The Vanishing Box cover art

The Vanishing Box

The Brighton Mysteries 4

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The Vanishing Box

By: Elly Griffiths
Narrated by: Luke Thompson
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About this listen

 The fourth Brighton Mysteries story from the author of the bestselling Dr Ruth Galloway series - a must-read for fans of Bryant and May. 'Mixes cosiness and sharpness in a way that recalls the best of Agatha Christie' Sunday Express (on Smoke and Mirrors)

What do a murdered Brighton flower seller, the death of Cleopatra and a nude tableau show have in common? Read the most dangerous case yet for Stephens and Mephisto and find out.

Christmas 1953. Max Mephisto and his daughter Ruby are headlining Brighton Hippodrome, an achievement only slightly marred by the less-than-savoury support act: a tableau show of naked 'living statues'. This might appear to have nothing in common with DI Edgar Stephens' investigation into the death of a quiet flowerseller, but if there's one thing the old comrades have learned it's that, in Brighton, the line between art and life - and death - is all too easily blurred...

(P)2017 Quercus Editions Limited©2017 Elly Griffiths Cosy Historical Mystery Fiction Suspense

Critic Reviews

Vivid description, masterful sleight of hand and a lightness of touch add up to a terrific read for aficionados and newcomers alike
Griffiths manages to juggle humour, homicide and nostalgia in a delightful read
This series is without fail engaging and entertaining and The Vanishing Box is no exception ... I could almost smell the greasepaint and see the flutter of feathers ... Loved it!
[Griffiths] weaves a fascinating tale. And, like all good mysteries, some surprising revelations along the way with a delicious twist at the end. Highly recommended
All stars
Most relevant
I love this series and the vivid storytelling of theater life. All the characters are so good especially Max.

another great story with Ed and Max

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A good story with solid dependable & consistently portrayed characters and a plot with the inevitable twist well worthy of four stars.

Entertaining read.

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The case for DI Edgar Stephens this time is the murder of a young girl whose body was disturbingly posed by the killer post-mortem. Edgar realises the killer's manipulation of the body reminds him of an act which is currently on the same bill as his magician friend, Max Mephisto.

This ‘Living Tableau’ act is a group of women who strike historical poses while wearing next to nothing -- sort of a thinking man’s peep show. The girls keep completely still whilst striking their famous poses, thus getting around the censorship laws which deemed performers could only be naked on stage if they didn’t move. I assume this was really a thing and the group was based on some real life act. Fascinating stuff!

For anyone trying to solve the case, Griffiths has a plethora of potential victims and suspects with this performing trope, the fellow tenants of the boarding house where the victim was found, and the theatre's remaining cast and crew. It also brought in the connection to Max.

I felt this should have been enough but Griffiths pushed Max into a secondary plot for no particular reason. Instead of Max and the girls simply sharing the stage keeping him involved in the mystery plot, Griffiths also introduced a romance between him and one of the girls. This created a needless love triangle which made me a little sad, considering how sweet his romance from the previous book had been.

Griffiths loves her love triangles though! Much to my dismay, she continues on with the Edgar/Emma/Ruby one.

Emma’s role within the police ranks also continues to dismay me. I have decided it’s best for me to just suspend belief and keep reading as if it really was possible for a female detective with such seniority and responsibilities to exist in the 1950’s. If I do that, I find myself actually enjoying her character.

As in the previous installments, I once again enjoyed the insights into the magic tricks and behind the scenes of the stage shows. The book is full of fun facts about variety shows from the time and how they were struggling with the introduction of TV.

I loved the first book in this series but then was disappointed by the subsequent installments. Thinking now about all this one's flaws, I should say it was an average read but, somehow, I actually really enjoyed it, prompting my 4 out of 5 mark and vow to keep reading on with the series.

Enjoyable

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