This is your audiobook for February 2022 — my reading of "The Second Bullet" by Anna Katharine Green, from The Golden Slipper and Other Problems for Violet Strange, first published in 1915. This is the second story from that collection, in which Green introduces a new sleuth to readers — the “girl detective” Violet Strange. Be aware that this story describes the death of a young child.

This is your audiobook for January 2022 — my reading of "The Ivy Cottage Mystery" by Arthur Morrison, from the collection Chronicles of Martin Hewitt, first published in 1895. Martin Hewitt is a cheerful and humble London-based private detective who began appearing in the Strand magazine four months after the "death" of Sherlock Holmes. This story is narrated by his friend Brett, a journalist.

This is the Shedunnit Book Club companion episode for January 2022, in which we are reading The Beast Must Die by Nicholas Blake. There is a non-spoilery plot summary included (ie no major clues or twists), but you've been warned! I’ll see you in the Shedunnit forum for our fully spoilered discussion thread on 31st January.

NB: links to books at Blackwell’s are affiliate links, meaning that although the price remains the exactly same for you, the podcast receives a small commission on each purchase. Blackwell’s is an independent, family run bookseller in the UK that ships internationally at no extra charge.

The golden age of detective fiction was obsessed with identity. The reason why? An extremely melodramatic Victorian legal case involving shipwreck, Shetland ponies and a tangled aristocratic inheritance.

For more details on the Shedunnit Production Assistant job, visit shedunnitshow.com/productionassistant. The deadline for applications is 30th January 2022.

Please be aware that there may be spoilers for the following books in this episode.

Books referenced: — The Claimant by Michael Gilbert — Death in Captivity by Michael Gilbert — Smallbone Deceased by Michael Gilbert — The Murder at Road Hill House episode with Robin Stevens — The Suspicions of Mr Whicher by Kate Summerscale — Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie — Dead Man’s Folly by Agatha Christie — The Nine Wrong Answers by John Dickson Carr — The Belting Inheritance by Julian Symons — Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey — The Tichborne Romance by Franklin Lushington — The Tichborne Claimant by Douglas Woodruff

This is the bonus material from my conversation with Helen Zaltzman for the A Mysterious Glossary episode. I hope you enjoy our take on what all these extra words and phrases mean.

Do you know your ack emma from your pip emma? Would you wear the cat's pyjamas? Are you, in fact, a goop? Helen Zaltzman joins me to delve into some baffling language from golden age detective fiction.

Thanks to my guest for this episode, Helen Zaltzman. She is the host of The Allusionist, a marvellous podcast about language, which I strongly recommend that you support on Patreon now.

There are no major plot spoilers in this episode.

A bonus episode with 20 minutes of extra material will be published later this month just for Shedunnit Book Club members.

Books referenced: — A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie — "The Tuesday Night Club" by Agatha Christie from The Tuesday Club Murders aka The Thirteen Problems — The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey — Checkmate to Murder by ECR Lorac — The Ha-Ha Case by JJ Connington — The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

This is your audiobook for December 2021 — my reading of “The Stranger’s Latchkey” by R. Austin Freeman, from the collection John Thorndyke’s Cases first published in 1909. Thorndyke is a medical jurispractitioner who shares some qualities with Sherlock Holmes; this story is narrated by his friend and “Watson” Dr Jervis.

This an interview with John Pugmire, a noted crime fiction enthusiast and translator who runs a small publishing company called Locked Room International. LRI has published some fascinating translations of French and Japanese mysteries particularly, and I’d urge you to check them out if you hear something hear you’re intrigued by! You can find links to all of the books that John has published at mylri.com/books.

This is the Shedunnit Book Club companion episode for December 2021, in which we are reading Crossed Skis by Carol Carnac. There is a non-spoilery plot summary included (ie no major clues or twists), but you’ve been warned! I’ll see you in the Shedunnit forum for our fully spoilered discussion thread on 31st December.

NB: links to books at Blackwell’s are affiliate links, meaning that although the price remains the exactly same for you, the podcast receives a small commission on each purchase. Blackwell’s is an independent, family run bookseller in the UK that ships internationally at no extra charge.

How much did Agatha Christie really know about dead bodies?

Thanks to my guest for this episode, Carla Valentine. She is a trained mortuary technician and the technical curator at Barts Pathology Museum in London. She’s also the author of Murder Isn’t Easy: The Forensics of Agatha Christie.

This is all from the main Shedunnit podcast in 2021, although there will still be bonus episodes coming before the end of the year and of course the members-only festive livestream to look forward to on 15th December (set a reminder on youtube now to join it). I’ll be back in January 2022 with new episodes. Thank you very much for listening this year and for your support of me and the show — it really does mean a lot.

There are no major plot spoilers in this episode, although there is some discussion of the death in Hercule Poirot’s Christmas.

Links to Blackwell’s are affiliate links, meaning that the podcast receives a small commission when you purchase a book there (the price remains the same for you). Blackwell’s is a UK independent bookselling chain that ships internationally at no extra charge.