Welcome to Litsy!

I‘ve heard so many people say that Gaudy Night is the best of the Lord Peter Wimsey books. And now I see why.

When Harriet Vane returns to Oxford for a reunion, she is drawn into a poison-pen mystery at her alma mater. That‘s the essence of the plot, but the mystery and the Oxfordian context ends up serving as a vehicle for Harriet‘s own growth as she confronts her own avoidance of the past. ⬇️

I enjoy coming across and learning new-to-me words, especially when they‘re as cozy and tasty as this one. Although I also have to admit: at first I read that it was “made with oatmeal and madness,” which would be a very different kind of dark gingerbread indeed.

This novel's several storylines unfold in a very roundabout and mannerly way, which is both satisfying and annoying to me. I like the way Sayers tells a story, and I really like the look at Nazi philosophy from a 1930s British perspective, although it's alarming how much of the philosophy is thriving in the US today. I'd forgotten that a big part of it was a backlash against feminism and women having intellectual lives outside the home.

Not much time for reading during the past several days, but we've dropped the elder kid back off at college and the younger goes back to school tomorrow (but I still have one day off), so I hope to get started on the tagged tonight or tomorrow.

Pic: A ring around the sun on the way home from college drop-off.

Lol, I missed the “Sweater“ challenge and this has a boring edition that would have been perfect. But I'd rather use it for #NatChessDay anyway. Think of chess and I think of this fantastic mystery and romance, and shed a small tear.

“I loved them, and you gave them to me.“

#AutumnPlease #Scarathlon #PhotoChallenge #TeamMischiefAndMayhem

“Placetne, magistra?” “Placet.” The final line is exactly how I feel about this book. The first half was a slog that took me months, but once it got moving I was hooked. Charming, erudite, insightful, human vulnerability explored intimately. #192025

The Bodleian library has appeared in enough of my recent reading to make wish that I could somehow someday visit it. But this cheek made me smile.

A weekly book report: I will probably finish Fresh Water for flowers (audio) this week. 2 paper books, so different from each other but both calling my name from the TBR, gaudy night I have been reading (digital) in bits and starts forever but it‘s good. 4 books, 2 challenges. #auldlangspine #192025

if the love of learning for its own sake is a lost cause everywhere else in the world, let us see to it that here at least, it finds its abiding home.

If anything came between her and the service of truth, she would walk over it without rancour and without pity—even if it were her own reputation.

The fact that one had loved and sinned and suffered and escaped death was of far less ultimate moment than a single footnote in a dim academic journal establishing the priority of a manuscript or restoring a lost iota subscript.

I marked off 5 more years in the #192025 challenge in September.

Thanks, @Librarybelle , for hosting this challenge. It‘s certainly adding more variety to my reading!

During our vacation, we toured the Oxford colleges, including Somerville, Dorothy Sayer‘s alma mater.

That motivated me to read Gaudy Night, which describes really well the experiences of the college women at that time.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks
#192025 #1935 @Librarybelle

A brilliant woman writing about brilliant women at Oxford in the pre-WWII period. I‘m rereading this (via audiobook, anyway) and loving it. I‘d forgotten that the first half (at least) is entirely from Harriet‘s point of view. It‘s a refreshing change - we get a little deeper into her head than we do Wimsey‘s.

“It‘s elementary, my dear Watson.” 🔎

1. Gotta go with the classics here, Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot.
2. I like to be surprised. But my absolute favorite is when I guess part of the solution correctly.
3. Never read Sayers before!

#SundayFunday Have a fantastic day and remember to tag me!

I‘ve been awol for a while. It‘s been a bit like that this year hasn‘t it? I‘ve basically spent the last four months listening to Gaudy Night on repeat. With a side order of Amelia Peabody and Inspector Alleyn, but mostly Gaudy Night. I wrote a whole thing about it on my blog, but basically my brain has decided that listening to Peter and Harriet work things out is about all it can cope with right now and I‘m sort of at peace with that.

Wow this book was such a treat. It had the feel of a Victorian novel but with a great little mystery. After listening to The Literary Life podcast episode on this book, I realized a lot of the literary references went over my head but the story was still enjoyable. A great comfy cozy October read!

I started this thinking that I was going to get an old fashioned mystery, but there is so much more in the pages of this book if you are willing to look for it. I loved it. 📕

As part of my attempt to deal with my Bad Week last week I treated myself to the audiobook of Gaudy Night. It‘s been ages since I read this - I have the radio play which is (obviously) abridged - and I had forgotten how much wonderful character development there is in this. I‘ve ended up listening to it and reading it as well. I‘m about an hour from the end of the audiobook, but I‘ve already finished re-reading.

#QuotsyJan21 Day 4: #hypnotic

Gaudy Night is called Sayer's best novel, and I can see why. It feels surprisingly modern and lands unexpected emotional punches. Harriet goes back to Oxford to help her college. It's as much about women's education and their place in society as about Harriet's complicated relationship (or lack thereof) with Peter Wimsey. My edition has a picture of Edward Petherbridge on the back. I found his version on youtube and he's a really great Wimsey.

#NamasteNovember
This #purplecover book I have yet to read.

Lukewarm pick. Interesting plot but far too much banter, bickering, ruminating, etc. Anyway, it knocks off prompts for a couple reading challenges.

#Booked2019 #nightoriented not just because of the title but also because much of the mischief occurs at night.

#MMD for a book published before I was born. It was probably quite modern at the time...

All too soon it will be cold and dark when I want to sit outside and enjoy my #favoritereadingspot and a beverage, so I‘m taking advantage of the sunshine now. #selfimprovementsept

My copy has seen better days! The more I read Dorothy Sayers, the more I love her. These aren‘t your run-of-the-mill mysteries. Gaudy Night gives you so much to think about that a reread would undoubtedly be worthwhile.

I might be an idiot for being surprised there wasn‘t a murder in this 😂 other than that, I really enjoyed the oxford nostalgia and Harriet Vane, and I would read more Dorothy Sayers, but I found the pacing a bit slow because there weren‘t any bodies, and the conclusion was quite unsatisfying for me.

Guys Spain is incredible! The #bookfitnesschallenge hasn‘t been at the front of my mind tbh I haven‘t done loads of reading - I was taken by surprise by an enormous festival involving burning enormous wooden effigies and being sprayed with water by firefighters until 5am but not complaining! I‘ll be less distracted once I‘m back in the uk

How we doing @Trashcanman @TheEllieMo @RachelO @cewilf @cobwebmoth @KathyWheeler @Megabooks @wanderinglynn

Welllll. First minor setback #bookfitnesschallenge is that my flight yesterday was delayed 24 hours and I‘m still in England, will spend most of today travelling unable to do any walking at all 😐 I anticipate spending most of today sat down angrily with a book. Bright sides tho - British airways have paid for my breakfast and at least I have a book! Having a healthy breakfast so I‘ll call that fitness progress even if it isn‘t one of my goals.

Book #2 in the Must Read mystery blog from Modern Mrs Darcy. This is another Lord Peter Wimsey mystery that takes place at Oxford University. When Harriet Vane, Alma Mater, is incited back to college to attend the annual Gaudy celebrations someone starts to send poison pen letters and performing other malicious acts toward her. She calls in Lord Peter Wimsey to help her figure out what‘s going on. These are also a tv series!

First, I half adore this ugly old cover and half want to replace the whole lot with new elegant covers.
Sayers' writing style delights me so I may regret reading this as I now have a powerful urge to reread the whole series- which won't do anything for my TBR pile. I enjoy this book not so much for the mystery as for the location, the dialogue, the social commentary, and the characters.

Swoon. I can't deny that I have a bit of a #litcrush on Lord Peter.

Reading has been such a struggle for me these last few months that, rather than fight with myself, I've decided to revisit an old friend. Harriet and Lord Peter are one of my favorite literary couples and, of the books that focus on them, this is the one I like best. (Not sure why some of them show up twice in my kindle library 🤔) #amreading #finally

I forget who turned me on to this site...but thank you and I hate you 😬

I‘ve only read three so I‘ve got some reading to do!

https://crimereads.com/the-7-creepiest-manor-houses-in-mystery/

#mystery #crime

💗”Placetne, magistra?” “Placet.” 😭😍
2/14 Valentine‘s = new book+treat day in our house
💏 Tazwell (That is for reals his name. My in-laws were weird.)
😊 I can handle sad if it‘s well written, but I don‘t go looking for them.
📚Peter from tagged book, Gen from Queen‘s Thief, Parsons from Earth Bound...I have a Type™️.

#frideas

I adored this. It was my first Sayers and I think I read the perfect one because, although it centered on mysterious happenings, it wasn‘t so much about the mystery. Set in a (mostly) fictional women‘s college at Oxford, the story and characters manage to deal with so many important topics (feminism, education, gender roles, love) in unexpected ways. The love story woven throughout was a delight & Sayers‘ writing style is beautiful. Absolute pick!

For any Dorothy L. Sayers fans who don‘t already own this, or for anyone who loves a good mystery, this popped up in my Bookbub email today.

This is perhaps the most serious novel of Sayers' output: she was, it's saod, tiring of Wimsey -- but that doesn't show. It's an honest dissertation on the kind vs the heart, with a detective subplot. The important parts are all Harriet's slow understanding (at last!) of Peter and what he offers her. I love it so much.

Oh, my goodness, this book is a delight! I never know quite what to expect from this quirky cast of Oxford women.

This is from the Author‘s Note—I like it already! I‘m getting a jump start on next year‘s reading challenge because this just came available from my library. Looking forward to it after it was highly regarded by @Moray_Reads

Sayers had some razor-sharp observations on women's education, and the attitudes towards it, in Gaudy Night (Geoffrey sounds like a prat) #schoolinlife
@cinfhen @Billypar

Loved this one. The mystery isn't particularly central nor the perpetrator difficult to identify but it's a wonderful insight into Oxford life, good and bad, and there some fascinating discussions of women's roles and responsibilities. It's obviously a very personal story for Sayers. Picture is of the front quad of Lord Peter's college (Balliol) from my recent trip to Oxford

This mystery just didn‘t land for me. Too many characters, too many superfluous scenes, and too many archaic and otherwise references to Oxford and England that I just didn‘t get.

An extremely involved, beautifully complicated mystery, with gorgeous descriptions of university life and environs. The story has a distinct feminist bent and so I‘m not satisfied with the ending between Harriet Vane and Lord Peter Wimsey. It feels like a cop out, but more true to the times, perhaps? Otherwise, I loved it! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #Readathon #24B4Monday @TheReadingMermaid I‘m at 16 1/2 hours and hope to make it to 24.

I am loving this book! It‘s the Modern Mrs Darcy book club September selection that has taken me until now to read. I overbooked myself in September, pun intended. The book flight is Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl, which I probably won‘t be able to finish this month. #Readathon #24B4Monday @TheReadingMermaid

I haven't committed to annotating any of my books since graduating from college. I forgot how fun and consuming it can be! #havefun #alwaysannotate #noslackinghere #dorothysayers #modernmrsdarcy #bookclub #mystery #detectives

My first Dorothy Sayers. Guaranteed it won‘t be my last!

Starting today: #MMD Book Club September 2018 pick

📚 Gaudy Night (but also Geek Love and The Graveyard Book)
✏️ Neil Gaiman
📺 Gilmore Girls
🍽️ Gnocchi

#ManicMonday
#LetterG
@JoScho

Absolutely love this mystery. The main character is a female detective in the 1930's who is definitely ahead of the times. Witty and charming. Watch my review at https://youtu.be/E1nb6S1t4FY
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#literarylife #bookreview #mysterybooks #gaudynight #bookishweekend #bookworm #booklove #dorothylsayers #harrietvane #lordpeterwhimsey #mysteryseries #bookwormheaven