The Poisoned Chocolates Case: Difference between revisions

The Poisoned Chocolates Case
	First edition (UK)
Author	Anthony Berkeley
Language	English
Genre	Detective fiction
Publisher	Collins (UK); Doubleday, Doran (US)
Publication date	1929
Publication place	United Kingdom
Media type	Print (Hardcover and Paperback)
Preceded by	The Silk Stocking Murders
Followed by	The Piccadilly Murder

Browse history interactively

← Previous edit

Content deleted Content added

VisualWikitext

Inline

Latest revision as of 16:55, 15 December 2023

The Poisoned Chocolates Case (1929) is a detective novel by Anthony Berkeley set in 1920s London in which a group of armchair detectives, who have founded the "Crimes Circle", formulate theories on a recent murder case Scotland Yard has been unable to solve. Each of the six members, including their president, Berkeley's amateur sleuth Roger Sheringham, arrives at an altogether different solution as to the motive and the identity of the perpetrator, and also applies different methods of detection (basically deductive or inductive or a combination of both). Completely devoid of brutality but containing a lot of subtle, tongue-in-cheek humour instead, The Poisoned Chocolates Case is one of the classic whodunnits of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. As at least six plausible explanations of what really happened are put forward one after the other, the reader—just like the members of the Crimes Circle themselves—is kept guessing right up to the final pages of the book.

Plot introduction

One of the most unusual, and possibly unique, features of the book is that, while it appears at first sight to be an expanded version of Berkeley's short story "The Avenging Chance", the eventual solution of the crime in the full-length novel is quite different from that in the short story. (In fact, the solution of "The Avenging Chance" is one of the suggested explanations in the novel which turns out to be false.)

Plot summary

Case

After arriving at his London club at 10:30 am precisely, which he has been doing every morning for many years, Sir Eustace Pennefather, a known womanizer whose divorce from his current wife is pending, receives a complimentary box of chocolates through the post. Disapproving of such modern marketing techniques, Sir Eustace is about to throw away the chocolates in disgust but changes his mind when he learns that Graham Bendix, another member of the club whom he hardly knows, has lost a bet with his wife Joan and now owes her a box of chocolates. Bendix takes the box home and, after lunch, tries out the new confectionery together with his wife. A few hours later Joan Bendix is dead, whereas her husband, who has eaten far fewer chocolates, is taken seriously ill and hospitalized (but later recovers). The police can establish a few facts beyond any doubt: that the parcel was posted the previous evening near The Strand; that the poison that was injected into each of the chocolates is nitrobenzene; and that the accompanying letter was typewritten on a piece of stationery from the manufacturers of the chocolates but not composed or sent by them.

Quite soon in the police investigations it becomes evident that the intended victim was Sir Eustace himself rather than the innocent Joan Bendix: no criminal could have predicted Sir Eustace giving away the box of chocolates to a man he hardly knew who just happened to be present when it was delivered. However, at a loss as to the further details of the crime, Scotland Yard conclude that the sender must have been some maniac or a fanatic trying to rid society of one of its most immoral members.

Theories

Worthy pillars of society including a barrister, a writer of detective novels, and a female author, the members of Roger Sheringham's Crimes Circle go about individually solving the case. After a week has passed, they present their findings on consecutive nights to their colleagues. Not surprisingly, they come up with various suspects: Sir Eustace's estranged wife; the father of a young lady whom Sir Eustace intended to marry after his divorce got through; one of Sir Eustace's discarded mistresses; and some more. At the very end of the novel, however, there is no doubt as to the identity of the perpetrator.

Release details

1929, UK, William Collins, 1929, hardback (First edition)
1929, US, Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc.
1935, UK, Penguin Books, paperback
1937, UK, Penguin Books, paperback
1950, UK, Pan Books, Pub date ? ? 1950, paperback
1951, US, Pocket Books, 11/1951, paperback
1983, US, Dell Publishing (ISBN 0-440-16844-9), Pub date ? November 1983, paperback
1983, UK, Penguin Books (ISBN 0-14-008161-5), Pub date ? July 1986, paperback
1991, US, Black Dagger Crime Reprints (ISBN 0-86220-820-3), Pub date 4 December 1991, hardback
?, US, Dales (ISBN 1-84262-217-X), Pub date ? ? ?, hardback (Large print edition)
2001, US, House of Stratus (ISBN 0-7551-0206-1), Pub date 31 August 2001, paperback

External links

Gadetection.pbwiki.com The Poisoned Chocolates Case

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|1929 novel by Anthony Berkeley}}
-{{Infobox Book | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Books -->
+{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
+{{Infobox book | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Books -->
 | name         = The Poisoned Chocolates Case
 | title_orig   =
 | translator   =
-| image        = [[Image:PoisonedChocolatesCase.jpg]]
+| image        = Image:PoisonedChocolatesCase.jpg
+| border       =
-|image_caption = 1st edition cover
+| caption      = First edition (UK)
 | author       = [[Anthony Berkeley]]
 | cover_artist =
-| country      = England
+| country      = United Kingdom
-| language     = [[English language|English]]
+| language     = English
 | series       =
 | genre        = [[Detective fiction]]
-| publisher    = [[HarperCollins|Collins]]
+| publisher    = [[William Collins, Sons|Collins]] (UK)<br>[[Doubleday, Doran]] (US)
 | release_date = [[1929 in literature|1929]]
 | media_type   = Print ([[Hardcover]] and [[Paperback]])
 | pages        =
-| isbn         = N/A
 | preceded_by  = [[The Silk Stocking Murders]]
 | followed_by  = [[The Piccadilly Murder]]
 }}
-'''''The Poisoned Chocolates Case''''' ([[1929 in literature|1929]]) is a [[detective fiction|detective novel]] by [[Anthony Berkeley Cox|Anthony Berkeley]] set in 1920s [[London]] in which a group of [[armchair detective]]s, who have founded the "Crimes Circle", formulate theories on a recent murder case [[Scotland Yard]] has been unable to solve. Each of the six members, including their president, Berkeley's amateur [[detective|sleuth]] [[Roger Sheringham]], arrives at an altogether different solution as to the motive and the identity of the perpetrator, and also applies different methods of detection (basically [[natural deduction|deductive]] or [[inductive reasoning|inductive]] or a combination of both). Completely devoid of brutality but containing a lot of subtle, tongue-in-cheek [[humour]] instead, ''The Poisoned Chocolates Case'' is one of the classic [[whodunnit]]s of the so-called [[Golden age|Golden Age]] of detective fiction. As at least six plausible explanations of what really happened are put forward one after the other, the reader—just like the members of the Crimes Circle themselves—is kept guessing up to the final pages of the book, when the least likely suspect is revealed as the murderer.
+'''''The Poisoned Chocolates Case''''' ([[1929 in literature|1929]]) is a [[detective fiction|detective novel]] by [[Anthony Berkeley Cox|Anthony Berkeley]] set in 1920s [[London]] in which a group of [[armchair detective]]s, who have founded the "Crimes Circle", formulate theories on a recent murder case [[Scotland Yard]] has been unable to solve. Each of the six members, including their president, Berkeley's amateur sleuth [[Roger Sheringham]], arrives at an altogether different solution as to the motive and the identity of the perpetrator, and also applies different methods of detection (basically [[natural deduction|deductive]] or [[inductive reasoning|inductive]] or a combination of both). Completely devoid of brutality but containing a lot of subtle, tongue-in-cheek humour instead, ''The Poisoned Chocolates Case'' is one of the classic [[whodunnit]]s of the [[Golden Age of Detective Fiction]]. As at least six plausible explanations of what really happened are put forward one after the other, the reader—just like the members of the Crimes Circle themselves—is kept guessing right up to the final pages of the book.
 ==Plot introduction==
@@ Line 25: / Line 27: @@
 ==Plot summary==
-===The case===
-While staying at his London club as he has been doing every morning for many years, Sir Eustace Pennefather, a known womanizer whose divorce from his current wife is pending, receives a complimentary box of chocolates through the post. Disapproving of such modern marketing techniques, Sir Eustace is about to throw away the chocolates in disgust but changes his mind when he learns that Graham Bendix, another member of the club whom he hardly knows, has lost a bet with his wife Joan and now owes her a box of chocolates. Bendix takes the box home and, after lunch, tries out the new confectionery together with his wife. A few hours later Joan Bendix is dead, whereas her husband, who has eaten far less of the chocolate, is taken seriously ill and hospitalized (but later recovers). The police can establish a few facts beyond any doubt: that the parcel was posted the previous evening near [[Strand, London|The Strand]]; that the poison that was injected into each of the chocolates is [[nitrobenzene]]; and that the accompanying letter was typewritten on a piece of [[stationery]] from the manufacturers of the chocolates but not composed or sent by them.
+===Case===
-Quite soon in the police investigations it becomes evident that the intended victim was Sir Eustace himself rather than the innocent Joan Bendix: No criminal could have predicted Sir Eustace giving away the box of chocolates to a man he hardly knew who just happened to be present when it was delivered. However, at a loss as to the further details of the crime, Scotland Yard conclude that the sender must have been some maniac or a fanatic trying to rid society of one of its most immoral members.
+After arriving at his London club at 10:30 am precisely, which he has been doing every morning for many years, Sir Eustace Pennefather, a known womanizer whose divorce from his current wife is pending, receives a complimentary box of chocolates through the post. Disapproving of such modern marketing techniques, Sir Eustace is about to throw away the chocolates in disgust but changes his mind when he learns that Graham Bendix, another member of the club whom he hardly knows, has lost a bet with his wife Joan and now owes her a box of chocolates. Bendix takes the box home and, after lunch, tries out the new confectionery together with his wife. A few hours later Joan Bendix is dead, whereas her husband, who has eaten far fewer chocolates, is taken seriously ill and hospitalized (but later recovers). The police can establish a few facts beyond any doubt: that the parcel was posted the previous evening near [[Strand, London|The Strand]]; that the poison that was injected into each of the chocolates is [[nitrobenzene]]; and that the accompanying letter was typewritten on a piece of stationery from the manufacturers of the chocolates but not composed or sent by them.
+Quite soon in the police investigations it becomes evident that the intended victim was Sir Eustace himself rather than the innocent Joan Bendix: no criminal could have predicted Sir Eustace giving away the box of chocolates to a man he hardly knew who just happened to be present when it was delivered. However, at a loss as to the further details of the crime, Scotland Yard conclude that the sender must have been some maniac or a fanatic trying to rid society of one of its most immoral members.
-===The theories===
-Worthy pillars of society including a [[barrister]], a writer of detective novels, and a female author, the members of Roger Sheringham's Crimes Circle go about individually solving the case. After a week has passed, they present their findings on consecutive nights to their colleagues. Not surprisingly, they come up with various suspects: Sir Eustace's estranged wife; the father of a young lady whom Sir Eustace intended to marry after his divorce got through; one of Sir Eustace's discarded mistresses; and some more. While these discussions are going on, the murderer seems to feel safe with no need to cover up their tracks any further. At the very end of the novel, however, there is no doubt as to the identity of the perpetrator.
-==Release Details==
+===Theories===
+Worthy pillars of society including a [[barrister]], a writer of detective novels, and a female author, the members of Roger Sheringham's Crimes Circle go about individually solving the case. After a week has passed, they present their findings on consecutive nights to their colleagues. Not surprisingly, they come up with various suspects: Sir Eustace's estranged wife; the father of a young lady whom Sir Eustace intended to marry after his divorce got through; one of Sir Eustace's discarded mistresses; and some more. At the very end of the novel, however, there is no doubt as to the identity of the perpetrator.
-*1929, UK, Collins Crime Club, (ISBN NA), Pub date ? ? 1929, hardback (First edition)
-*1950, UK, Pan Books, (ISBN NA), Pub date ? ? 1950, paperback
+==Release details==
-*1983, USA, Dell Publishing (ISBN 0-440-16844-9), Pub date ? November 1983, paperback
+*1929, UK, William Collins, 1929, hardback (First edition)
-*1983, UK, Penguin Books (ISBN 0-14-008161-5), Pub date ? July 1986, paperback
+*1929, US, Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc.
-*1991, USA, Black Dagger Crime Reprints (ISBN 0-86220-820-3), Pub date 4 December 1991, hardback
+*1935, UK, Penguin Books, paperback
-*?, USA, Dales (ISBN 1-84262-217-X), Pub date ? ? ?, hardback (Large print edition)
+*1937, UK, Penguin Books, paperback
-*2001, USA, House of Stratus (ISBN 0-7551-0206-1), Pub date 31 August 2001, paperback
+*1950, UK, Pan Books, Pub date ? ? 1950, paperback
-Not available for many years, ''The Poisoned Chocolates Case'' was republished by [http://www.houseofstratus.com House of Stratus] in 2001 (ISBN 0-7551-0206-1).
+*1951, US, Pocket Books, 11/1951, paperback
+*1983, US, Dell Publishing ({{ISBN|0-440-16844-9}}), Pub date ? November 1983, paperback
+*1983, UK, Penguin Books ({{ISBN|0-14-008161-5}}), Pub date ? July 1986, paperback
+*1991, US, Black Dagger Crime Reprints ({{ISBN|0-86220-820-3}}), Pub date 4 December 1991, hardback
+*?, US, Dales ({{ISBN|1-84262-217-X}}), Pub date ? ? ?, hardback (Large print edition)
+*2001, US, House of Stratus ({{ISBN|0-7551-0206-1}}), Pub date 31 August 2001, paperback
 ==External links==
@@ Line 47: / Line 53: @@
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Poisoned Chocolates Case, The}}
-[[Category:1929 novels]]
+[[Category:1929 British novels]]
 [[Category:Novels by Anthony Berkeley]]
 [[Category:Novels set in London]]
+[[Category:William Collins, Sons books]]
-[[it:Il caso dei cioccolatini avvelenati]]
-[[ja:毒入りチョコレート事件]]
-[[ru:Дело об отравленных шоколадках]]