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Lord Peter Views the Body

by Dorothy L. Sayers · 1928

In this delightful collection of Wimsey exploits, Dorothy L. Sayers reveals a gruesome, grotesque but absolutely bewitching side rarely shown in Lord Peter's full-length adventures.Lord Peter views the body in 12 tantalizing… more

11 quotes ★ 4.13 (15,996) Mystery

Quotes from the Book

And upon his return, Gherkins, who had always considered his uncle as a very top-hatted sort of person, actually saw him take from his handkerchief-drawer an undeniable automatic pistol. It was at this point that Lord Peter was apotheosed from the state of Quite Decent Uncle to that of Glorified Uncle
19
Nobody minds coarseness, but one must draw the line at cruelty -Lord Peter Wimsey
1
Ah! childhood! You’re living the happiest days of your life, young man. You won’t believe me, but you are.
Lord Peter gave it as his opinion that book-collecting could be a perfectly manly pursuit. Girls, he said, practically never took it up, because it meant so much learning about dates and type-faces and other technicalities which called for a masculine brain.
It is not known why motorists, who sing the joys of the open road, spend so much petrol every weekend grinding their way to Southend and Brighton and Margate, in the stench of each other’s exhausts, one hand on the horn and one foot on the brake, their eyes starting from their orbits in the nerve-racking search for cops, corners, blind turnings, and cross-road suicides. They ride in a baffled fury, hating each other. They arrive with shattered nerves and fight for parking places. They return, blinded by the headlights of fresh arrivals, whom they hate even worse than they hate each other.
I has such a sinking in my inside I has to get up and eat biscuits.
The young man, whose reddish hair, long nose, and slightly sodden eyes gave him the appearance of a dissipated fox, greeted Wimsey with a disagreeable stare.
On the morning of the wedding-day, Lord Peter emerged from Bunter's hands a marvel of sleek brilliance. His primrose-coloured hair was so exquisite a work of art that to eclipse it with his glossy hat was like shutting up the sun in a shrine of jet; his spats, light trousers, and exquisitely polished shoes formed a tone-symphony in monochrome.
In my day one had to have either brains or beauty to get on -- preferably both. Nowadays nothing seems to be required but a total lack of figure.
It was at this point that Lord Peter was apotheosed from the state of Quite Decent Uncle to that of Glorified Uncle.
Jerrykins, or Pickled Gherkins. Lord Peter was not one of those born uncles who delight old nurses by their

About Dorothy L. Sayers

We have collected 267 quotes from 11 books by Dorothy L. Sayers on BookQuoters.

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About the book

In this delightful collection of Wimsey exploits, Dorothy L. Sayers reveals a gruesome, grotesque but absolutely bewitching side rarely shown in Lord Peter's full-length adventures.Lord Peter views the body in 12 tantalizing and bizarre ways in this outstanding collection. He deals with such marvels as the man with copper fingers, Uncle Meleager's missing will, the cat in the bag, the footsteps that ran, the stolen stomach, the man without a face...and with such clues as cyanide, jewels, a roast chicken and a classic crossword puzzle.

Book details

First published
1928
Genre
Mystery
Goodreads rating
4.13 (16k ratings)

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