Slight Mourning (1975)

by Catherine Aird

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: Sloan and Crosby (6)

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
250	5	113,674	(3.66)	29
In this classic parlor mystery from CWA Diamond Dagger winner Catherine Aird, Detective Inspector C. D. Sloan investigates a dinner party that ended in murder Twelve friends sit down for supper at Strontfield Park-but only eleven survive the evening. After dinner, the host, William Fent, offers to drive one of his guests home, only to die behind the wheel in a violent accident. The autopsy shows that Fent ingested enough barbiturates to kill a horse. So begins a fresh tale of murder and deceit for Detective Inspector C. D. Sloan, whose list of suspects begins and ends with the surviving dinner guests. Among them are a theologian at the local university; Dr. and Mrs. Washby, whose wedding was the cause for celebration; Ursula Renville, tall, graceful, and utterly aloof; the fat and extravagant Mr. and Mrs. Marchmont; the spinster Miss Paterson; the rector's daughter, Cynthia Paterson; Quentin Fent, heir to the Fent fortune; and Mr. Fent's wife, the now-widowed Helen. Each of the guests had the opportunity to kill William Fent. But which one wanted him dead?… (more)

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The Calleshire Chronicles (Sloan and Crosby Canon) by Catherine Aird (6)

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Showing 5 of 5

I have read a fair amount of Catherine Aird's Inspector Sloan mysteries. They are a mixed bag. I will not call them boring by any means, but the stories are nothing spectacular either. This time, however, I was rather surprised by the final twist and how it was resolved. Come to think of it, the 'twist' is probably not even a twist. Rather it has more to do with my expectations about Aird's books. I keep forgetting that these books are from the relatively recent past and not from the Golden Age of detective fiction. Aird writes in such an old-fashioned way that it is easy to forget about her book's time periods. So, my 'surprise' is rooted in my own expectations regarding what was proper for the Golden Age rather than what was realistic for a book published in 1975, the year "Slight Mourning" came out. Overall, I liked this book well enough. It's easy, 'comfort' reading. (

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Porua | Apr 25, 2023 |

Inspector Sloan and Constable Crosby have a round about way of figuring out the reasoning behind the murder of Helen Fent's husband. An English drawn out book. NOT one to read again! (

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niquetteb | Aug 27, 2019 |

A dinner party with a dozen guests. A fatal automobile crash. The autopsy reveals the victim died by poisoning. Inspector Sloan investigates. Although most readers will likely guess the identity of the murderer pretty early, this pleasant installment in the classic Aird series resonates with the charms of English villages. (

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thornton37814 | Feb 27, 2018 |

The sixth installment of Inspector Sloan's adventures finds our hero and his faithful sidekick Crosby investigating the death of one Bill Fent, who died in a car crash. You'd think that would be the purview of the Traffic officers, but in this case, Bill had been found to have had a massive dose of barbituates in his system. Doing some research, Sloan and Crosby figure it could only have been administered at an earlier dinner party -- but there were 11 guests around the table. Which one did it? And why?

Again...the story reads well up until the end when the murderer is revealed...and then the ending is quite abrupt. Oh well. I'm still enjoying this series and will probably read through them all.

If you like police procedurals, or British mysteries, you get 2 in one here. (

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bcquinnsmom | Aug 14, 2007 |

I didn't remember reading this one before, so I was really excited to read it again. A man dies in a car crash. The trouble is, he was already dying from poison. Inspector Sloan of the Calleshire CID is on the case. Funny in parts. I had guessed the murderer well before the end, but it was still a good read.

CMB (

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cmbohn | Aug 8, 2007 |

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▾Other authors

» Add other authors (4 possible)

Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Aird, Catherine	Author	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Essen, Rein van	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Lehr, Paul	Cover artist	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Perkins, Derek	Narrator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Series

Sloan and Crosby (6)

Belongs to Publisher Series

Murder Most British

SaPo (214)

Vampiro (507)

Is contained in

The Calleshire Chronicles Volume Two by Catherine Aird

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Canonical title

Original title

Slight Mourning

Alternative titles

Original publication date

1975

People/Characters

Important places

Calleshire, England, UK

Berebury, Calleshire, England, UK

Constance Parva, Calleshire, England, UK

Important events

Related movies

Epigraph

"Slight mourning will be worn during the visit..."

Postscript to a letter written by an equerry in 1889 inviting a guest to Sandringham House for the weekend.

Dedication

For Margaret Shorthouse (but for whom, etc.)
with love

First words

Miss Cynthia Paterson considered herself something of a connaisseuse of a good funeral.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Original language

English

Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

▾Book descriptions

In this classic parlor mystery from CWA Diamond Dagger winner Catherine Aird, Detective Inspector C. D. Sloan investigates a dinner party that ended in murder Twelve friends sit down for supper at Strontfield Park-but only eleven survive the evening. After dinner, the host, William Fent, offers to drive one of his guests home, only to die behind the wheel in a violent accident. The autopsy shows that Fent ingested enough barbiturates to kill a horse. So begins a fresh tale of murder and deceit for Detective Inspector C. D. Sloan, whose list of suspects begins and ends with the surviving dinner guests. Among them are a theologian at the local university; Dr. and Mrs. Washby, whose wedding was the cause for celebration; Ursula Renville, tall, graceful, and utterly aloof; the fat and extravagant Mr. and Mrs. Marchmont; the spinster Miss Paterson; the rector's daughter, Cynthia Paterson; Quentin Fent, heir to the Fent fortune; and Mr. Fent's wife, the now-widowed Helen. Each of the guests had the opportunity to kill William Fent. But which one wanted him dead?

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