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It’s the little grey cells

So said that suave, canny Belgian detective, the model of my youthful detective ambitions: Hercule Poirot. Actually Poirot was one of several – there was the inimitable Mr. Holmes, the Wagner-loving Inspector Morse, the earthy Maigret;  I rather fancied myself a spirited girl detective, kind of like the well-balanced, athletic Nancy Drew.

I expect there are a few hundred thousand like me, somewhere, but it was a welcome surprise to have these half-formed aspirations played out in a mystery novel I came across the on the Castle Street shelf. Death of a Sunday Writer by Eric Wright, creator of the indomitable Charlie Slater, casts part-time librarian Lucy Brenner as the unlikely sleuth in this uncommon tale.

Inspired by the many detective novels she’s lapped up in the past, a host of Agatha Christie’s best among them, the unassuming Lucy decides to don the mantle of the private eye and operate the detective agency left to her by her deceased cousin.

And as she embarks on a series of adventures any wannabe gumshoe would thrill to be involved in, unravels an intriguing mystery set against the backdrop of Toronto’s horse racing industry.

Read how Lucy fares, and while you do you may also want to check out the other mystery titles that feature on Dundurn’s bestseller list.

Here are the current top 10:
1.    Blood and Groom
2.    Samurai Code
3.    Loose Ends
4.    Nightshade
5.    Free Form Jazz
6.    Above Ground
7.    Angel in the Full Moon
8.    Innocent Murderer
9.    Body Blows
10.    On the Head of a Pin

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