Strong Poison

A Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mystery

By: Dorothy L. Sayers

Narrated by: Ian Carmichael

Length: 7 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Dashing detective Lord Peter Wimsey is caught up in the murder trial of mystery writer Harriet Vane. Her fiance has died of poisoning exactly as described in one of Harriet's novels, so naturally she is the prime suspect. As Peter looks on, he not only falls in love with the accused but eagerly helps with Harriet's defense when the first trial ends in a hung jury. Will she be convicted and executed for the crime, or can he save her life and win her hand in marriage?

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©1930 Executors of the Estate of Anthony Fleming (P)1989 Chivers Audio Books

Critic reviews

"Dorothy Sayers is 'in a class by herself.'"(Chicago Tribune)

Harriet Vane is introduced

I read the final book of the Lord Peter Wimsey mystery series last week, and that inspired me to go back and listen to the audiobook of Strong Poison, the book where Harriet Vane was introduced. Unfortunately, I continue to not really be a fan of Ian Carmichael’s audiobook. They are fine, but not as well narrated and engineered as I think they should be.

There is not much different from this second reading of Strong Poison than my thoughts after the first reading. I was mostly interested in getting the details of the book, so I could read the books between Strong Poison and Busman’s Holiday over the next couple of weeks. I also wish that Harriet was more present in this book. She is basically a damsel in distress here. She is in jail for virtually the entire book. People know her and reference her, but she is not a strong character. She is more present in Have His Carcase, but that is still mostly told from Peter’s perspective. I still have not read a number of the short stories, and I am currently in the middle of Gaudy Night (which is told from Harriet’s perspective). Gaudy Night and Busman’s Holiday prove that this could have been a good series that focuses on the two of them, not just Harriet as a sidekick.

At some point, I will probably read the Jill Paton Walsh series based on this one. Jill Paton Walsh turned a draft of Sayers into Thrones, Dominations and then wrote an additional three books about the married life of the Wimsey’s.

good read

great story. the audio was muffled in parts so was hard to hear, but good for the most part.

Sayers, Whimsey, and Carmichael - a winning combination

Love all the Lord Peter novels and Ian Carmichael evokes the televised versions of decades ago that were magical.

Fantastic story and narrator!

I absolutely loved this Peter Wimsey story and introduction to Harriet Vane. Ian Carmichael is simply unmatched at narration. Fantastic listen!

fun read

While Ms Sayers' mysteries are not terribly original the atmosphere is truly entertaining. if you listen to abridged versions on BBC you will miss the embellishments conjured in her books.


The first chapter is a slog because you have to listen to a judge recreate the background but once you get past that the story is fun and edge-of-the-seat. Two women characters get to go underground to perilously & creatively investigate the mystery . Bunter works his charms to question housekeeping staff.

Don't miss the seance which George Washington continuously interrupts! It's a hoot.

Did you know that in the thirties they invented "free love"? Look up free love if you're too young to remember the 70's. The characters and the dialogue are wonderfully constructed. Fascinating to have a window into the past and see how Humanity changes so little.

A fun little read

Very glad my son pointed out these free Dorothy Sayers books on Audible! This was a delightful conundrum and a good introduction to Sayers’ cast of sleuths snd helpers, including the indispensable Bunter, the Cattery, Billy the Blindfold and more. I’m looking forward to more in the series.

Witty, charming, and the beginning of a love arc

"Pray, do not alter yourself."

Two things that Dorothy L Sayers was magnificent at: humorous yet sympathetic character vignettes, and moving a story ahead with crisp dialogue.

This book falls midway in the Lord Peter Wimsey mystery series. It is the book in which we are introduced to novelist Harriet Vane, who captures Peter’s heart while in the docket on a murder charge. He falls hard, fast, and irrevocably. And then he has the bad manners to bring up marriage while she is still incarcerated.

Of course Harriet rejects his advances, but allows a tentative friendship to grow. That scene includes one of my favorite exchanges. In attempting to dissuade him from her own worth, she tries this:

“I’ve had a lover, as you know.”

And he responds blithely:

“Well, for that matter, so have I. I’d imagine i could provide references and all that, what?”

I love how this levels the playing field between them immediately. No shrinking, virginal heroine. No arrogant rake. Just two people who have had sexual experience. I would love to know how this was received by the public when published in the early 1900s

Peter is one of my favorite fictional characters of all time. He’s not handsome, or muscular, or damaged, brooding, any of the many character archetypes that we see in the detective role in procedurals. By his own admission, he has rather a foolish face.

He comes across at first as rather fatuous, if amiable. He’s an aristocrat, born to money and with no need to redeem himself in society in any way. But he’s got a keen, busy mind under the rambling colloquialisms, bits of latin, and other idiosyncrasies. And that mind cannot rest, ever. He has his finger in many pies- investigating, charity, diplomacy- without coming across as tediously flawless. I get the distinct impression that he’d have been diagnosed with ADHD in modern times.

Peter is also fiercely loyal and generous to a fault. But all of his positive character traits don’t overshadow the fact that he can be impetuous, meddlesome, and tone deaf at times. When he does fall into a lonely melancholy, your heart genuinely feels for him.

I want to delve into Harriet’s character as well, but since she doesn’t get much page time in this story, I’ll save that for Gaudy Night, perhaps. She’s intelligent and strong without being a self-insert (well, not too much of one)

The dialogue is, as always, light and witty and very of the time. Although the plots meander a bit, I’m always brought around be delightful characters, and random bits of humor- such as the rude George Washington manifesting in a series of seances.

Well narrated with good character voices.

my hero...

I love dorothy sayers stories and all of the characters. for all the flaws of the era I am envious of them all.

good story

this reading was so hard to follow. reader is too fast, and frequently sounds muffled.

Lord Peter never disappoints!

Another winner from Dorothy Sayers superbly performed by Ian Carmichael! Do yourself a favor and listen!