Mr Campion's Fault

Starred review from May 5, 2014
Ripley (The Legend of Hereward) does an excellent job of expanding a story fragment that Allingham’s husband, Pip Youngman Carter, began in 1969. Ripley sets his Albert Campion novel in that same year, with an older detective traveling to the English village of Lindsay Carfax, the scene of a number of unusual occurrences. Most recently, schoolmaster Lemmy Walker disappeared for nine days; upon his return, he refused to discuss his whereabouts. His reticence may be connected with the Carders, the shadowy organization that runs the community; 400 years earlier, the Carders had “something to do with wool.” The danger soon becomes personal for Campion. His artist niece, Eliza Jean Fitton, almost breaks her neck after someone sets a trap on a staircase. Ripley is especially good at recreating the humorous wordplay of the originals (Campion refers to a speaker as suffering from “loose vowels”), and does so in service of a well-crafted plot that plausibly places the detective, who debuted in 1929, in a more contemporary setting. Allingham fans will welcome the news that Severn has commissioned a follow-up, and newcomers will be inspired to seek out her work.

September 15, 2016
When Perdita Campion's godfather, headmaster at Ash Grange School in Yorkshire, begs her to help him out in a crisis, she agrees. The school's English master, Bertram Browne, has been killed in a hit-and-run accident, and it's only days until the school play he was directing is due to open. Perdita seems to be a perfect choice to take over. Since her husband, Rupert, excels at sports, he can assume Browne's role as rugby coach, and Rupert's mother can hand out prizes at the school's Speech Day. Naturally, Rupert's father, Albert, comes along, too. But when the Campions reach Ash Grange, they find one family terrorized by an apparent poltergeist, school boys attacked by violent thugs, and a witch who seems to know more than she's telling. Naturally, amateur sleuth Albert becomes deeply embroiled in what turns out to be a tragic case of murder. A charming, courtly, slightly eccentric hero; an intricate and unusual plot; and plenty of gentle humor make this an enticing read for old-school cozy fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)