M. Richardson. Maddened by Mystery (1982)

     M. Richardson. Maddened by Mystery (1982) Subtitled “A casebook of Canadian Detective Fiction”, this is a pleasant and instructive collection. The title alludes to Leacock’s parody of Holmesian omniscience, still one of the best satires of pretentious guff ever written. But the other entries are all worthy, and most of them score high on the entertainment meter, the most important feature of detective stories. Since the anthology was published, Canadian authors have entered the mainstream of the mystery genre. This early collection makes a point that no longer needs making. What’s interesting is that the majority of these stories were published in the USA and England, then the major markets. Ironic, that Canadians imported their reading material from these sources unaware that much of what they read was composed by their compatriots. ** to ***. (2004)