According to his biography in the new American reissue of his two classic mystery novels, Anderson is a graduate of Reading University (where he studied history) and has had a varied career, including stints in journalism, public relations, and copywriting. He currently lives in Wales, near Cardiff, and has published novels in a wide variety of genres as well as a nativity play. He describes himself as unmarried, "though not from any lack of inclination," and a committed Christian.
Anderson is included here mainly because I like the three parody novels set in the Golden Age (The Affair of the Blood-Stained Egg Cosy, The Affair of the Mutilated Mink Coat, and The Affair of the 39 Cufflinks), which spoof the country-house, upper-class puzzler novel (à la Christie) with a host of eccentric characters, piles of distracting and bizarre clues, and plenty of mysterious noises, secret passages, bibulous noblemen, and--of course-- a supernaturally competent butler. They are an admirable exaggeration of the weaknesses of mediocre detective writing and nostalgia for the class-ridden society.
The other novels, all of which appear to be out of print in the U.S., vary widely in tone. From the little I have read, most seem to be very well plotted and fast-moving action novels, but lack the depth of characterization and literary skill that link most of the other writers in this index. (One exception is Assault and Matrimony, which is basically comic.) There are also three adaptations from the TV series "Murder, She Wrote", which are particularly bland and formulaic; Anderson writes in his defense that he was forced to keep the original plots and characters of the TV scripts, and he does not consider them original fiction.
James Anderson
James Anderson
James Anderson
James Anderson
James Anderson
James Anderson
James Anderson
James Anderson
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