This is the first of six novels featuring Detective Charlie Chan.
About the author: Earl Derr Biggers (1884 – 1933) was an American novelist and playwright.[1] His novels featuring the fictional Chinese American detective Charlie Chan were adapted into popular films made in the United States and China. (Wikipedia)
Major characters:
- John Quincy Winterslip, a young Boston bond trader
- Minerva Winterslip, his aunt
- Dan Winterslip, John's uncle
- Barbara Winterslip, Dan's daughter, John's cousin
- Amos Winterslip, Dan's brother
- Roger Winterslip, John's cousin
- Harry Jennison, Dan's attorney
- Thomas Brade, a former blackbirder from Calcutta
- Agatha Parker, John's Boston fiancée
- Carlota "Cary" Maria Egan, John's new flame
- Detective Charlie Chan
Locale: Hawaii
Synopsis: The Winterslips are old-time Boston aristocrats - referred to as "puritans" in the text. The epitome of the family is young (29) bond trader John Quincy Winterslip, engaged to Agatha Parker, a Boston deb.
They have not all remained in Boston. Brothers Dan and Amos Winterslip have settled in Hawaii, and Roger Winterslip in San Francisco. Minerva Winterslip (John Quincy's aunt) has gone to visit Dan and Amos, and enthralled by Hawaii, doesn't seem to want to return to Boston. John Quincy is sent to bring her back. He travels by train to San Francisco, visits with cousin(?) Roger, and is enthralled with that city, then by ship to Hawaii. No sooner does he arrive than his uncle Dan is found stabbed to death in his open-air home, rthe "house without a key".
John Quincy falls in love with Hawaiian culture, Dan's daughter Barbara Winterslip (a cousin), and Carlota "Cary" Egan, daughter of an innkeeper; in that order. His life plan changes to include a move to San Francisco, and breaking off with Agatha Parker in order to take up with Carlota.
Detective Charlie Chan enters the case, and John Quincy reluctantly agrees to assist in the investigation; learning to defend himself and do a little rough-housing and fisticuffs in the process.
Review: This is my first Charlie Chan read, and it was definitely not what I expected. I thought it would be set in the mysterious orient, but here we are in modern Hawaii. Chan is quite amusing, and his not-quite perfect English and results in many enjoyable odd and not-quite-right expressions.
Don't pay too much attention to the family relationships, the author has played fast and loose with those. Dan/John Quincy are sometimes uncle/nephew, sometimes cousins; Barbara/John Quincy are sometimes first, sometimes second cousins. Various relations are all described as being cousins to each other, not always correctly. This sketch shows what I found from the text:
The book started to drag about 3/4 through - especially with the waxy sentimental travel-brochure descriptions of Hawaii - but Charlie Chan kept my interest whenever he was the subject. I look forward to the other five Chan novels.
