When a group of the best current British mystery writers produces a tribute anthology in honor of their club’s former president, you can expect the book to contain some excellent stories. That’s the case with “Playing Dead,” which contains 22 stories written by members of the famed Detection Club. The book, edited by current club president Martin Edwards, is a tribute to his predecessor, Simon Brett (who contributed one story). Unfortunately, despite the authors’ pedigree, about one-third of the tales are routine or outright duds. As a result, “Playing Dead’ is a solid read, but not as good as it should be.

The Detection Club is an exclusive club comprising British mystery writers who were invited by the existing membership. Initially, the club was dedicated to the tradition of Fair Play in mystery writing, as set out in some informal rules. The club’s lineage dates from 1930, when it was founded by Anthony Berkeley. Its first president was G. K. Chesterton, and other presidents included Dorothy Sayers and Agatha Christie. Simon Brett served as president from 2000 to 2015. During Brett’s tenure, the club published a similar tribute in honor of his predecessor, H. R. F. Keating, on his 80th birthday. Martin Edwards continues that tradition with “Playing Dead” as Brett approaches 80. All stories in this collection are new, and many authors pay tribute to Brett’s own writing background in some way.

The stories in “Playing Dead” follow no particular order by author or theme, and I think editor Edwards front-loaded the collection with some of the best. The book gets off to a great start with “Crimes Ancient and Modern” by L. C. Tyler. A husband-and-wife mystery writing team finds both their careers and marriage falling apart. In desperation, they hatch elaborate schemes to murder each other. The manner of their ultimate demise (no spoiler since the author reveals this detail in the story’s first sentence) is a good twist. A more serious tale, “Dead Ground” by Andrew Taylor, follows. Readers will immediately note this story’s similarity to “The Body” (filmed as “Stand by Me”) by Stephen King. Four teenagers regularly hang out in a wooded area near their homes. One day, they find a dead body in the woods. Unlike King’s teens, they don’t report the discovery, and the body isn’t uncovered by anyone else until 20 years later. The ending will surprise most readers, but in the best Detection Club Fair Play tradition, the author provides all the necessary clues.

“Just a Minute” by Peter Lovesey (who sadly died since contributing this story) pays homage to Simon Brett’s history as a radio producer. The story takes its title from a long-running British game show of the same name. A convicted serial killer agrees to reveal the location of his victims’ bodies if the prison stages a performance of the show with him as a contestant. (Imagine a “Jeopardy” episode with Ted Bundy playing.) The story probably resonates better with readers familiar with the radio show, but I still enjoyed it. “Bells and Whistles” by Lynn Truss is also set against the backdrop of a popular radio show, this time a fictional 1950s detective series. Unfortunately, it’s one of the weakest stories in the collection. The author plays the scenario for laughs, but the jokes don’t connect. Instead, the story rambles far too long.

A popular theme in Simon Brett’s mysteries is a mysterious death that occurs in connection with a theater production. Several stories in “Playing Dead” involve variations on that premise. Brett himself contributes a story featuring his favorite character, third-rate actor Charles Paris. In the anthology’s best story, “Cast, in Order of Reappearance,” Paris is cast in a regional theater production featuring an obnoxious “National Treasure” actor in the lead role. Humor abounds here, as Brett includes some offbeat references to cast members, including Paris’s own role as “Suspect Whose Work As A Doctor Gave Him Access To The Medication An Overdose Of Which Caused The First Murder Victim To Die.” He also reveals some idiosyncrasies of local theater, such as the “Repeated Cue,” where an actor receives the same line as a cue multiple times during the show and mixes up their lines, reciting the wrong response at the wrong time, thus causing a disruption in the play’s action. (This proves a significant plot point when a cast member dies soon after.) Brett also contributes a short essay describing his experiences with the Detection Club and the acquaintances he made over the years. That essay is as entertaining as many of the collection’s stories.

Although the cast in Brett’s story is staging a revival of a hoary mystery play, the tale itself is very much a product of 2025, with some #MeToo references. Several other stories in “Playing Dead” also incorporate modern-day themes. In “Silver Fox” by Michael Ridpath, a woman falls prey to an internet scammer who romances her online and persuades her to send him a substantial sum. However, the woman’s husband identifies the scammer from his picture, and the couple tracks him to his home in Iceland, seeking revenge. The story has some entertaining twists along the way. Ruth Dudley Edwards’ “Publish and Be Damned” is about a writer whose relating an “inappropriate “joke at a literary luncheon arouses the ire of the publisher’s “sensitivity” personnel. The publisher then drops the writer, who can’t find a new publisher. Rather than give up on his career, the writer gets his revenge in the best way. On a more serious note, Abir Mukherjee’s “Full Circle” is the story of an older woman who is clearly getting her affairs in order to prepare for… The reason for her actions becomes clear in the story’s final few pages, which pack an emotional wallop.

Unfortunately, not all the stories in “Playing Dead” live up to Brett and Edwards’ highest standards. More unfortunately, some of them are among the anthology’s longest tales. “Murder at Mousecomb” also involves the death of an actress in a touring theater production. The story is narrated by the actress’ understudy, and the timeline shifts repeatedly and confusingly from the present day to a recap of the understudy’s entire career. “Blood on Ice” by Frances Brody tells the life story of a man whose descent to petty crime and prison costs him everything, including his marriage. The plot is very predictable and more boring than depressing or illuminating. Two stories involve well-known historical figures, Wilkie Collins and Christopher Marlowe. Only readers very familiar with the pair will find these tales entertaining. Another lengthy story, “Criss-Cross” by John Harvey, reads like the script of a routine episode of a TV police drama like “Law and Order: SVU.”

I really enjoyed most of the contributions to “Playing Dead.” The authors showed off their talent and often paid homage to Simon Brett in their choices of subject and setting. (Charles Paris even makes a cameo appearance in one story.) However, I also felt the anthology had too many stories that weren’t worthy of selection. The members of the Detection Club represent the cream of the crop in British mystery fiction, and some stories fell considerably below that standard. Worse, they took up an inordinate percentage of the book’s overall content. My four-star rating is a solid recommendation for the anthology coupled with a regret that it wasn’t all it should have been.

NOTE: The publisher graciously provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley. However, the decision to review the book and the contents of this review are entirely my own.

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

5 stars

This is quite an excellent collection of short stories written by current members of the prestigious Detection Club, of which Agatha Christie herself, the "Queen of Crime", was president for a time. It is written as a gift to the former president of the club for his eightieth birthday, Simon Brett. The stories are a delightful mix of modern detective plots, irreverent send-ups of the classic "whodunnit?", and tasteful re-imaginings of old plots and old characters; heck, there's even a short poem. And Simon Brett himself gets the final word, as they say, with a cheeky revival of his own beloved character, Charles Paris. Any ardent fan of mysteries will recognise most, if not all, of the authors names published here; they represent the very best of the crime thriller and mystery genres working today in the UK. I definitely took my time reading this book, as I wanted to savour each of the stories as they came.

Thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for giving me access to a free digital ARC of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own and are provided here voluntarily.

A fun collection of short detective stories. I enjoyed that all had different set ups and quite a few surprised me with plot twists.

An anthology featuring a lot of my favourite mystery writers. Short stories of all the possible families of mystery/crime. Stories which go from good to excellent.
A lot of fun, a lot of excellent storytelling.
Well done, loved it
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Playing Dead, edited by Martin Edwards, is a collection of various types of crime stories written by 22 authors to commemorate the 80th birthday of Simon Brett, a former president of the Detection Club, a group well known to chronic readers of British mysteries. As with all such collections, the styles and perceived quality vary. Much will depend on individual taste though I found several excellent and only one that left me scratching my head.

Among my favorites: Just a Minute by Peter Lovesey; Sanctuary by Martin Edwards (really took me for a ride); Silver Fox by Michael Ridpath ; The Luncheon by Christopher Fowler (masterful tone and wit from a much missed writer); and Full Circle by Abir Mukherjee. These are not procedurals or simple crime solving tales. There are twists of personalities, of plots, of tactics, and of story telling. I found that I really enjoyed many of these twisted characters and their authors. There is a brief biography of each author provided at the end of the book.

Thanks to Severn House and NetGalley for an eARC provided in return for an honest review.

An excellent anthology , I’d go so far as to say the best I’ve read so far!
This collection is to honour the eightieth birthday of Simon Brett a former president of the Detection Club .
The club’s members are some of the most esteemed crime writers in the world and these short stories highlight their talent perfectly.
The authors include Elly Griffiths, Simon Brett , Martin Edwards and Christopher Fowler to name a few .
The stories make for an easy and enjoyable read.
A must read for any crime fiction reader.
Thanks to NetGalley and Severn House.

I used to think I hated short stories...

But I’ve read a couple great anthologies lately, this one included, that have changed my mind. While I certainly liked some stories in Playing Dead more than others, even the ones I didn’t enjoy were over quickly enough 😜

I was most drawn to the stories that included a bit of social commentary, particularly around Cancel Culture and sensitivity readers/censors.

Also, if you’re at all a mystery fan, the name dropping at the very end is enough to make you want to read this. The Detection Club has got to be the coolest group of humans out there 💀

This is a collection of twenty-two short crime stories, all written by members of the Detection Club in honour of their past president Simon Brett’s 80th birthday. Well, 21 of them are – the 22nd is written by Simon Brett himself. It has a short introduction by Martin Edwards, where he tells a little about Brett’s long career, not just as a successful novelist but also as a producer of some of the most popular BBC radio panel games – Just a Minute, I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue, to name but two – and a writer of radio sitcoms, such as After Henry. I had no idea of the extent of his career beyond novels, so appreciated learning more about him. Brett himself contributes the afterword, which he fills with Detection Club anecdotes and much name-dropping – it’s very funny and finishes the collection off nicely.

The stories themselves are very mixed, as tends to happen in this kind of collection. A few of the authors have paid tribute to Brett by referencing some part of his career. This worked for me some of the time, such as the story based on Just a Minute, but at other times it left me lost, feeling that I was missing the necessary knowledge to get the in-joke. I expect these stories would work better for people more familiar with Brett’s many series and shows. Most of the authors, however, have written straightforward stories, one or two including their own series character. I gave half the stories either 4 or 5 stars, while the rest mostly fell into the middling range, with only three outright duds. So overall, I felt this was an okay collection lifted by a few excellent stories.

Here are a few of the (seven) 5-stars…

Silver Fox by Michael Ridpath – A handsome, late-middle-aged Icelander, Oskar, has found an easy and flattering way to make a bit of extra money online. It seems people are willing to pay for photos of him, doing ordinary things like sitting in a café or walking on a beach. What he doesn’t know is that the purchasers are using his pictures to create online romantic identities to scam lonely women. One such woman is Bonnie, who gets scammed out of $30K. Her violent husband finds out, gets a techie friend to trace the photos and assumes that Oskar is the scammer. He sets out to find and confront Oskar and get the money back. A dark story that gets darker as it goes along – well paced and well told.

Publish and Be Damned by Ruth Dudley Edwards – A cosy author is cancelled when he makes an inappropriate joke at a publishing lunch. He takes his revenge by writing a satire of the publishing industry, full of sex and gore, which is a runaway success. But his revenge doesn’t stop there… Another very well written story by an author I haven’t read before but will certainly seek out. This is great fun, making gentle mock of ‘sensitivity readers’ and all the other nonsense authors have to go through in order to get published these days.

Criss-Cross by John Harvey – A man is found beaten to death on Hampstead Heath. It turns out he had been a cop back in the day, but was thrown out when his wife accused him of domestic violence. It was later suspected that he had killed his now ex-wife in an arson attack, but it was never proved. The official investigating officer is Alex Hadley, but it turns out it’s up to retired cop, Charlie Resnick, to solve the case. I haven’t read any of Harvey’s long-running Charlie Resnick series, but I may have to – this is a great story, bleak, but very well written.

The Kintsugi Vase by Alice Templeton – Our narrator has always fan-worshipped an acting couple – Rosalind France and Ned Kenton. They have a house nearby and, when they’re there, the narrator is Rosalind’s manicurist. So over the years she gets to know Rosalind a little but she never loses the stars in her eyes. Ned has always played the field, but the marriage survives – part of their glamour comes from being a couple. Then Ned dies in an accident. Or was it? This is an examination of fan-worship and how it allows us to overlook or forgive the flaws in our heroes and heroines. But what happens when the fan is forced to face the truth? Very well done – another author I’ll need to check out!

Cast in Order of Appearance by Simon Brett – Jobbing actor Charles Paris has been hired for a touring production of a mystery play. The leading part is played by a man who was once a big TV star and still has a loyal if ageing following. He’s a sexist pig who preys on the young female cast members in every production he’s in. The director is a feminist activist. Not the ideal mix! This is entertaining, with lots of humour – it’s a take on #MeToo and all its consequences, but done lightly enough not to be annoying. Great fun!

So a mix of dark and light with lots of variety. Although lots of the stories were just okay, the good ones made me glad I’d read the collection even if it does seem to have added several more authors to my list! One of whom, appropriately, is Simon Brett...

I've read alot of books. When asked to recommend a book or author, I recommend anthologies. These books show the authors' skills as they write a story from beginning to end in fewer pages than most chapters. Many times the authors are flexing their skills in a different genre. The collections usually have a theme, this one is an homage to Simon Brett. Written by authors with varying fame, you'll find some celebrities and some debuts, but they all showcase their story telling skills. As always when reading, some stories are better than others, but all of them will cause readers to take note of the authors.
So the next time you're looking for something to read or someone asks you to recommend a book, or you're looking for the perfect gift for someone who read alot......grab an anthology. This one would make an excellent start.

The Detection Club has been running since 1930, a group of mystery writers who meet for dinner and shenanigans. Simon Brett has achieved a lot in his life in crime writing (and other things) but one thing must stand out is his reign as President of the aforementioned club from 2000 to 2015. An immensely popular fellow, this collaboration gives some of the current members of the club the chance to show their appreciation.
Catherine Aird, Frances Brody, Ann Cleeves, Liza Cody, David Stuart Davies, Martin Edwards, Ruth Dudley Evans, Kate Ellis, Christopher Fowler, Elly Griffiths, John Harvey, Michael Jecks, Alison Joseph, Peter Lovesey, Abir Mukherjee, Michael Ridpath, Andrew Taylor, Aline Templeton, Lynne Truss, L C Tyler and Simon himself… need I say much more?
Well, I’m supposed to be a book reviewer, so I better had. So let’s start with the negative – it’ll be quick. I didn’t get the haikus. Went right over my head. Sorry, Liza.
As for the rest of it, I think this is one of the most marvellous collections of criminous short stories that I’ve read, especially from a mixed selection of authors. Of course, that is a high quality selection of authors – I’ve reviewed most of them before and met almost half of them – and they don’t disappoint. All of the stories pay tribute to Simon in some way, shape or form, whether it be something as simple as a name that is in common with someone or somewhere from Simon’s books, or a full-on tribute such as Peter Lovesey’s “Just A Minute”, the radio panel game that Simon produced or Martin Edwards “Sanctuary”, a tribute to Simon’s one-man show “A Crime In Rhyme” which shares the same brilliant in-joke that the show does without ever pointing it out… You’ll either see it or you won’t.
But whether the stories are comic or more serious – and some of them are – it is clear that the authors have all raised their game in honour of Simon. I’ve met Simon once, at the Alibis In The Archive, and a nicer, funnier, more charming person you could not hope to meet. I was lucky enough to hear him perform the wonderful “A Crime In Rhyme” and I’ve reviewed a plethora of his titles on the blog over the years.
And on that note, I should point out that the collection finishes with two wonderful pieces – first, a Charles Paris short story, in which it looks like Charles, the reluctant and generally not-very-good sleuth looks like he just might get his Hercule Poirot moment at last. And then Simon writes about his time at the club and the people he has met over the years – it’s a brief memoir, but very touching.
All in all, this is a marvellous collection – it’s out now from Severn House, and I strongly recommend it. A brilliant job from all involved.

I enjoyed this collection of short stories written by members of the Detection Club of authors. (Past members included Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers.) The collection was written as a tribute for the 80th birthday of one of the members, Simon Brett. Brett himself makes a contribution to the collection and also writes an entertaining afterward about some of the wonderful authors he met as part of his membership in the Detection Club. 

Typical for most collections like this, not all the stories were my cup of tea. My overall rating of the book is 4 stars. However, there are a few gems that made the whole book worthwhile. Not surprisingly, my favorites were by authors I already enjoy - Ann Cleeves and Elly Griffiths. I also enjoyed a story by new-to-me author Kate Ellis, and I am interested in reading more by her. I loved the Charles Paris story that honoree Simon Brett contributed. Some things never change for Charles although I always root for things to turn out for him. I love the humor throughout the story. 

I received a copy of this ebook from NetGalley and Severn House for review consideration, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

2.5*

Members of the Detection Club, the most prestigious group of crime writers in the world, celebrate the eightieth birthday of their former president – the original king of cozy crime, Simon Brett – with this collection of all-new short stories.

Based on this premise I was really looking forward to this collection and overall I felt that it was ok. There were a couple of stand out stories including Silver Fox, by Michael Ridpath, Crimes Ancient and Modern, by LC Tyler, An Old-Fashioned Murder, By David Stuart Davies and Full Circle, by Abir Mukherjee come to mind but for the most part I would say the stories were fine.

This felt like a passion project written for a friend and some of the stories probably should have stayed private but it's a quick and easy read and will appeal to fans of old fashioned crime fiction.

Thank you to Netgalley and Severn House for this digital review copy of "Playing Dead" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

This collection of short stories, celebrating Simon Brett’s 80th birthday, brings together an impressive lineup of Detection Club authors. As with any anthology, it’s a mix of hits and misses—some stories I really enjoyed, while others didn’t quite land for me.

Many of the authors were new to me, and I’ll definitely be looking out for more of their work. That’s actually what drew me to this collection in the first place—the chance to discover new writers.

Overall, it’s a bit of a mixed bag, but an enjoyable read. I’d give it a solid 3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this Arc in return for an honest review

This is a pretty cool anthology of short stories from the typewriters of the members of the Detection Club... no, me neither but boy do they have some quality authors... Some of whom I am very familiar with and have read extensively - Ann Cleeves, Elly Griffiths for example - some I have heard good thing of but have, for some reason, no got round to breaking my duck - Abir Mukherjee being the most notable of that category, and then there's those who I have never heard of...
I could single out some of those that I really loved but I guess there's little point as we all have different tastes and, anyway, if I start doing that my review will end up longer than one of the stories in this book!
But I read every story, even finishing the ones that weren't really for me, well... they are shorts! And I came out the other side with a whole bunch of authors to add to my TBR... sigh!
Which I guess is the main point of these things...
My thanks go to all the contributors, the Publisher, and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

What a brilliant book of short stories by Abir Mukherjee, Aline Templeton, Alison Joseph, Andrew Taylor, Ann Cleeves, Catherine Aird, Christopher Fowler, David Stuart Davies, Elly Griffiths, Frances Brody, John Harvey, Kate Ellis, L.C. Tyler, Liza Cody, Lynne Truss, Martin Edwards, Michael Jecks, Michael Ridpath, Michael Z. Lewin, Peter Lovesey, Ruth Dudley Edwards and Simon Brett. This collection was filled with murder, new characters and authors. It was pure class!

So many great authors here that have created shirt stories that kept me attention with original and intense elements.

I went into this collection expecting a lot, considering the contributors are all well respected authors in the genre. Admittedly, I have to read them all yet, but will hope to in the future, despite not enjoying every short story in this collection.

As with all short story collections, there should be something for everybody, and I thoroughly enjoyed some. I particularly enjoyed

- The Luncheon, by Chrisopher Fowler: great twists and the contrast of the setting to the conversation made this unforgettable. This may be the best structured story in the group.
- Silver Fox, by Michael Ridpath: a story of illusions and misunderstandings with a modern take that may have you thinking of those off-the-wall true crime documentaries you see all over the place now.
- Crimes Ancient and Modern, by LC Tyler: husband and wife writers try to outwit each other. It's slick and smart, and also blended with humour.
- Murder at Mousecomb, by Alison Joseph: a story I can easily imagine as a TV series. It was such a well told story that is dark but also with amazing characters and heart.
- An Old-Fashioned Murder, By David Stuart Davie: very short, but so engaging. This will also make you laugh. It's probably the quirkiest story in the collection.
Full Circle, by Abir Mukherjess: quite a dark tale, but so powerful and the characters are wonderful. This may be the most emotional tale in the collection.

The others stories are serviceable but not standouts for me. But the idea of being able to read a book of stories written by so many respected authors is something not to be missed. And every reader is sure to find something they love.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

(I got an advancing reading copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review).

To the delight of so many readers (like me!), we will have soon a new book written by the members of The Detection Club.

Playing Dead was written to honour Simon Brett for his 80th anniversary this year, as a way to celebrate his contributions to the Club, and includes short stories from 22 members of The Detection Club, including Simon Brett (President Emeritus of the Club) and Martin Edwards (editor of this anthology and current President of the Club).

According to Edwards, that organised and edited the collection, the contributors were encouraged to write whatever type of crime story they preferred, and this shows in a truly delightful way.

And indeed, what I loved the most about this collection was the diversity we get in terms of sub-genres, place (one of the stories takes us all the way to Iceland), time, and even form. We get historical mysteries, police procedurals, even satire, we get stories that occur today's, with cellphones and Internet as part of the story, as well as stories in the 1930's, we get stories that deal with writers and publishers and that add to the discussion of the genre hardboiled/cosy (can I call it a meta-fiction-essay? Delicious!), we also get stories with that twist or final kick that is so satisfying to read, we get stories that borrow characters from Simon Brett's works, but also writers like Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins as characters, and others that nod to Agatha Christie's characters and titles, we get short stories, but also an haiku and a non-fiction essay.

This exercise of inserting known characters into (and acting in) new contexts was really exciting to read, it was like seeing the writers making a new experiment, with pleasurable results.

At the same time, besides having this wonderful diversity, the collection also has an arching coherence, that was captured both in the title and by Piers Tilbury in the cover design: there is a regular theme of theatre, radio shows and studios, actors, and acting in general, which is really fitting: besides being an author of detective fiction, with several book series, Simon Brett is also a playwright, producer and writer for radio and television. I'm sure I'm being unfair with other works, but let me cite the BBC radio drama adaptations of Lord Peter Wimsey with Ian Carmichael, which the first six instalments were directed by Simon Brett, just because they are probably my favourite radio adaptations ever.

I would also like to highlight the final essay by Simon Brett sharing his memories about the Club. Not only it was delightful to read, but I think it is critically important as memory preservation for the Club's future history.

Finally, I knew other works by some of the authors, but not all of them, so I think this collection also gives us the opportunity to read sub-genres that we usually wouldn't pick to find new writers and new books.

An excellent set of short stories put together to commemorate Simon Brett’s time as Chairman of the Detection Club. I enjoyed the mix of stories ranging from those based on the Golden Age crime stories to the more modern.
A good cross section of writers too.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc.