Murder in the Basement by Anthony Berkeley (1932)

Sometimes it's just as difficult to identify the victim as the murderer.

Mystery Review: Murder in the Basement again demonstrates that Anthony Berkeley (also known as Francis Iles) was one of the more clever and creative writers of Golden Age mysteries, although unknown today. In Part I a body is found and must be identified with no clues. In Part II the reader is presented with the draft of an unfinished mystery novel containing a lengthy description of various teachers at a private school and must discern how it relates (as far as victim and murderer) to what was learned in the first part. Part III brings everything together after first enduring the requisite twists. The three sections of Murder in the Basement are essentially presented out of order, including a story within a story (which wasn't necessary!), making it all that much more of a challenge for the happy reader. The eighth Roger Sheringham mystery. Sheringham is a novelist who often strays into murders, usually with friend Inspector Moresby of Scotland Yard. Murder in the Basement was addictive and the perfect distraction from waiting rooms and other annoyances. As is so often the case, the ending is a matter of taste.  [4★]