Margery Allingham's Mystery Mile (1930) features Albert Campion in his first starring role, after having appeared in a supporting role in the previous year's The Crime at Black Dudley (see review below).Campion exaggerates his importance in the foregoing case, though, saying "That's the Black Dudley dagger.... An old boy I met was stuck in the back with that, and everyone thought I'd done the sticking. Not such fun."Allingham presents Campion as more than an amateur detective, less than a mercenary, and not quite a crook. And, throughout, Campion disguises his keen intelligence with nearly non-stop patter:"What a gastronomic failure the British Burglar is," he remarked, reappearing. "A tin of herrings, half a Dutch cheese, some patent bread for reducing the figure, and several bottles of stout. Still better than nothing.... The whisky's there, too, and there's a box of biscuits somewhere. Night scene in Mayfair flat -- four herring addicts, addicting." As B.A. Pike points out in Campion's Career: A Study of the Novels of Margery Allingham, the chief distinction of Mystery Mile is that it introduces Campion's gentleman's gentleman Lugg:"Lugg is first brought to our notice as a "thick and totally unexpected voice" on the telephone, huskily announcing himself as "Aphrodite Glue Works".... His actual appearance is delayed until ... he is revealed as "the largest and most lugubrious individual ... a hillock of a man, with a big pallid face which reminded one of a bull-terrier...." His criminal antecedents are delicately hinted at -- he wears "what looked remarkably like a convict's tunic" -- and the special nature of his relation with Campion -- mutual derision veiling the deepest affection and trust -- is defined in the first of many entertaining dialogues."Late in Mystery Mile, the villain, the head of a secret criminal cabal, reveals that Campion had been "once commissioned by us on a rather delicate mission in an affair at a house called Black Dudley." Allingham, however, lets this revelation waft off in the breeze and moves merrily along to the conclusion of the case at hand.If nothing else, Allingham keeps these early Campion books moving along. One gets the sense that she is making them up as she goes along, often losing her way. For instance, once gangsters kidnap a female character the search for Mystery Mile's original missing person falls by the wayside, seemingly forgotten by all.Phillip Youngman Carter, in his preface to the short-story collection The Allingham Casebook, says the early novels "reflect the mood of the time and into them she crammed every idea, every joke and every scrap of plot which we had gathered like magpies hoarded for a year."Inconsequential, silly fun. Two daggers out of four.
The second Campion adventure-thriller is the first to feel like it knows completely what it's doing, right from the very first scene; Allingham has clearly made a choice to focus on the previously secondary character of Albert Campion, and she dives into his world feet-first. I have been known to compare the tone of the 1930s books, sometimes, to the comic album (latterly, "graphic novel") world of the Belgian reporter-hero Tintin, and the opening of Mystery Mile, set aboard a sea voyage, pretty much typifies that. There is an international flavor, some broad comedy, and the revelation of narrowly-escaped death, which shoves the reader straight into the fast-paced plot. Later, there will be a mysterious garden maze, a clergyman with grave secrets, and a foreboding fortune-teller - Anglicized, but no less familiar as the kind of elements you might find in any of Hergé's Tintin adventures.As Tintin only began in 1929, right as Allingham was composing this novel, it is, perhaps, doubtful if one really inspired the other; these kinds of stories seemed to sizzle through the air between the two World Wars, reflecting not only political concerns and increased global travel but the ever-encroaching dominance of the media (newspapers, radio and cinema). What's interesting, though, is how Allingham uses these tropes. Although they certainly keep the reader engaged, they're also something of a diversion; this is a novel where people disguise their true characters, and for once, it isn't just Mr. Campion playing the long game. Appreciating Mystery Mile strictly for its surface-level entertainments is fine, but it's an incomplete understanding. There's more going on here.Allingham would continue to refine both her style and her characters as time went on, and following Mystery Mile, she never really attempted the frothy international crime story again. (They are hard to make work in novel form, as Agatha Christie discovered in The Big Four.) It's to her credit, then, that this one example is as entertaining and exciting as it is. It serves as an excellent reintroduction to the world of Albert Campion - a world of glib talk, colorful characters, and unexpected deceit.
What do You think about Mystery Mile (2004)?
If you enjoy vintage mysteries, then you already know you will be faced with stereotypes and cultural/societal attitudes. Mystery Mile is full of these, which when you time travel through literature, you must expect. So, with that out of the way...Mystery Mile is not disappointing. Allingham creates fun characters (those sinister, as well as, angelic), giving them clever, tight, and logical dialog. Her death scenes are creepy and oh, so good! Campion, our sleuth, is an enigma whose revelations of self keep the reader interested. This was my first Allingham. I will read more.
—Deb
Allingham's Campion books may be an acquired taste as some readers are put off by the main character's "silly ass" persona while others find him endearing. I am somewhere in the middle.......this is the second in the long running series and Campion is still a fatuous twit who is hard to take seriously although outward appearances hide his true character. But I enjoyed this little mystery about a unknown master-mind criminal who employs a world wide network of minions to do his bidding. In this case he has targeted a judge who holds the key to his identity and it is Campion's job to find out the answer and protect the judge from certain death. It becomes obvious that Campion is not exactly who he portrays himself to be and this puzzle continues through all the books in the series.....but that is only an aside in this story set in the Mystery Mile, a fog shrouded salt marsh where the majority of the action occurs. A little humor, a little mystery and a little romance makes this an entertaining entry in the series.
—Jill Hutchinson
I am in a classic mystery phase. I have been reading Ngaio Marsh (Inspector Alleyn), listening to Agatha Christie in the car and have just started on Margerty Allingham's Albert Campion. I read the first book in the series (in which Campion plays a minor role) a month or so ago and now I have just read Mystery Mile. I enjoyed it very much. I know that some people find Campion's silly persona annoying but I don't. I like that he hides his intellect and abilities, constantly causing people to underestimate him. To me it makes the moments when he is serious more poignant because they contrast sharply with his usual style. I read these books for the atmosphere, humor and quirky characters. I like following the detectives through time and seeing how their lives evolve. The mystery is secondary to me. I almost never guess who it is because I spend less time paying attention to the clues and more to the people and their relationships. I am looking forward to starting the next book in this series tonight . . .
—Deborah
