Wednesday, March 7, 2018

Sidney Chambers -- Grantchester Mysteries


Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death
By James Runcie ---   March 8, 2018

Born May 7, 1959, in Cambridge, England; son of Lord Robert (Archbishop of Canterbury) and Lady Lindy Runcie E-mail: james@jamesruncie.com.

CAREER:
Writer, academic, and filmmaker. BBC Scotland, radio drama writer and director, 1983-85; Bath Literature Festival, artistic director, 
2009-13; Southbank Centre, London, England, head of literature 
and spoken word, 2013--. Documentary filmmaker; works include 
J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life;Losing It: Griff Rhys Jones on 
Anger; and My Father, a last interview with Lord Robert Runcie, 
who was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980-91. Has worked for 
Sadler's Wells, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and the Arts 
Council. Bath Spa University, visiting professor.

Notably, the "Grantchester Mystery" novels have been adapted 
as a television series for ITV. Discussing the filming in a London
Telegraph article, Runcie admitted that Chambers is based on his 
father. "I try to imagine what my father would think of it all," he 
remarked, "and I can almost see him, aged 93, in a wheelchair 
perhaps, with a rug over his lap, watching the filming of that war
scene. I think he would have been bemused--and amused. I can 
imagine him laughing about it afterwards and saying that it wasn't
like that at all. I don't think for a minute that he would ever say 
that he was proud of me, but I hope he would at least be secretly
intrigued." Runcie added: "And this is, of course, is what fiction 
does. It brings the dead back to us. It allows thought,
conversation, an alternative afterlife."

"GRANTCHESTER MYSTERY" SERIES

  • Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death, 2012.
  • Sidney Chambers and the Perils of the Night, 2013.
  • Sidney Chambers and the Problem of Evil, 2014.
  • Sidney Chambers and the Forgiveness of Sins, 2015.
  • Sidney Chambers and the dangers of temptation,  (2016)
  • Sidney Chambers and the persistence of love, ( 2017)

NOVELS

  • The Discovery of Chocolate, 2001.
  • The Colour of Heaven, 2003.
  • Canvey Island, 2008.
  • East Fortune, 2009.

 Fun web site:    https://jamesruncie.com/home
Read-alikes

Sidney Chambers and the shadow of death
Introduces unconventional clergyman Sidney Chambers, who 
teams up with roguish Inspector Harry Keating to investigate 
a suspicious suicide, a jewelry theft, the unexplained demise
of a jazz promoter, and a shocking art forgery.

 
Max Tudor mysteries  by G. M. Malliet
Reason:  The Max Tudor and Grantchester mysteries feature 
young English vicars as their sleuths. These cozy stories are set 
in small English towns with a cast of eccentric characters. The 
sleuths use their insight into people to solve the crimes. -- 
Merle Jacob
     Pagan Spring: Reason:  Both are amusing cozy mysteries 
with unconventional vicars acting as sleuths in small English
villages. Sidney Chambers is set in the 1950s, where a youthful
jazz-loving minister is on the case; in Pagan Spring, a 
present-day M15 agent turns cleric. -- Kim Burton


Father Christmas mysteries by C. C.Benison
Reason:  The Father Christmas and Grantchester mysteries are 
cozies featuring reluctant clergymen as their sleuths.The men 
are intelligent with a keen understanding of people. These gentle
reads evoke the charm of English small towns and their varied
characters. -- Merle Jacob

 

 

 



 


 

 


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