Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of The Spoilt Kill (British Library Crime Classics)

The Spoilt Kill (British Library Crime Classics)
WhidbeyIslander avatar reviewed on + 691 more book reviews


An interesting take on a murder mystery, much more enjoyable if you are into pottery. The author knows her stuff and my eyes glazed over a bit (sorry) as she details the workings of the pottery. The book is presented in three parts: what happened (discovery of the body), what happened before, and the unraveling of the mystery. The middle section is much longer and details how the investigator goes about looking for the person responsible for stealing the designs from his employer. I am such a slow reader that I had to go back and read the What Happened part to recall, well, what happened. (It's only seven pages, so no big deal.) Most of the book is about the relationships between people working at the company and as you get to know them you hope some of them are not the victim (you don't know whose body is discovered in those seven pages until then end.) Nicely written and not very demanding, it's an interesting peek at the world it is set in (1950's working class England.) Originally published in 1961.