LemonSky reviewed Bunch of Violets by Ernest Bramah
Review of 'Bunch of Violets' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Ernest Bramah's famous blind detective, Max Carrados. Actually, Max is not totally blind. As he says in "The Knight's Cross Signal Problem":
"The difference to you of treacle on a marble background is scarcely greater than that of printers' ink on newspaper to me. But anything smaller than pica I do not read with comfort, and below long primer I cannot read at all. Hence the secretary."
I think a better description would be legally blind, like my late uncle. My uncle was able to do quite a few things such as cook and even build a sun room, though he could not drive for obvious reasons. Max Carrados is similar. Some of the things Max can do, though, are a bit absurd. Supposedly, he mastered his other senses to make up for his bad eyesight. He even claims to be able to smell the glue used to apply a …
Ernest Bramah's famous blind detective, Max Carrados. Actually, Max is not totally blind. As he says in "The Knight's Cross Signal Problem":
"The difference to you of treacle on a marble background is scarcely greater than that of printers' ink on newspaper to me. But anything smaller than pica I do not read with comfort, and below long primer I cannot read at all. Hence the secretary."
I think a better description would be legally blind, like my late uncle. My uncle was able to do quite a few things such as cook and even build a sun room, though he could not drive for obvious reasons. Max Carrados is similar. Some of the things Max can do, though, are a bit absurd. Supposedly, he mastered his other senses to make up for his bad eyesight. He even claims to be able to smell the glue used to apply a false mustache. His hearing is similarly of superhero quality. However, this is nitpicking. Just take Max at his word and enjoy the stories, which are fun for the most part as long as you don't take them too seriously. Max certainly doesn't. Consider his attitude towards ghosts:
"My sympathies are entirely with the sensible old fellow who was awakened in the middle of the night to find a shadowy form standing by the side of his bed and silently regarding him. For a few minutes the disturbed man waited patiently, expecting some awful communication, but the same profound silence was maintained. 'Well,' he remarked at length, 'if you have nothing to do, I have,' and turning over went to sleep again."
Some good ones:
"The Tragedy at Brookbend Cottage" - Lt Hollyer is concerned for the safety of his sister Millicent, whose husband he does not trust, so he asks Max Carrados to intervene - with tragic results.
"The Last Exploit of Harry the Actor" - The amusing story of a master thief and his charming accomplice. The ending is totally unbelievable, though quite funny. But then, you don't read Carrados for realism.
"The Mystery of the Poisoned Dish of Mushrooms" - Carrados investigates the mysterious death of a 12-year-old boy - was it murder or an accident?
These are easygoing puzzles without bloodshed. Not all of them involve murder, just like many Hercule Poirot short stories involve non-violent crimes. Someone referred to Max as a cross between Sherlock Holmes and Lord Peter Wimsey and they're right. He's like Holmes with his power of observation and armchair detecting (though not in all stories), while he has a friendly, amiable personality and an upper class existence.