This book is an interesting experiment. The initial tone is lightly humorous as we see through the protagonist's self-deception and bumbling attempts to improve his situation. However as the novel continues the character becomes deeper and more sympathetic.

It presages psychological thrillers from the 1950s, it might have been titled "An Untalented Mr. Ripley." However Richard Hull did not approach Patricia Highsmith in writing ability, and the book doesn't hang together.

Judged as a humorous mystery, it relies too much on one joke. It does not build to an hilarious climax, the characters become too real to laugh at. Judged as a psychological thriller, it does not maintain tension, and the characters are not real enough.

The book is certainly readable, and serious mystery fiction fans will appreciate it as an aytpical popular success in the 1930s that introduced elements that would be more important after WWII. But it's not funny enough nor thrilling enough to succeed in either genre.

The Murder of my aunt was first published in 1934 and has been republished as a British Library Classics by the Poisoned Pen Press. It is a crime novel at the end of the day, although this may not be completely obvious in the beginning. A review on Goodreads referred to this novel as an ‘inverted’ or ‘reverse’ mystery wherein the viewer knows the identity of the murderer at the beginning of the book and must figure out how he is caught. I do not agree, but this may be a good question to debate.  

The title of the book is self-explanatory and pretty much a synopsis of the plot. Edward would like to kill his aunt. For money, for the freedom he perceives will come his way when she is gone, for revenge against the various real and imagined grievances heaped on his head by her and so on. The reasons are many-fold. The story is told mainly as an account kept in a diary by Edward, which is such a quintessentially British thing to do, and follows the incidents that unfold over a period of a few weeks pretty faithfully as attested by his aunt. Whatever else, Edward could have tried his hand at being a writer for sure.

As the foreword mentions this is more a psychological study into the mind of a psychopath. As I read this book, I kept thinking how circumstances that may be easily avoided are allowed to fester and take on lives of their own in a way that manages to create deep chasms of hatred and discontent between people who would otherwise have been merely indifferent to each other. Edward and his aunt do not like each other. Yet, instead of sending him on his way with whatever allowance would keep him away, she tries to change him into something it is not in his character to be. Even if done through a sense of duty and familial pride, it only creates a situation that was ultimately too deadly for all concerned.

It is interesting that even as we read Edward’s account, we are forming a negative opinion about him. When he begins to explore the various methods of finishing his aunt off, it becomes strangely hypnotizing to read the amount of research he puts into it. This part may have been edited a little, but for the era that this book was published, the writing style is very much spot on. Certainly by the end of book I knew much more about the best ways to kill a person as prevalent in the 1930’s. It was immensely funny to watch Edward trying to be clever when most of the people around him had figured out his plans.

The ending of this book was very surprising. I was looking for a very Victorian ending; keeping in mind the usual ways of the British aristocracy in dealing with their wayward sons, after all we read so many British historical fiction books over the years that it has made us almost experts on the behavior of the aristocracy. The ending made me realize that the author was conveying the subtle message that the whole family was ‘cut from the same cloth’. There were only degrees of depth that the colour of their particular mania had soaked into their characters. In Edward it was patently obvious to everyone around that he had a lot of problems to deal with. His aunt was colored more subtly with the mania of the family and because she has friends around who were on her side, she is seen to be on higher moral ground. Because is it not sheer self flagellation to keep someone around who dislikes you so obviously. Or to try and keep showing a person how worthless or useless he is by constantly demeaning him in front of people who are not ‘family’ when you profess to be doing everything for the sake of the self same ‘family’.

Neither of the characters had my sympathy by the end of the book, but I certainly enjoyed the very British brand of humour throughout the book. Yes, although the in-depth researches into poisons and other methods of destroying a life become a little tedious at times, it is certainly a classic worth investing your time into.

Edward Powell lives with his Aunt Mildred in the Welsh town of Llwll. His aunt thinks Llwll an idyllic place to live, but Edward loathes the countryside – and thinks the company even worse. In fact, Edward has decided to murder his aunt.
Edward is an unlikable character – childish, selfish, spoiled, self-absorbed, and judgmental. And since the book is told in his voice, he becomes just annoyable.
Generally speaking, I enjoy reading the “old” mysteries, Saylor, James, Christie, etc., but not this one. When this was published in 1934, it was lauded as a “darkly humorous depiction of fraught family ties.” The book, unfortunately, hasn’t aged well.

Edward is chaffing under the strict rules imposed by his aunt. He would much rather prefer to do his own thing, read his books and spend his time as he wants. His aunt has other ideas. She wants him to get some exercise and try and do something with his life.
When he has finally had enough, he begins laying out plans to kill her. He wants to get away from the little town in Wales where he lives but knows that she will never leave her home. So he begins to hatch a plot to do away with her, and then inherit, and move off to live his life the way he prefers.

The entire thing is a debacle. He is so inept and not as clever as he believes himself to be. While his attempts fail at getting rid of his aunt, he does not give up and decides to try again. Little does he know that his aunt is aware of what he is doing, and laughing at him the entire time, but just when he thinks he might succeed, the tables are turned....

GREAT BOOK. It took me a little bit to get into it, but once I did, I giggled and laughed the entire way through.

It isn't bad enough that Edward Powell lives in Wales, in unpronounceable Llwill but that it is with his Aunt Mildred on whom he is financially dependant. Edwards decides this must come to an end. And who can blame him.
A very readable, enjoyable mystery with I am not sure any redeemable characters. First published in 1934.

He decides to get rid of his aunt so he can have his own way. She's always picking on him and doesn't give him much of an allowance. She's trying to control his life. He'll just help her have an accident and free up his life...

Poisoned Pen Press and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published tomorrow.

He tries to kill her in a car accident, then tries to burn the house down. She warns him that she wants no more accidents to happen or she'll retaliate. Then he tries to poison her. He's not so smart and she's not so dumb. He should have listened to her.

I love British Library Crime Classics books and this one was a really good one.
The characters are funny even if not likeable at all, the book it's entertaining and dark at the same time.
The plot was great, full of twists and turns and you never know what's going to happen.
It was a really enjoyable and fun read, the discovery of a new hidden gem.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC

This was another happy find from the British Library Crime Classics - four good reads and counting. The series is my favorite discovery at NetGalley, and I appreciate the opportunity to read this book.

The unfortunate Edward is unable to afford to live apart from his aunt, who controls the pursestrings. This being a mystery novel, a solution exists. Sadly, Edward’s ambition somewhat exceeds his aptitude for crime, which requires a great deal of tedious research and planning.

This is an entertaining humorous mystery. It would be a good read for cozy fans who don’t need to like the protagonist. I was expecting something a bit darker from the description, and may have been in the mood for a darker book when I read it. There’s more than a whiff of Looney Tunes as the story develops. This was almost a four-star read for me, and might easily be for many readers.

In an unpronouncable town living with a devilishly clever aunt, Edward Powell is convinced his life would improve immeasurably after the “Murder of my Aunt”.

Edward decides to play a battle of wits to the death with his Aunt Mildred. However, Edward is playing with only half a deck, if you know what I mean.

Edward hates Wales, hates the countryside but hates his aunt most of all. His dream is to write light poetry, which he expects no one will read, while living in Paris or Rome. To reach his goal, Edward only has to murder Aunt Mildred and not get caught. Easy, right? He daydreams constantly about how to do it: leave an obstacle in the road for his aunt to crash into, set her car on fire while she is already dead within it, or use an electrical device to set her car’s fuel tank aflame. He settles on tampering with the car’s steering and brakes in the hope that Aunt Mildred will careen off the mountainous road near their home. To ensure the accident occurs on the steepest part of the road, Edward plots how to have his beloved dog, So-so, cross the road in front of his aunt at the highest point. Of course, his plan goes hilariously awry.

Watching hapless Edward try and kill his much smarter aunt is laugh-out-loud funny. Any fans of Donald Westlake’s Dortmunder gang will certainly see parallels between Murder of My Aunt and the Hot Rock. Literally everything that could go wrong does.

Watching pretentious Edward make mistake after mistake is fun. Murder of My Aunt was originally published in 1934. It is a great choice for British golden age mystery fans who want a lighter look at murder. It would also be a good choice for Stephanie Plum devotees because it has the same madcap seat-of-your-pants feeling. 4 stars!

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for an advance copy.

Full disclosure: I’m grateful to NetGalley for the free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I give this book a solid 3 stars.

This was a unique book for me, perhaps because it’s set in Wales by a British author, and perhaps because it was originally written in 1934.

It’s also unique to me because it’s the first time I didn’t like any of the characters in the book, but I was still compelled to keep reading, wondering what was going to happen next, and how it would end. The narrator was funny with a dry sense of humor although used a lot more words than necessary to convey the story. There were times when I skimmed sentences to move the plot along more quickly.

I’m glad I kept reading to the end and I’m glad I read the book. It was a nice change of pace from other books in this genre and it would be fun to discuss with a book club.

Normally I find myself enjoying any books with which Martin Edwards, who wrote the introduction, is involved. And while I will defer to him about the significance of this book in the annals of Golden Age, I could not finish reading it. The characters were unrelatable. The descriptions were not particularly inspired. The story was slow. I quit about twenty-five per cent through and would not recommend it.

Edward is effete, spoilt, rather stupid young man. He is totally dependent on his aunt who is the opposite of him. A strong, capable woman she sees through him totally, but a promise is a promise and one she intends to keep to her long dead sister to provide a home for her son.

That he intends to murder her by one means or another is the story and when one fails, he tries another. That he journals all these attempts shows his mental capabilities and the fact is that Aunt Mildred is aware of everyone of them and even of his plans before the execution of them.

A British Crime Classic with a superb ending. I found his antics rather annoying to read about but you did need to read the whole lot to get to the ending!

This book is hilarious. Maybe not laugh-out-loud for the most part, but constantly amusing, page after page. This is the story of two thoroughly unredeemably nasty people, honestly, you cannot choose between them for sheer unlikability. The two main characters are Mildred Powell, a horrid woman, and her wretched nephew Edward. They live together in a big house in rural Wales in 1934 (when the book was published) and spend their days purposely getting on each other’s nerves. It is the reader’s great good fortune to watch them.

As is obvious from the title, the main thrust of the story is Edward’s quest to kill his aunt. Normally, this would be a matter of some concern, but in this case one cannot help but think that Mildred deserves it. Of course, Edward is so disagreeable that the reader doesn’t want him to succeed, either. I don’t like spoilers in general, but I especially do not want to spoil your enjoyment of the twists and turns, so I will say no more on that subject.

I am very grateful to the British Library Crime Classics editors, and to Martin Edwards for writing his excellent forwards to these resurrected literary gems; I have been reading a lot of these books lately and enjoying them very much. This one is exceptional; you will laugh, giggle and chuckle at the goings-on. It is just a lot of fun, and highly recommended.

I love the British Library Crime Classics, but it is probably a false expectation on my part that I will enjoy all of them equally. This one, e.g., simply was not hitting the spot which is mainly due to the humor. When you have a funny tale like this about a young man, who is dependent on his aunt and plots to kill her because she annoys you and it is told in this "lanky" way, then it either makes you laugh or it will end up getting on your nerves. Edward annoyed me so much by the end of the book, I was ready to murder him!

The time is between WWI and WWII. The place is a small village in Wales. The person is Edward. Edward is a young man who is an orphan who lives with his Aunt.

Edward is much too chic and stylish to be hidden away in the dark wilds of Wales. Edward is much to sophisticated and suave to live with an aunt who does not appreciate him. And even worse is the fact that all the villagers believe that Edward is not exactly playing with a full deck.

This book is very funny.

Edward writes in his diary about murdering his Aunt. He is her only family so he is certain that after her death he will have enough money to live in the style to which he intends to become accustomed.

The plans are varied and entertaining. Not necessarily successful but entertaining.

This is a book which was written in the Golden Age of British mysteries. The author is Richard Hull, an unknown author to me. His sense of irony is strong. His wit is even stronger.

In Edward, he has created someone who is completely unaware of the world around him and the people who populate that world.

The plot is entertaining.

All in all, this is a delightful book.

I received this book from the publisher, through NetGalley. I am voluntarily writing this review and all opinions are completely my own.

Thanks to the Poisoned Pen Press for lending me a digital ARC via Netgalley.

One of the first Golden Age mysteries I ever read was the Francis Iles 1931 classic “inverted mystery,” Malice Aforethought, about a doctor who decides that he will do away with his shrewish wife and marry a younger woman he fancies. It’s called an inverted mystery because, unlike your usual mystery, we know who the murderer is from the start, and the story is more of a whydunnit, howdunnit, and what happened along the way.

A few years after Iles’s book, in 1934, Richard Hull gave readers his own version of the inverted mystery. The current book is a republication that is part of the British Library Crime Classics collection.

First-person narrator Edward Powell is miserable living in rural Wales with his critical and righteous aunt. She controls the pursestrings, though, so getting rid of her is his only hope of escaping to a comfortable life in civilization, reading racy French novels, gorging on fine foods, and socializing with other effete young men.

Edward’s murderous plans are elaborately detailed—and idiotic. You can’t help but be entertained by the contrast between his visions and the reality that plays out. Amusing as Edward is, it gets to be a little bit much after 100 pages or so. Luckily, right about then Hull wraps it up with an unforgettably clever denouement.

In an amusing plot, Edward tries to kill his Aunt Mildred. I didn't really care for Edward who lacked ambition, with the exception of ridding the world of his aunt, or Aunt Mildred, who was too controlling. I really wanted something with more of an investigation. We don't really get any sense of any suspicion that follows through with investigation until the final chapter. The structure is different, but I did not like it. I received this advance review copy through NetGalley with the expectation of an honest review.

Edward is effete, spoilt, rather stupid young man. He is totally dependent on his aunt who is the opposite of him. A strong, capable woman she sees through him totally, but a promise is a promise and one she intends to keep to her long dead sister to provide a home for her son.

That he intends to murder her by one means or another is the story and when one fails, he tries another. That he journals all these attempts shows his mental capabilities and the fact is that Aunt Mildred is aware of everyone of them and even of his plans before the execution of them.

A British Crime Classic with a superb ending. I found his antics rather annoying to read about but you did need to read the whole lot to get to the ending!

Thanks to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with a copy of the eBook. The views expressed below are my own.
This story is a variation on the classic country house murder mystery. It is set in Wales at the ancestral home of the Powell family. The home is shared by Mildred Powell and her nephew, Edward. Edward despises everything about Wales and longs to leave his aunt and the home behind. The problem is that his aunt controls the family fortune and doles out a "meagre" allowance to him, which is his sole source of income. Compounding that, he has no interest in working and no marketable skills or training. He wants out anyway and seizes on the idea of killing his aunt to get the family money and leave Wales. Unfortunately for him, his murder attempts are unsuccessful he fails and while working on his third attempt, he is again thwarted in a spectacular fashion. The story comes to a surprising conclusion, totally unexpected.
Neither Mildred or Edward is an attractive character. Mildred is a domineering matriarch bent on "controlling" Edward. Edward on the other hand is a conniving leech totally lacking in ambition or any redeeming values. He has no formal education and lives in blissful ignorance of the world. Edward expertly demonstrates the English trait of "muddling through", hoping for the best. Each in his or her own way represents the worst of British landed gentry of the time (the 1930's), without any of their positive features.
Edward narrates most of the story via "notes" in the form of a diary and readers get to see his stupidity and ignorance first hand. Query why any killer would write down his murder plans. The remainder of the story is told by Mildred, who also takes to writing "notes" to explain her actions. It's an interesting structure.
The story is as much a social satire of the landed gentry, as it's a murder mystery. Edward's clumsy plotting is a good tool for building suspense: you wonder whether he will eventually succeed in killing his aunt?
In the final analysis this is an entertaining read. A memorable feature for me is the unexpected ending.

An unusual crime fiction from the Golden Age in that it is unorthodox and a bit shocking, but should be enjoyed by those who love classic mysteries.