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Alice Tilton
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Beginning with a Bash Hardcover – April 15, 1985

by Alice Tilton (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 67 ratings
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It's a cold winter in Boston, and Peters's secondhand bookstore has a sign that says "Come in and browse--it's warm inside". The sign attracts the attention of Martin Jones, who's not only chilly but being chased by the police because his former boss, Professor North, has accused him of stealing $50,000 from the Anthropology Society. Inside the bookstore, he meets a former teacher from his days at Meredith Academy; Leonidas Witherall, "the man who looks like Shakespeare", who has lost all his money and become the bookstore's janitor. The bookstore's new owner is a pretty young redhead of Jones's acquaintance. After the departure of a book thief and a car accident outside, Professor North's body is discovered in the religion section. Witherall and company--which soon includes a wealthy Boston dowager, North's sassy maid Gert, and Gert's mobster boyfriend Freddy--spend the evening tracking down clues to the murderer's identity and trying to stay out of the clutches of Freddy's rival gang. Under Witherall's supervision, the group solves the murder and forces a confession from the murderer just in time to save Jones from the police.
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  1. Language
    English
  2. Publisher
    HarperCollins Publishers
  3. Publication date
    April 15, 1985
  4. ISBN-10
    0002314258
  5. ISBN-13
    978-0002314251
  6. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins Publishers; New Ed edition (April 15, 1985)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0002314258
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0002314251
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.7 ounces
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 67 ratings

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Alice Tilton

Alice Tilton

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
67 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars An Old Favorite
Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2015
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Back in the Age when Radio was King, the distinguished American stage actor, Walter Hampden, portrayed the hero of the series of which this book by Taylor was a part. The radio program didn't last very long but, happily, this and other books by the author are still available. I don't believe Leonidas Witherall, the hero, ever did as well as Asey Mayo, who played a similar role in another series, but, nevertheless, I always liked him, way back when and find that I still do. In this offering, Leonidas, known as Bill Shakespeare to his friends, because of his striking similarity in appearance to the playwright, is down on his luck following a long career as a teacher in a distinguished New England school for boys. He is, in fact, janitor in a commercial building in which a small, overcrowded bookstore exists. Newly established as owner, due to death of a relative, is the young woman, who is one of the heroines of the piece, for in her establishment, at the beginning of the story, a man is murdered, and a male acquaintance who is also present, is the most prominent suspect. There ensues an intended combination of farce and mystery which is the hallmark of the series. None of it is intended to be taken too seriously yet it does have a plethora of characters from gangsters to the most cold-blooded who provide a charming combination of fun and suspense to the action. It is somewhat longer than books of similar approach written these days but certainly entertained me for all of that length. Despite its age, I can recommend it to anyone looking for a bit of well-written fun spiced by some suspense and an assortment of light-romances on the peripheries. Those looking for a puzzler, realistic crime drama, or contemporary outlook or style will probably find the book unsuitable.
4 people found this helpful
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Barbara Rust
4.0 out of 5 stars Always enjoyable as they do not have the typical mystery ...
Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2018
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Always enjoyable as they do not have the typical mystery solver, I end up reading the book in one session as I do not want to put it down,
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Arlene J. Medder
5.0 out of 5 stars Leonidus Xenophon Witherall
Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2021
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Retired teacher, and currently a janitor, encounters a former student ,Martin, taking shelter from the cold. Martin has been accused of theft, fired, lost his apartment, & all of his belongings except what he has with him.

Then, the man who accused him of theft & who fired him is found murdered. But Leonidus is convinced Martin is innocent, of theft and of murder. But he has only 40 hours to prove it.

What follows is a riotous ride around Boston, with Brahmins, gangsters, star-crossed lovers, and intermittent police. Set in post-Prohibition Boston.

I first met Leonidus, who looks just like William Shakespeare, via the old radio shows. Here is one of the books the show was based on.
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Meotzi
3.0 out of 5 stars Beginning with a Bash
Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2013
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The book is set in Boston and I'm from the area so this book was a little more interesting to me because of that. It was an okay plot. The characters are simply drawn. The writing style was sort of not-quite hardboiled and I've already forgotten whodunnit.
It was a fast and easy read for a summer's day.
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RoseAikens
4.0 out of 5 stars An Ear For Dialogue
Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2014
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This Leonidas book is very entertaining, though not quite as fun as the others. Reading it is an enchanting step back in time to post prohibition Boston with gangsters, dowager heiress, and sharp-witted underlings (along with charmingly dull ones as well). A quick and quirky read.
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S. Gibbs
5.0 out of 5 stars A GENTLE BOOK
Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2019
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An odd title perhaps for a review of a book about a fictional murder. But there is no gratuitous violence, perhaps a bashing or two, but all survivable (excepting that which starts the action) Some chasing around the hills of suburban Boston. no scenes of violent sex or even mild sex. JUst what could have been a William Powell & Myrna Loy film. Although as I remember the good professor is asexual perhaps from his age (undetermined although evident he has been around for awhile.) At least he never gets or wants the girl. I wish they would put more of them in Kindle form it may not make a lot of sales in today's blood-soaked market.
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Kate Payne
5.0 out of 5 stars Screwball comedy/mysteries
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2014
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I love the Leonidas Witherall mysteries. They're screwball comedies wrapped around a mystery. Each book starts with strange doings that involve Witherall and along the way suck in a New England matron, at least one and usually two pairs of young lovers (one upper and one "working" class), and miscellaneous bystanders all dashing around in the environs of Boston in the 1930s to 40s. About two thirds of the way in, Witherall remembers Cannae (where Hannibal beat the Romans to shreds (or maybe it was pieces) - you really need to read the book's description.) Once Cannae hits the fan, you get something on the order of the last part of "The Sting" or "Oceans 11" after which the villain is caught and Witherall retires home to a justly deserved rest.

WARNING: most people either love or hate these books. If you're not sure you like screwball mysteries, try a sample before buying.
8 people found this helpful
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Minky
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun characters
Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2013
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A whole crew of fun & funny characters. Some romance, but not as the main plot. Plus, it involves a bookstore & the main character is a former teacher, now janitor who looks like Shakespeare! Does a great job with using Boston as a setting too.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Cranky Auntie
5.0 out of 5 stars Phoebe Atwood Taylor's other mystery series
Reviewed in Canada on March 24, 2024
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As well as the Asey Mayo series, Phoebe Atwood Taylor, using the name Alice Tilton, wrote eight books featuring Leonidas Witherall. This one is the first, and unfortunately the only one on Kindle so far. I wish they would publish more of them - they are addictively funny! A 1930s romp around Boston and area with a screwball cast of old and young, upper class and gangsters, guided and barely kept in check by Leonidas. Great fun!
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ceric7
3.0 out of 5 stars A darkly-funny detective romp
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 31, 2021
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Phoebe Atwood Taylor (1909-1976) wrote eight novels under the name Alice Tilton, all featuring Leonidas Xenophon Witherall.

In this, the first in the series, originally published in 1937, Witherall is a janitor of a building in which there is a bookshop where a murder is committed. He was once a teacher, but has lost his money as a result of the Depression.A former pupil is accused of the murder of his ex-boss, the head of museum from which a large sum in bonds has gone missing.

Witherall, along with Dot, the bookshop owner, Agatha Jordan, a Bostonian widow,and Gerty McInnis and her gangster boyfriend, set out to prove the police wrong.

This is more of a caper or a romp, albeit with dark overtones, than a detective novel. We know fairly early on who is guilty, and the novel is, from then on, a catalogue of (mis)adventures on the way to the solution.

It is immensely readable and full of occasionally rather grim fun. The Boston setting is well-evoked.

This edition is great value and I will read more of the series.

3.5 stars.
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Amazon Kunde
5.0 out of 5 stars Phoebe Atwood Taylor (aka "Alice Tilton") ist Klasse!
Reviewed in Germany on December 26, 2013
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Wenn man Wortwitz und/oder das absurde mag, ist man hier gerade richtig! Phoebe Atwood Taylor, wiewohl sie sich in ihren acht Bänden um Leonidas Witherall auch wiederholt, vermag mir jedesmal ein lächeln oder auch lautes Lachen zu entlocken. Ihre plots sind wohldurchdacht, ihre Sprache eloquent und ihre Geschichten entbehren weder Spannung noch Verve. Ich für meinen Teil lese sie immer wieder gerne.
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Robert M. J. Walker
5.0 out of 5 stars A great period story
Reviewed in Canada on December 28, 2018
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This author wrote some great stories that are very funny and are almost a time capsule of the period. I hope more are released as ebooks because my paperback versions are falling apart.
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