A Critical Look at Envious Casca: Georgette Heyer’s Murder Mystery

It’s no ordinary Christmas at Lexham Manor.

Six holiday guests find themselves the suspects of a murder inquiry when the old Scrooge, Nathaniel Herriad, who owns the substantial estate, is stabbed in the back.

For Inspector Hemingway of Scotland Yard, ‘tis the season to find whodunit, but it’s a real conundrum how any of the suspects could have entered the locked room to commit this foul deed in the first place.

~ Synopsis from Goodreads

This book is one of those typical locked room mysteries where a universally hated character is found fatally stabbed to death within a locked room. Suspects are many, alibis are few, and plenty of red herrings and clues are strewn about.

Envious Casca Review

Georgette Heyer is more known for her romances than her mysteries, and that’s not very surprising. Her mysteries are pedestrian and non-mysterious.

Reading Envious Casca, I guessed the killer long before even the murder was committed, so liberally were the hints thrown around. So, this isn’t a challenging read nor a book likely to linger in your memory for very long.

The book is immensely readable, though, and I enjoyed it despite its quite serious flaws – the non-mysterious mystery, the stereotypical characters, and the hackneyed old-as-the-hills plot.

It was the perfect book to read while on holiday. I didn’t have to concentrate too hard on the plot. Instead, I settled down to enjoy the family fights between all the characters. The barbs fly fast and furious, and if you’re into watching soap opera-style fights, you’ll enjoy all the fights in this one. Also, while the who aspect of the murder is obvious early in the novel, the how is a bit of a head-scratcher.

Overall, a pleasant, well-written, but forgettable read.

Have you read Georgette Heyer’s mysteries? Which mystery of hers do you recommend? I enjoyed this book well enough that I want to read more by her.