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Thomas & Mercer, 2014. Book Format: Kindle Edition. File Size: 4280 KB. Print Length: 281 Pages. ASIN: B00IEIIOA8. ISBN-13: 978-1-4778-1888-6. First published in Great Britain by Michael Joseph, 1945.
Synopsis: Could there be a Jack-the-Ripper copycat in the sleepy village of Brentford? Two women have been found brutally murdered, each under the light of a full moon. When a third mutilated body is identified, brothers Simon and Keith Innes discover that their brother Jack was mysteriously absent from their home on that last moonlit night. After Jack’s snob’s knife goes missing from his tool box, Simon and Keith have no choice but to investigate and clear his name. With the help of the peculiar amateur detective Mrs. Bradley, the brothers race to find answers…before the rising of another full moon. The belovedly eccentric Mrs. Bradley and her ingenious sleuthing are sure to impress in this cleverly woven classic. You’ll never guess who lurks in the shadows—and why.
My Take: The story is narrated from the perspective of Simon Innes, a thirteen-year-old boy. Simon lives together with his younger brother Keith, aged eleven, in Brentford, now-a-days a suburban town in West London, where the story takes place. They are orphans in care of their older brother Jack who lives with his wife June, their three-year-old son Tom and Christina, a lodger whom June is jealous of because of her beauty. Although published in 1945, the story takes place some years before the outbreak of WW II. When the story begins, Simon and Keith are enjoying their Easter holidays, wandering unsupervised through town in search of adventure. A small antique and junk shop, sometimes displaying weapons like daggers, swords and old horse-pistols, is their favourite spot to play. A queer old woman, in charge of the shop, lets them come in and touch whatever takes their fancy. She addresses them always formally, him as Mr Innes and his brother like Mr Keith.
Brentford’s carefree life is disrupted one day when a Jack-the-Ripper style serial killer begins murdering young women on full moon nights. Simon and Keith find it an opportunity to deploy their skills as sleuths and they get to work on the case. However, one day they will be shocked with one of their findings. Just after the discovery of a third victim, they begin to suspect that their own brother, Jack, might be the murderer, and they are determined to do whatever it takes to help him. This is the moment when Dame Beatrice Lestrange Bradley shows up in Brentford and, despite their initial reticence, the two brother gain her trust and decide to help her.
My interest in this novel arose as a consequence of the conference Bodies from the Library this year. The story was among the suggested readings and, so far, my knowledge of Gladys Mitchell works was limited only to The Saltmarsh Murders. For lack of a better term, The Rising of the Moon is a detective novel that could well be described as peculiar. It’s peculiar in the sense that the narrator is a thirteen-year-old boy, in that despite being published in 1945 the action takes place sometime before WW II, and because Mrs Bradley appears almost half way through the novel in what could be considered a secondary role. It turns out being curious to highlight that even though the story revolves around a serial killer, it’s extremely original given the choice of the leading role and narrator of the story. A choice not without risk that clearly reflects the spirit of innovation in Gladys Mitchell’s novels. She not only comes out with success of this challenge, but she writes her best novel in accordance with some reviewers. And I won’t be who will question it.
The Rising of the Moon has been reviewed, among others, by Les Blatt at Classic Mysteries, Nick Fuller at Golden Age of Detection Wiki, Patrick Ohl At the Scene of the Crime, Jason Half at The Stone House, and Moira at Clothes In Books.
(Source: Facsimile Dust Jackets, LLC. Michael Joseph (UK) 1945)
About the Author: Gladys Maude Winifred Mitchell was an English author best known for her character of Mrs Bradley, the heroine of 66 detective novels. She also wrote under the pseudonyms Stephen Hockaby and Malcolm Torrie. Gladys Mitchell was born in Cowley, near Oxford on 19 April 1901 to James Mitchell, a market gardener of Scottish parentage, and his wife Annie. She was educated at Rothschild School, Brentford and The Green School, Isleworth, before attending Goldsmiths College and University College London from 1919 to 1921. Upon her graduation, Mitchell became a teacher of history, English and games at St Paul’s School, Brentford until 1925. She then taught at St Ann’s Senior Girls School, Hanwell until 1939. In 1926 she obtained an external diploma in European History from University College, and she then began writing novels while continuing to teach. In 1941 she joined Brentford Senior Girls School, where she stayed until 1950. After a three-year break from teaching, she took a job at Matthew Arnold School, Staines, where she taught English and history, coached hurdling and wrote the annual school play until her retirement to Corfe Mullen, Dorset in 1961, where she lived until her death on 27 July 1983, aged 82.
Although primarily remembered for her mystery novels, Mitchell also published ten children’s books under her own name, historical fiction under the pseudonym Stephen Hockaby, and more detective fiction under the pseudonym Malcolm Torrie. She also wrote a great many short stories, all of which were first published in the Evening Standard. She was an early member of the Detection Club along with G. K. Chesterton, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers and throughout the 1930s was considered to be one of the “Big Three women detective writers”, but she often challenged and mocked the conventions of the genre – notably in her earliest books, such as the first novel Speedy Death (1929), where there is a particularly surprising twist to the plot, or her parodies of Christie in The Mystery of a Butcher’s Shop (1929) and The Saltmarsh Murders (1932). She was a member of the Middlesex Education Association, the British Olympic Association, the Crime Writers’ Association, PEN and the Society of Authors. In 1976 she was awarded the Crime Writers’ Association Silver Dagger.
Selected bibliography: The Mystery of a Butcher’s Shop (1929), The Saltmarsh Murders (1932), Death at the Opera (1934), The Devil at Saxon Wall (1935), Come Away, Death (1937), Brazen Tongue (1940), When Last I Died (1941), The Rising of the Moon (1945), Death and the Maiden (1947), The Dancing Druids (1948), Tom Brown’s Body (1949), Groaning Spinney (1950), The Echoing Strangers (1952), Merlin’s Furlong (1953), Dance to Your Daddy (1969), Nest of Vipers (1979), and The Greenstone Griffins (1983).
A Gladys Mitchell Tribute Site has reviews of almost all the books in its Bibliography section.
The Stone House: A Gladys Mitchell Tribute Site
Artistic Difference: What makes GLADYS MITCHELL special?
Mary Jean DeMarr on Gladys Mitchell (1989)
Gladys Mitchell at Golden Age of Detection Wiki
Gladys Mitchell Obituary
Cuando sale la luna, de Gladys Mitchell (tr. Maria de los Angeles Via Rivera)
Spanish Translation 2012 Madrid: Fábulas de Albión, as Cuando sale la luna, tr. Maria de los Angeles Via Rivera.
Sinopsis: ¿Podría existir un imitador de Jack el Destripador en el tranquilo pueblo de Brentford? Dos mujeres han aparecido brutalmente asesinadas, cada una bajo la luz de una noche de luna llena. Cuando aparece un tercer cuerpo mutilado, los hermanos Simon y Keith Innes descubren que su hermano Jack estaba misteriosamente ausente de su casa esa última noche de luna llena. Después de que la navaja snob de Jack desaparece de su caja de herramientas, Simon y Keith no tienen más remedio que investigar y limpiar su nombre. Con la ayuda de la peculiar detective aficionada Mrs. Bradley, los hermanos se apresuran a encontrar respuestas … antes de otra noche de luna llena. La ecantadoramente excéntrica Mrs. Bradley y su ingeniosa investigación seguramente impresionarán en este clásico inteligentemente entrelazado. Usted nunca adivinará quién acecha en las sombras y por qué.
Mi opinión: La historia está narrada desde la perspectiva de Simon Innes, un niño de trece años. Simon vive con su hermano menor Keith, de once años, en Brentford, hoy una ciudad suburbana en el oeste de Londres, donde tiene lugar la historia. Son huérfanos al cuidado de su hermano mayor Jack, que vive con su esposa June, su hijo de tres años Tom y Christina, una inquilina de quien June siente celos por su belleza. Aunque se publicó en 1945, la historia tiene lugar algunos años antes del estallido de la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Cuando comienza la historia, Simon y Keith disfrutan de sus vacaciones de Pascua, vagando sin supervisión por la ciudad en busca de aventuras. Una pequeña tienda de antigüedades y trastos viejos, que a veces exhibe armas como dagas, espadas y viejas pistolas de arzón, es su lugar favorito para jugar. Una extraña señora mayor, a cargo de la tienda, les deja entrar y tocar lo que les apetezca. Ella se dirige siempre a ellos de manera formal, a él como señor Innes y a su hermano como señor Keith.
La vida despreocupada de Brentford se ve interrumpida un día cuando un asesino en serie al estilo de Jack el Destripador comienza a asesinar a mujeres jóvenes en las noches de luna llena. Simon y Keith encuentran una oportunidad para desplegar sus habilidades como detectives y se ponen a trabajar en el caso. Sin embargo, un día se sorprenderán con uno de sus hallazgos. Justo después del descubrimiento de una tercera víctima, comienzan a sospechar que su propio hermano, Jack, podría ser el asesino, y están decididos a hacer lo que sea necesario para ayudarlo. Este es el momento en que Dame Beatrice Lestrange Bradley aparece en Brentford y, a pesar de su reticencia inicial, los dos hermanos se ganan su confianza y deciden ayudarla.
Mi interés por esta novela surgió como consecuencia de la conferencia Bodies from the Library de este año. La historia estaba entre las lecturas sugeridas y, hasta ahora, mi conocimiento de las obras de Gladys Mitchell se limitaba solo a The Saltmarsh Murders. A falta de un término mejor, The Rising of the Moon es una novela policíaca que bien podría describirse como peculiar. Es peculiar en el sentido de que el narrador es un niño de trece años, en que a pesar de estar publicada en 1945 la acción tiene lugar en algún momento anterior a la Segunda Guerra Mundial, y porque la Sra. Bradley aparece casi a la mitad de la novela en lo que podría considerarse un papel secundario. Resulta curioso resaltar que aunque la historia gira en torno a un asesino en serie, es sumamente original dada la elección del protagonista y narrador de la historia. Una elección no exenta de riesgos que refleja claramente el espíritu de innovación en las novelas de Gladys Mitchell. Ella no solo sale con éxito de este desafío, sino que escribe su mejor novela de acuerdo con algunos críticos. Y no seré yo quien lo ponga en duda.
Acerca del autor: Gladys Maude Winifred Mitchell fue una autora inglesa más conocida por su personaje de la señora Bradley, la heroína de 66 novelas de detectives. También escribió bajo los seudónimos de Stephen Hockaby y Malcolm Torrie. Gladys Mitchell nació en Cowley, cerca de Oxford, el 19 de abril de 1901, hija de James Mitchell, un horticultor de ascendencia escocesa, y de su mujer Annie. Fue educada en el Rothschild School, de Brentford y en el Green School, de Isleworth, antes de asistir al Goldsmiths College y al University College de Londres de 1919 a 1921. Tras su graduación, Mitchell pasó a ser profesora de historia, inglés y juegos en St Paul’s School, de Brentford hasta 1925. Luego enseñó en el St Ann’s Senior Girls School, de Hanwell hasta 1939. En 1926 se diplomó en Historia Europea por el University College, y luego comenzó a escribir novelas mientras continuaba enseñando. En 1941 formó parte del profesorado de la Brentford Senior Girls School, donde permaneció hasta 1950. Tras un descanso de tres años apartada de la docencia, aceptó un puesto en la escuela Matthew Arnold School, Staines, donde enseñó inglés e historia, fue entrenadora de carrera de vallas y escribió la obra de teatro anual de la escuela hasta que se retiró a Corfe Mullen, Dorset en 1961, donde vivió hasta su muerte el 27 de julio de 1983, a la edad de 82 años.
Aunque recordada principalmente por sus novelas de misterio, Mitchell también publicó diez libros para niños con su propio nombre, novelas históricas con el seudónimo de Stephen Hockaby y varias novelas policíacas mas con el seudónimo de Malcolm Torrie. También escribió una gran cantidad de relatos, todos ellos publicados por primera vez en el Evening Standard. Fue miembro del Detection Club junto con GK Chesterton, Agatha Christie y Dorothy L. Sayers y durante la década de 1930 se la consideró una de las “tres grandes escritoras poliíacas”, pero a menudo desafiaba y se burlaba de las convenciones del género, especialmente en sus primeros libros, como la primera novela Speedy Death (1929), donde hay un giro particularmente sorprendente en la trama, o sus parodias de Christie en The Mystery of a Butcher’s Shop (1929) y The Saltmarsh Murders (1932). Fue miembro de la Middlesex Education Society, de la British Olympic Association, de la Crime Writers’ Association, del PEN, y de la Sociedad de Autores. En 1976 recibió la Silver Dagger de la Crime Writers’ Association.
Bibliografía seleccionada: The Mystery of a Butcher’s Shop (1929), The Saltmarsh Murders (1932), Death at the Opera (1934), The Devil at Saxon Wall (1935), Come Away, Death (1937), Brazen Tongue (1940), When Last I Died (1941), The Rising of the Moon (1945) única obra de Gladys Mitchell disponible en español con el título de Cuando sale la luna (Fábulas de Albión, 2012), Death and the Maiden (1947), The Dancing Druids (1948), Tom Brown’s Body (1949), Groaning Spinney (1950), The Echoing Strangers (1952), Merlin’s Furlong (1953), Dance to Your Daddy (1969), Nest of Vipers (1979), and The Greenstone Griffins (1983).
A Gladys Mitchell Tribute Site tiene reseñas de casi todos los libros en la sección Bibliografía.
Marta Marne en La Pared Vacía
Mapback is a term used by paperback collectors to refer to the earliest paperback books published by Dell Books, beginning in 1943. The books are known as mapbacks because the back cover of the book contains a map that illustrates the location of the action. Dell books were numbered in series. Mapbacks extend from #5 to at least #550; then maps became less of a fixed feature of the books and disappeared entirely in 1951. (Numbers 1 through 4 had no map, although a later re-publication of #4, The American Gun Mystery by Ellery Queen, added a map.) The occasional number in the series between #5 and #550 contains no map, but some sort of full-page graphic or text connected with the book’s contents. … the Dell ‘mapbacks’ are among the most well known vintage paperbacks.
A Crime is Afoot 