Books by Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy L Sayers (June 1893 – December 1957) was a British crime writer
“She wrote 15 books in total, starting in the early 1920s and finishing, I think, in 1937. Then she completely pivoted away from detective fiction, and had two subsequent careers. She got very involved with religious writing during the war—she was an ardent Anglican—and she did a lot of broadcasting for the BBC on the subject. Then, after the war, she got very involved in translation. She started and nearly completed what was, for most of the 20th century, a very highly thought of translation of Dante’s Divine Comedy. She remained a fan of detective fiction and a critic, but didn’t publish any of her own novels after the late 1930s. She died in 1957.” Caroline Crampton in the best summer mysteries.
“All of Sayers’ mysteries feature Wimsey, but starting with 1930’s Strong Poison, she wrote books featuring Harriet Vane, who acts as his sparring partner.”
“Gaudy Night is a beautiful love story. I love the relationship between Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane. I just think it’s magnificent. I love the fact that he’s this damaged man who some people dismiss as a posh twit. He suffered during the First World War, he has post-traumatic stress syndrome, and is in love with this woman who he once saved from being hanged for murder in an earlier book. It’s part of a series and that’s important. The setting in Oxford is brilliantly done. It’s charming. It’s very restful in parts. Nothing that bad happens for large chunks of it, so it’s quite soothing in that regard. All these things together epitomize what I love in the crime genre.” Read more...
Stig Abell, Journalist
“There is a book by Dorothy Sayers, the British mystery writer, An Unnatural Death, which turns out to revolve around estate tax. There was apparently a tax motive for one character to die before the end of 1925 because, as of January 1, 1926, the inheritance tax was about to change and would have led to somebody losing a lot of money.” Read more...
“It is a locked room or impossible crime mystery in as much as she was sitting there the whole time, she could see the whole beach, and no one approached either by sea or by land. Yet here is this man lying there, still warm, blood still flowing. It’s impossible. How can it happen?” Read more...
Caroline Crampton, Memoirist
“A classic ‘country house at Christmas’ short story, first published in 1931. Sayers’s regular sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey is spending the festive period at a house party hosted by a rich and genial old man who loves to have his guests play classic parlour games like Hunt the Slipper and Sardines. During a game of Animal, Vegetable or Mineral? he notices that his daughter’s priceless pearl necklace has disappeared from the side table where she had put it for safety.” Read more...
The Best Classic Christmas Mysteries
Caroline Crampton, Memoirist
Interviews where books by Dorothy L. Sayers were recommended
The Best Classic Christmas Mysteries, recommended by Caroline Crampton
Looking for a cosy mystery to settle down with in front of the fire this holiday season? Look no further. We asked Caroline Crampton, creator and host of the Shedunnit podcast, to recommend her favourite classic mystery books set during the Christmas period.
The Best Summer Mysteries, recommended by Caroline Crampton
If you’re about to jet off for a relaxing vacation, you might be looking for a page-turning detective story to keep you enthralled on your sun-lounger. Here, Caroline Crampton—creator of the popular podcast Shedunnit—recommends five classic murder mysteries set in glamorous summer holiday locations.
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1
Showdown at Gucci Gulch: Lawmakers, Lobbyists, and the Unlikely Triumph of Tax Reform
by Alan Murray & Jeffrey Birnbaum -
2
The Sinews of Power: War, Money and the English State, 1688–1783
by John Brewer -
3
Taxing the Rich: A History of Fiscal Fairness in the United States and Europe
by David Stasavage & Kenneth Scheve -
4
The Income Tax: A Study of the History, Theory, and Practice of Income Taxation at Home and Abroad
by Edwin Seligman -
5
Dimensions of Tax Design: The Mirrlees Review
by Institute for Fiscal Studies
The Best Books on Taxes and Taxation, recommended by Joel Slemrod & Michael Keen
The Best Books on Taxes and Taxation, recommended by Joel Slemrod & Michael Keen
Many of us try to avoid thinking about taxes unless we have to, but the truth is taxation has had a profound effect on the course of history and will play a key in the future society we create, too. Here, Michael Keen and Joel Slemrod, both public finance economists and authors of Rebellion, Rascals, and Revenue: Tax Follies and Wisdom Through the Ages, recommend books about taxes that are not only informative but also good reads.
The Best Cozy Mystery Books, recommended by Sophie Roell
If you’re looking for a murder set in a pleasant environment—often an English village—with a charming sleuth and minimal bloodshed, cozy mysteries could be the genre for you. Sophie Roell, editor of Five Books and a keen mystery reader, introduces some of her favourites—from classics of the genre to more recent bestsellers.
The Best Campus Novels
Life in an academic institution can be a curiously intense experience. As a result, the hot-house atmosphere of a university campus or boarding school presents a fitting backdrop for novels exploring ambition, power dynamics, crushes, and sexual crises. Here, we’ve pulled together a list of campus novels that have been recommended on Five Books over the years, via our interviews with literary scholars, bestselling authors and book prize judges.
The Best Classic Crime, recommended by Stig Abell
The crime book genre is massive and caters to all sorts of tastes, but once you find a detective or main character you love, there are few pleasures greater than reading the entire series. British journalist Stig Abell, author of Death Under a Little Sky, picks some of the best classic crime, books he’s read over and over again.
