Whodunit?

Kerry Hammond has been playing games again but she's back at the Playground to share her latest find with us. 

I love mystery board games and I check out every toy section of every thrift store I enter. I don’t find games as often as I find mystery puzzles, but I have been known to come across a gem or two. One of my most recent gems is the Whodunit Mystery Detective Game. The game is from 1985 and published by Selchow & Righter Company. It can be played by 2-6 players, ages 8 to adult.  

Here is the description on the box:

A suspenseful mystery game for super sleuths. Players snoop through an elegant mansion searching for clues that will identify suspects to the crime. Each player tries to outsmart his opponents and be the first to discover “Whodunit.” But if a player falsely accuses an opponent he must leave the mansion. At the end, the player with all the correct clues solves the crime and is declared the winner.

Love the art on the box!

Ok, so you had me at “snoop,” but you really had me at “elegant mansion.” In the spirit of the game Clue, your playing piece is able to wander around different rooms of the fictional country estate located in the fictional town of Brimfield. The owner, who has been found murdered, was Lord Edward Peter Percival Pembrook. There were 10 occupants in the mansion at the time of the murder, including the butler, the maid, and several mysterious houseguests. 

At the start of the game, each player chooses a detective card, which is that player’s new identity. There are six different detectives available to investigate the murder. As players learn different characteristics of the murderer, murder weapon, and scene of the crime, he or she is able to record the information on a Detective Sheet. Players can be questioned when another player draws a “pursue alibis” card, or when a player’s pawn lands on their space. 

In order to win the game, you must uncover the why, where, what and who. In other words, the motive, scene of the crime, murder weapon, and guilty suspect. It is a fun game and a great addition to my mystery board game collection.

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In Defense of Books Made with Real Paper

Yes, yes, I know. Ebooks are here to stay and I'm glad. And so is my back. I can get by with carrying much less on a long business trip than I used to before the ebook.  

But let me tell you why we will always need physical, paper books:

1) Who wants to bring an e-reader (insert your favorite brand here) to the beach, or the hotel pool, or really any pool? 

E-Readers don't handle sand or water well. And they can be stolen as easily from a beach towel as my nephew's FC Barcelona soccer ball from a playground. When was the last time someone snagged your paperback?

2) Sharing a book with a friend is easier with paper. 
It just is. Sure, you can tell them to go download the book, but it's really not the same as handing them the book and saying, "I loved this book and I think you will too."  See how this copy of Nancy Drew's The Hidden Staircase from 1930 proudly changed ownership over the years.

3) Real books are easier to handle. Maybe I'm just used to books or maybe I'm missing some handy gadget that makes the e-reader easier to hold for long periods of time. 

4) The twenty-minutes on an airplane when take off and land and  you can't use your electronic device can be excruciating. Paper reading material solves this.

5) Hardback and paperback books don't run low on battery and don't need to be re-charged.  If there is a power outage, get a candle and you can read. 

6) Real books don't make noises every time you get an e-mail or a phone call. 

7) Real books smell better. 

8) Real books don't break when you drop them. 


Go ahead and argue with me if you must.  But I still need paper books in my life. 

Gifts for The Hard to Buy for Mystery Fan

Today's guest post is from Kim Hammond...

 As an avid reader, I can always tell you that books are always appreciated, but I also like to give something unique to spice things up. Here are a few items I have either gifted to a mystery reader friend or purchased for myself (or both). You may want to start your own wish list and can probably find some of these on Amazon too.

Last year I was involved with putting on a national mystery convention and I needed some gifts for volunteers. Being from Cleveland, I immediately thought of the crime scene scarves so handy in winter climates. I hopped on the computer, pulled up google, and viola: www.crimescene.com

I must have spent an hour at their website checking everything out. I found the crime scene scarf right away and fell in love. 

Then I came across the crime scene lanyard ID badge holder. I added 5 to my cart for myself and my friends that were attending the conference with me. We got stopped throughout the entire 4 day conference by people asking where we got the lanyards.

I also purchased varying sizes of evidence bags, both paper and plastic. What better way to wrap a mystery or murder related gift for that special someone.

They even sell crime scene tape. I really don’t have a need for it, but my sister hosts a murder mystery party every year and she loves crime scene tape. You could also buy a roll and use it as ribbon on a present or if you’re crafty use it to make a bow. The possibilities are endless.

Then I hit the motherlode of all gifts, a plethora of murder and mayhem items, the Crime Scene gift bundle for $35.00.

This thoughtful gift includes:

• 100 feet of crime scene tape
• Crime scene sticky tape
• Pack of 25 crime scene bandages
• Pack of "Spies and Secret Agents" Quiz Cards
• Crime scene ID lanyard
• Crime scene candy vials containing candy blood, urine, and saliva
• Candy blood clots
• Fingerprint chocolate candy enclosed in a gift tin 
• Crime scene sandwich-bags
• UV key chain light
• Coffee mug
• Toe tag and assorted evidence labels.
• Paper evidence bags
• CSI temporary tattoos and secret agent stickers

Personally, I would LOVE to receive something like this. It has a little bit of everything. Candy blood vials? How cool is that. Buy one for yourself, a friend, or as a giveaway for your mystery book club.

Pulp and Fabulous Tag Lines

I love classic pulps novels, especially the Dell 25c paperbacks. They all have such fabulous cover shots and many have fabulous tag lines. Eric Beetner over at Criminal Element shares this passion and has he has written a great post about these old novels and some fabulous tag lines. 

Here are a few of my favorite covers and tag lines from my own collection: 

"A marriage tainted by the devil's brew of suspicion...and death! 

"The mystery of a strangler who never left a clue."

"He didn't want his killer caught!"

"There was a raging fire and a murderer in the house."

Gifties for Your Favorite Sherlockian

Wondering what to get your favorite Sherlockian for the holidays? Well, look no further. We've compiled everything a true Sherlock fan needs, starting with the official deerstalker hat from the Sherlock Holmes Museum at 221 Baker Street in London (above). 

I love this teacup found here on Etsy and what is a Sherlock tea cup without specialty Sherlock teas.... 

The Adagio Tea Company has come up with a series of teas inspired by the BBC version of Sherlock. They have a full range of themes from John Watson to Sherlock Blend to Reichenbach Recovery. No one is left out - Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade and Molly all have their own. The Mycroft Blend has actual chocolate chips in it. It's super yummy.  

This fabulous tea/coffee pot would work well in any Sherlockian home, although Mrs. Hudson might try to shine it up a bit, Sherlock wouldn't let her. You can find it here at Henry Road.

An iPhone case for the BBC Sherlock, "I Believe in Sherlock Holmes."

And who among us doesn't need a pair of Sherlock high-top sneakers (also found on Etsy).

This is a fabulous bracelet showing the blueprints of 221b Baker Street, found here on Etsy. 

What about a nice vintage handcuff key for your favorite Sherlockian? These are from Henry Road.

Of course the ultimate gift for any Sherlockian is a trip to London to visit 221 b Baker Street, visit the Sherlock Pub and to see other sites from the stories. You can read all about my Sherlock tour of London here. 

Collecting Crime and Other Things

There's a great post over at Criminal Element by Eric Beetner (here) about his love of collecting vintage film noir posters. They are absolutely fabulous and you can tell how he feels about the collection with passion dripping from every word in the post.  The beautiful photos of the pictures that hang from his walls that make me want to be invited over for a viewing (Hello? Eric?).

The thrill of the Ebay hunt is something I understand well.  Among other things, I collect old mystery paperbacks from the 1930s - 1960s. The crazier the title and the more dramatic the cover the better.  My favorite titles are now: The Lady is Afraid, The Evil Men Do and Handle with Fear.

There's a bit of rush when I find an untapped used book store full of old paperbacks. The books that retailed for 25 cents are always my favorites. We'll be featuring some of those covers in unexpected places on Sundays in our Pulp in the Wild feature for the rest of the year.

photo  by Janet Kuchler for Mystery Playground