The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection

Julian Symons wrote Mortal Consequences in 1972 and it too is brilliant, though far more controversial in its appraisals. (In the copy Symons inscribed to me, he accurately describes it as "material for disagreement and argument," following one of our many disagreements and arguments--the one we had when he failed to accept the enduring brilliance of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe novels.)

David Lehman's The Perfect Murder was originally published in 1987 and has at last been reissued in paperback, with a new chapter on mystery novels of the 1990s. While Lehman is as opinionated as Symons, he is more generous in his taste and seems to prefer the best writers. (This actually means that his taste coincides with mine, which suggests that it is impeccable!)

Although mainly chronological in structure, The Perfect Murder jumps around some, even including references to modern films while discussing old books. Oddly, the chapter on Sherlock Holmes precedes the chapter on Edgar Allan Poe, but somehow it all makes sense. His list of favorite books at the end is one of the most intelligent selections I've ever encountered--with the exception of The Name of the Rose, which is impenetrable, and The Singing Detective, which just tries too hard to be cool.

If you are interested in mystery fiction but know little beyond the obvious classics, read this to be the biggest expert on your block. If you're already the biggest expert on your block, read it to learn how much you don't know, and be grateful for its perceptive insights. --Otto Penzler

Product Description

If, as he observes, the murder in the most inspired detective novel is perfect, it's not because of its solution but because of its artful conception. The first clue is in the basic premise of mystery fiction. Speaking, as it does, of such basic matters as life and death, quest and query, fear and the unknown, the detective novel assumes that the puzzles of life can and will be solved. The reader turns from the ordinariness of life to the author's promise that around each corner lurks the possibility of menace, that conspiracy fills the air, that we have every right to be paranoid, but in spite of it all, everything will turn out all right.

Another clue: Reading mystery fiction provides us with a harmless and vicarious way of releasing our homicidal instincts, says Lehman, allowing us to murder again and again without having to suffer the consequences. Thus, he concludes, reading mysteries leads us away from performing the act of murder.

"Our love of mystery is matched only by our longing for certainty," he writes. "and because we find it hard to tolerate the condition of doubt and guilt in shich we are destined to live."

Lehman's love of mysteries and his eagerness to share favorite books and characters lends charm and emphasizes his major points. A chronological bibliography is included and divided into related genres, critical documents and resource books. That proves to be a banquet of delicious additional reading on the subject. Another delight is his review of 15 of his favorite mystery novels.

Read this one to gain new insight and a deeper appreciation for the mystery genre.


Erudite and entertaining   December 27, 2003
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

I have a few of books on the crime/mystery genre. Some of them are overly academic (dry and professorial) while others are labors of love written by fans (passionate but not always insightful or even factually correct). Then there are those books that are still wonderful to read but are a bit out of date (the Haycroft, Keating and Symon books, for instance).

Lehman's book avoids all these pitfalls. He's a scholar but his prose moves along and is never fussy. He covers a lot of ground but never sails into vague generalities. And his recommended reading list (always a highlight in this sort of book) is nicely put together, with a good mix of old works and new.

If I had to buy a single volume for someone looking to expand his or her perspective on the history of the crime-mystery story, this would be the one.


Destiny   December 15, 2000
 41 out of 43 found this review helpful

Finally in paperback, "The Perfect Murder" will provide intriguing delight for both newcomers and accomplished literary detectives. With this new twenty-first-century insight into the murder mystery, Lehman has now made the study of the Detective Novel as morally and historically important as any in literature today, "not only" in Lehman's words "because of the detective novel's debt to human nature but because of the possibly larger debt that human behavior owes to detective novels."


Whodunit: Superb Sleuthing of the detective novel, itself   November 9, 2000
 21 out of 21 found this review helpful

His books covers it all: history, stories, the idea of doubles and masks, the resolution of good and evil after World Wars through the detective who resolves to bring order out of chaos. David Lehman talks about the detective novel as one genre that crosses all classes. Given this election and all the open questions, let's delight in some sleuthing. We are asking Whowonit in America. His book is a Whodunit. This book is fun and includes many of David's Favorites throughout history, including Poe's Murder of the Rue Morgue and even spy novels such as LaCarre's The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. If you delight in detective novels, you'll savor this read.