apartment building outside of London.

It’s very different to read a crime novel written in 1922 but I enjoyed it.  The main thrust is that of a puzzler so the characters and setting are not developed terribly well because all focus is on the who, what and how of the puzzle – not the why and there are very few suspects.  The “detective” Is an amateur with his helper – specifically likened to Sherlock Holmes. – It takes place in an old rather nice hotel/apartment building outside of London.

“Like all really nice people, you have a weakness for detective stories…. After all that you have done for me, the least that I can do is write one.” So wrote A. A. Milne, beloved creator of Winnie the Pooh, to his father, to whom he dedicated this delectable mystery.

Mark Ablett’s stately mansion, the Red House, is filled with very proper guests when his most improper brother returns from Australia. The prodigal brother enters Mark’s study, the parlor maid hears arguing and the brother dies…rather suddenly, with a bullet between the eyes. The study is locked from the inside and Mark is missing!

Investigating the crime is wealthy Antony Gillingham, who rivals Sherlock Holmes in his remarkable powers of observation. He is aided by the perfect Watson, his friend Bill Beverley, a cheerful young man in white flannels. Echoes of Christopher Robin and his friends chime nostalgically throughout this charming classic of detection