Sat 8 May 2021
An Archived Review by Gloria Maxwell: K. K. BECK – Death in a Deck Chair.
Posted by Steve under Reviews[10] Comments
K. K. BECK – Death in a Deck Chair. Iris Cooper #1. Walker & Co., hardcover, 1984. Ivy, paperback, 1987.
Replete with the vintage scenery of shipboard antics and romance, this book provides an airy, enjoyable read. [The year is 1927 and young Stanford co-ed] Iris Cooper is completing a round-the-world cruise with her aunt aboard the luxury liner Irenia. Shipboard life becomes strained when a rather inconspicuous young man is found knifed in the back while sitting in a deck chair.
Iris becomes an impromptu amateur detective when the captain accepts her offer to take shorthand during the murder investigation. A blackmail plot is discovered which points to several likely suspects: a seductive screen star vamp with a lurid past; a journalist eager to find a story; a prince traveling incognito; and a mysterious professor.
An anarchist plot to depose the monarchy in Graznia is disclosed, which is intertwined with the victim’s identity and purpose in traveling aboard this particular ship.
Light touches of romance pepper this sprightly mystery which evokes a pleasant period ambience. This is a murder for those who favor old-fashioned mysteries.
The Iris Cooper series —
1. Death in a Deck Chair (1984)
2. Murder in a Mummy Case (1986)
3. Peril Under the Palms (1989)
May 8th, 2021 at 5:22 pm
Beck wrote quite a few mysteries in this and several other series, plus maybe up to a dozen standalones. Her most recent was TIPPING THE VALET in 2015, so her writing career is probably now over.
You might call her mysteries cozies, but while they were usually light and fun to read, they had a underlying core of seriousness to them at well. I assume her books sold well at the time, but she’s probably a forgotten writer now, alas.
May 8th, 2021 at 5:22 pm
I really enjoyed the Iris Cooper tales too. Wish there were more books. They have a neat blend of comedy and mystery. The author evokes “comedy of manners” plays with warmth and wit.
My favorite in the series : “Murder in a Mummy Case”. The title does not really suggest how funny the book is. Or sweet.
There are a few short story appearances by Iris too.
May 8th, 2021 at 7:35 pm
Beck was a great favorite of mine channeling Agatha Christie but with an anarchic sense of humor and modernity. There is a takeoff by her on Sax Rohmer, early Hollywood, and Yellow Peril fiction with a character out of Gloria Swanson in SUNSET BOULEVARD and Anna Mae Wong that is one of my favorites of all time (THE REVENGE OF KALI RA).
There is an edge to the books that is clearly not cozy, a tendency to go to the point rather sharply when the reader isn’t expecting it that sets them apart as if P. G. Wodehouse chose to write an Agatha Christie novel with S. J. Perlman.
I don’t think I ever read one that wasn’t pure entertainment. From my first, THE BODY IN THE VOLVO, on she was a favorite.
May 8th, 2021 at 7:42 pm
I had to go back over 12 yearsago, David, but I found your review of KALI RA. It’s a long one, done in the early days of this blog. Here’s the link:
https://mysteryfile.com/blog/?p=1108
May 8th, 2021 at 10:48 pm
A new author to me but I like the comment above describing her books as evoking Comedy of Manners. I am surely going to search for her books.
May 8th, 2021 at 10:53 pm
A somewhat personal question, if I may. When you go looking for books like K.K.Beck’s in India (and I think you should), how easy is it to find them? They’re quite common and easy to find here in the US.
May 9th, 2021 at 8:05 am
I remember her from several mystery conventions.
May 9th, 2021 at 11:16 am
Steve, I cannot say about the whole of India but it is very tough to find such books in Delhi, esp with the weeding etc done in the libraries in the past few years. We have computers, and CDs and DVDs for hire now but to make space for all this, the shelves have been cleared and it seems old books have been dumped in one warehouse or the other. I don’t like the swanky new libraries but young school children love them so what can I say? However, there is one library which seems to be holding out though the last time I went they were also renovating. I just hope they have not done away with their grand collection (books from the time of the British in India!) The second hand book shops too have disappeared though now there is a new trend to sell books by weight! And now a few online book sites selling second-hand books have come up. Usually I search for such books online such as at Open Library. You’ll be glad to know that many of Beck’s books are available there including this one. Do you use Open Library too?
And not personal at all ๐
May 9th, 2021 at 11:34 am
So looking for physical books in India is not easy, as I suspected. It is little better here, as most actual bookstores are few and far between. Amazon and abebooks, etc., have taken over the used book market, probably for good. Ordering online is OK if you’re looking for one specific book, but the fun of browsing is gone.
Kindle is another way to find old books, well newer ones too, but the small amount you pay for them can add up quickly if you’re not careful. I have found that I can read short stories on my Kindle, but so farI’ve read only one novel on it. Nor can I read books on my computer screen, so Open Library is a source I hadn’t known about before. But it is one I’m happy to know about, so thanks for telling me about it.
It’s also good to know that you found many of Beck’s books there. Maybe your review of this one will show up on your blog soon. I’ll be looking!
May 9th, 2021 at 3:58 pm
I remember reading K. K. Beck a long time ago, enjoyed them greatly but I only bought paperbacks and it seemed after a short while her books stopped appearing in pb. So for a long time I wondered what happened to her.