Sarah Caudwell was the pseudonym of Sarah Cockburn (1939-2000), born in England of Scottish descent, who studied law at Oxford, was a member of the Chancery Bar, and practiced as a barrister in Lincoln's Inn (writer Alexander Cockburn was her half-brother). As Caudwell she wrote four charming novels published from 1981 to 2000, all dryly humorous cozy mysteries, very legal, very arch, and very English, involving four members of the Bar and their good friend, amateur detective and noted Scholar, Oxford law professor Hilary Tamar. The four novels are Thus was Adonis Murdered (1981), The Shortest Way to Hades (1984), The Sirens Sang of Murder (1989), and The Sibyl in Her Grave (2000). Although far from necessary, I'd suggest reading them in chronological order. In any event, read them.
An essential part of the books are the four personable members of the Bar, plus one, who compose the detective team. There's the curvy and amorous Julia Larwood, always a mess but determinedly sweet, clumsy, and well-intentioned. Selena Jardine, professional, beautiful, endlessly capable, and always protective of dear Julia. There's the callow, oblivious, but sturdy Michael Cantrip, and his good friend Desmond Ragwort, he of the perfect profile, always properly decorous and upright. And of course the noted Scholar, the indeterminate Professor Hilary Tamar.
Throughout the four books, Caudwell never identified Professor Tamar by gender, female or male, gay or straight. It's a mystery. For readers who don't pick up on this, it's always entertaining to see which gender they assign the good Professor. In her last book, The Sibyl in Her Grave, Caudwell has a little fun with this added mystery, as Professor Tamar says:
"Some of my readers ... have been kind enough to say that they would like to know more about me -- what I look like, how I dress ... and other details of a personal and sometimes even intimate nature. I do not doubt, however, that these enquiries are made purely as a matter of courtesy. Maintaining, therefore, that modest reticence which I think becoming to the historian, I shall say no more of myself ... ."Caudwell's dry humor is the ornament that brightens the mysteries at the core of these novels. You can't have one without the other in these books, and both are perfectly wonderful. Her lines are so arch that the reader can zip right by, not noting the zinger just missed. Devour slowly for maximum flavor.
Readers may well wonder which of these precious volumes is the best and I don't have an answer for you. You'll probably say that I'm failing in my duty as a reviewer, and I don't like to think of you being so judgmental -- you used to be such nice readers. Truth is, I really think of them all as a unified piece, as having a single personality, four chapters of one book. The first, Thus was Adonis Murdered, certainly won me over, so that might be my favorite, tho it has Caudwell's most rarefied language. The last, The Sibyl in Her Grave, has the most convoluted mystery, but has an air of being not quite finished. So maybe it's The Shortest Way to Hades? Who knows? They're all good.
Despite my love for these books, I fear they will be lost to time. Agatha Christie wrote so many noted books that her work will live forever, but Caudwell wrote only four novels, which may be easily forgotten. In the best of all possible worlds, some far-sighted publisher would reissue these books, perhaps all four in a single volume, or two volumes of two books each, or a box set, with a laudatory introduction by some noted mystery writer of today. With a little promotion and some judicious word of mouth, this would be great addition to the canon of worthy mystery novels.
Search thrift stores, charity shops, used-book stores. Check your library. Go on-line. Find these books. You can thank me later. You're welcome.
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