Lord Peter Views the Body: Nine Complete Stories
by Dorothy L. Sayers

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Book Reviews of Lord Peter Views the Body: Nine Complete Stories

Book Review: Lord Peter Always Comes Out On Top
Summary: 4 Stars

As is frequently the case, trying to match wits with Wimsey is often an exercise in futility. Unless you are fluent in French you'll miss one villain's slip of the tongue (I caught the gist of the conversation in "The Entertaining Episode of the Article in Question," but nowhere near enough to keep up with Lord Peter). In the crossword puzzle mystery I answered a whopping one of the sixty-four clues correctly. Still, there are a couple stories where you can get there ahead of Wimsey, and a few where you can at least see where he's going even if you can't beat him there.

My favorite of the twelve is "The Learned Adventure of the Dragon's Head" not only because I deduced the location of the buried treasure ahead of Wimsey, but because his avuncular counsel of young Gherkins is priceless. "The Unsolved Puzzle of the Man with No Face" seems to be the genesis of Sayers' later novel Have His Carcase, but with Wimsey solving the case solo (and without the maddening cypher). It's in short stories such as these that we are able to fully explore Lord Peter's character and appreciate Sayers' craft.

All of these stories are gems. Not all are equal, however. There are a few carbuncles among the diamonds, but all are much better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. Don't worry if you feel at sea at the beginning of some of these stories (only one brief scene in one of the stories actually takes place at sea): Lord Peter is not always revealed immediately, nor is what's going on always eminently clear. Patience pays off and stick-to-itiveness is always rewarded.

Summary of Lord Peter Views the Body: Nine Complete Stories

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