Oscar Wilde and a Game Called Murder

Starred review from July 7, 2008
In British author Brandreth's impressive second Oscar Wilde mystery (after 2007's Oscar Wilde and a Death of No Importance
), the aesthete and playwright proves himself a brilliant and insightful sleuth. At a May 1892 meeting of the Socrates Club, a group founded by Wilde and including such luminaries as Arthur Conan Doyle and Bram Stoker, the members play “murder,” a game that involves writing the name of a “victim” on a piece of paper and trying to guess who chose whom and why. The amusement sours in the face of certain selections in poor taste, like Mrs. Oscar Wilde. Real murders follow, starting with the horrific death by fire of the ex-fiancée of one of the participants, a disgraced minister. As in Nicholas Meyer's second Sherlock Holmes pastiche, The West End Horror
, such real-life figures as Doyle or Stoker can be easily eliminated as the killer, but there are enough other suspects to keep the reader guessing at the solution of this intricate whodunit.

The second installment in the Oscar Wilde mystery series couldn't be more intelligent or delightful. Wilde is surrounded by Arthur Conan Doyle, Bram Stoker, and Walter Sickert; his Dr. Watson is artist Robert Sherard. Bill Wallis's narration--spirited and authentic to the time and place--adds to the fun. Wilde and his entourage play a game called "Murder," in which they each name a person (sometimes each other) whom they would like to see killed. Soon some on the list begin to die. It's up to Wilde to discover the murderer before Mrs. Wilde becomes a victim. The wit is charming, food descriptions luscious, and "being there" when Wilde's LADY WINDERMERE'S FAN premieres adds to the conviviality. Happily, additional titles are forthcoming. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine