Make Much Ado About This Anthology

Much Ado About Murder edited by Anne Perry

Some of the best mystery tales are short stories. They're precise; they waste few words; and they are quick to move into the plot. It's why magazines such as Ellery Queen are so successful.

In Much Ado About Murder, editor Anne Perry brings together a collection of short stories with a common theme: William Shakespeare. They range from mysteries that incorporate Shakespeare, his players, or his heirs to mysteries using characters from the plays.

The majority of the plays are entertaining and fun to read. Indeed, one of them won both an Agatha Award and an Anthony Award for best short story and was nominated for a Macavity Award. There are a few that are weak, surprising Perry put the weakest ones toward the beginning of the collection. I almost gave up after two slow-paced ones.

All The World's a Stage by Jeffery Deaver
3 stars

The first story is lively with a clever twist, though it isn't a tale that particularly stands out. Deaver provides us with a tale of revenge and gives Shakespeare a role as a master plotter.

Those are Pearls That Were His Eyes by Carole Nelson Douglas
2 stars

This story had moments of promise, but it was ultimately too forced and stilted. Douglas picks up where the Tempest left off, further intertwining the lives of Caliban, Ariel, and Prospero. It lacked the tightness and precision that make short stories really shine. Give it a miss.

The Fall of the House of Oldenborg by Robert Barnard
1 star

This tale was painful to read with its overdone gags and lack of originality. It attempts to retell Hamlet-as many have done before. It is done through the eyes of a schoolmate from Edinburgh. The humor is forced and the story was horribly dull because of it.

Jack Hath Not His Jill by Sharan Newman
1 star

This medieval scholar relies so heavily on extensive knowledge from an obscure Shakespeare history that only her fellow scholars can hope to follow or enjoy the tale. The narrator assumes that we know the characters and the plot and fails to give us much hint at all as to why things are happening the way they are. It made for a disappointing story.

Thankfully, those are the only bombs and the rest of the stories range from good to outstanding.

Gracious Silence by Gillian Linscott
3 stars

Linscott retells the story of Coriolanus from the perspective of the wife. It helps if you know the story, but Linscott seamlessly provides enough background that it isn't necessary. It is a tightly written story retelling it by casting new light on the relationships of the main characters.

A Dish of Poison by Lillian Stewart Carl
3 stars

This fun story is the prequel to Twelfth Night, giving the disguised Viola the opportunity to solve the mystery of Olivia's brother's death. It's an enjoyable mystery that works without compromising any of the original story.

Too Many Cooks by Marcia Talley
5 stars

Too Many Cooks is the short story that won nearly all of the major mystery awards for 2003-and with good reason. It is a humorous and fun look at Macbeth from the view of one of the three Weird Sisters. It's all the more fun because we know what their actions cause and the anticipation gives the reader great glee.

Squinting at Death by Edward Marston
4 stars

This battlefield murder mystery features characters both historical and literary. Captain Fluellen plays the detective with King Henry and Pistol as foils.

Exit, Pursued by Simon Brett
4 stars

The title plays off one of Shakespeare's most famous stage directions, "Exit, pursued by bear." Brett reveals to us a Shakespeare in dejection. His Cymbeline is a failure and his audience is much more excited by local bear baitings. One of his actors is attempting to cheer him up when a murder besets them-a murder whose possible intended victim was Shakespeare himself. One of my favorite elements of this story is the introduction of Master Dewberry who is blatantly the inspiration for Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing, a fact that Brett's Shakespeare is almost apologetic over.

Richard's Children by Brendan DuBois
5 stars

This spooky and creepy modern story is filled with mystery and tinged with conspiracy. A scholar is summoned to England and given information that his strange benefactor claims will link Richard Nixon to the Kennedy assassination. How is this linked to Shakespeare? The benefactor explains that there are two groups who have been fighting since the 1400s to dominate the world. One fights for good, the other-who call themselves Richard's Children in tribute to Richard III-for evil. It's a tightly told story with a surprising twist at the end.

The World's Eternity by Margaret Frazer
2 stars

OK, I know I said that the earlier ones were the worst of the lot and the rest were good to excellent. This tale borders on being the exception. It starts out well but it is a bit obscure and the plot switches between too many perspectives for such a short story. It weakens the tale.

Cleo's Asp by Edward Hoch
4 stars

Hoch is a master mystery writer, so it isn't surprising that his story has such strength. He expertly handles both the setting and the mood, taking us to Cleopatra's palace just as Marc Anthony is betrayed. The clown must find out who betrayed whom and help Cleopatra get her revenge, even as she puts the famous asps to her breast.

Much Ado About Murder by Kathy Lynn Emerson
4 stars

Benedict and Beatrice are one of Shakespeare's most famous couples, how can a writer resist revisiting them after their marriage? Emerson brings them to an English manor for a visit with a Lady who has a secret she keeps from both the crown and her husband. Beatrice is still impulsive and explosive and both retain their wits. It makes for a fun story amid a good mystery.

The Serpent's Tooth by P.C. Doherty
4 stars

One of Shakespeare's friends shows up in Stratford after the Bard's death. He is dissatisfied with the reported cause of death and decides to investigate. Doherty incorporates a word puzzle worthy of Dorothy Sayers by using the inscription from Shakespeare's tomb-an inscription he himself prepared.

The Duke's Wife By Peter Robinson
4 stars

Measure for Measure ends as a comedy should-with marriages all around. But what sort of happiness will these couples find when one was sealed through trickery and the other ordered upon a woman who had desired a life in a convent? Robinson invites us to find out as Isabella adjusts to her life as the Duke's wife and is once again called upon to aid Mariana.

Let the Game Begin by Peter Tremayne
3 stars

As many writers are wont to do with anthologies, Tremayne contributed a short story that features the detective out of his established series-an Elizabethan constable by the name of Master Hardy Drew. He's investigating a crime at a tavern, a crime you eventually learn involves one of Shakespeare's players.

Ere I Killed Thee by Anne Perry
4 stars

Anne Perry also chooses to stay within her genre while being true to the anthology's theme. She sets her story in the Victorian era where a company of actors is performing Othello. One of them is murdered and the other is accused of the crime with jealousy being given out as the motive. It's a well-done story even if the whodunit part is predictable. What makes the story entertaining is figuring out how the noose will get on the right neck.

Overall, I had a lot of fun with this anthology and will frequently revisit it. It's a wonderful example of why short stories are so effective for mysteries and how mysteries can be written to any theme and setting.

--B. Redman