Best 'Thinking Machine' Detective Stories by Jacques Futrelle

 

About the author: Jacques Heath Futrelle (1875 – 1912) was an American journalist and mystery writer. He is best known for writing short detective stories featuring Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, also known as "The Thinking Machine" for his use of logic. Returning from Europe aboard the RMS Titanic, Futrelle, a first-class passenger, refused to board a lifeboat, insisting his wife Lily do so instead, to the point of forcing her in. She remembered the last she saw of him: he was smoking a cigarette on deck with John Jacob Astor IV. He perished in the Atlantic and his body was never found. (wikipedia) 

Series character: Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, The Thinking Machine; and sidekick newspaper reporter Hutchinson Hatch.

The Problem of Cell 13: The Thinking Machine claims he can escape from a prison cell in one week's time, and his friends put him up to it. He is locked in Cell 13 of death row and treated just as any other prisoner, and proceeds to "think" his way out.

The Crystal Gazer: Howard Varick is interested in the occult, and especially his friend,  Adhem Singh. Singh spends his time in a dark closet, gazing into his crystal ball. One day he sees a vision of Varick being murdered, and shows the vision to a terrified Varick. Varick consults The Thinking Machine to see if there is a way his murder can be prevented.

The Scarlet Thread: Weldon Henley has an apartment in Boston's Back Bay. He likes the old-fashioned gas lighting, but lately his night light has been going out while he is asleep, allowing unburned gas to permeate the apartment, a definite health risk. He is worried someone is trying to kill him this way, when another tenant dies from the same cause.

The Flaming Phantom: Ernest Weston starts to rehab the old family mansion, but he and others are scared away by an appartition of a "flaming phantom" that appears at night. Hutchinson Hatch and The Thinking Machine investigate.

The Problem of the Stolen Rubens: Art Collector Matthew Kale allows his friend Jules de Lesseps to paint a copy of his Whistler. In the process, Kale's priceless Rubens painting disappears. The authorities locate it, but cannot explain how it was done. The Thinking Machine provides the explanation.

The Missing Necklace: A known thief has made off with a precious necklace, but an exhaustive search cannot locate it. The Thinking Machine reasons how it was done, and where it went.

The Phantom Motor: A speeding car enters a stretch of road observed by a policeman at either end, yet never emerges. 

The Lost Radium: Professor Dexter has accumulated one ounce of rare radium - essentially all the known supply - in his laboratory, as he seeks to determine if it can be used as a source of motive power. He has a surprise visit from a mysterious French woman, Mme. du Chastaigny, who offers to sell him another ounce at a bargain price. While he considers her offer, his own ounce disappears; and The Thinking Machine is called in to find out where it went.

Kidnapped Baby Blake, Millionaire:  The Thinking Machine is called in to a kidnapping case. Toddler Baby Blake, heir to a great fortune, got outside and went for a walk in the snow. His footprints lead out into an open yard, then abruptly end. Where did he go? How did the kidnappers get him?

The Fatal Cipher: Pomeroy Stockton is found dead in his laboratory. His adopted daughter, Elizabeth Devan, finds a suicide note with the body. The note is strangely worded with Biblical references, and suggests he is cutting her out of his will in favor of his son, John Stockton. She suspects a hidden message in the note, and consults The Thinking Machine to solve it.

Mini-review: 

The good: Cell 13 is always a good read. I thought I figured how the Stolen Rubens switcheroo was done, but I was wrong. The solution was surprising, although it requires some specialized knowledge about art. The Phantom Motor is a fun episode and a quick read.

The not-so-good: The Scarlet Thread was lacking both in motive and execution. The Flaming Phantom was an obvious setup from the start, the description of the home's interior gave it away. 

See also this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

The Case of the Spurious Spinster by Erle Stanley Gardner, 1961

 

Major characters:

• Amelia Corning, wheelchair-bound primary stockholder of Corning Mining
• Endicott Campbell, manager of Corning Mining
• Carleton Campbell, his 7-year old son
• Elizabeth Dow, Carleton's governess
• Sue Fisher, his secretary
• Ken Lowry, manager of the Mojave Monarch mine
• Sophia Elliott, Amelia's sister
• Alfredo Gomez, South American agent for Corning Mining
• Cindy Hastings, a nurse

Locale: Los Angeles and the nearby desert region

Synopsis: Secretary Sue Fisher is working on a Saturday to prepare for the visit of the Corning Mining's principal stockholder, Amelia Corning. She is typing reports for her boss, manager Endicott Campbell; some of which deal with the frenzied activities at their Mojave Monarch mine.  Endicott has a 7-year old son, Carleton Campbell, who drops in with his governess, Elizabeth Dow. Carleton is holding a tied-up shoebox he took from his father. Sue peeks inside to find it full of 100-dollar bills. Shocked at this discovery, she locks the box in the office safe for safekeeping.

Sue takes a ride out to look at the Mojave Monarch mine, and is shocked to find it abandoned with no sign of activity, just being cared for by local manager Ken Lowry.

Amelia Corning arrives from South America - in her wheelchair - sooner than expected. Endicott cannot be located, and she has Sue provide her records from the office which she removes to her hotel. Everything looks fishy, and Sue hires Perry Mason to protect her interests. 

Amelia Corning checks herself out of the hotel and disappears with the records. Then a second Amelia - apparently the real one - arrives. Endicott is enraged that Sue let a fake Amelia run off with the records, and now the box of cash is missing too.

Mason goes looking for Sue Fisher - to find her returning home, wearing men's clothing. She had been out in a rented car, and when Mason follows her trail, finds a dead body instead.

Review: This is, as usual, a fast moving Mason story. It was easy to follow, as the cast of characters is small. Gardner is writing of his favorite environment - mining activities in the desert. We don't spend a lot of time in the desert - just a quick look-see. The victim (there is only one) was a surprise to me. 

Gardner sets us up with a couple of easy suspects - but the joke is on the reader. They disappear as soon as they appear, and the real murderer doesn't appear in the book until near the end - unfair to the reader.

A discontinuity: Everyone thinks Amelia Corning has made off with the shoebox full of cash when no one was looking - but how could she? It was locked in the safe before she even arrived. 

Pro tip: Gardner never makes a woman in nylons and high heels the murderer - but a woman wearing flats? Danger!  

The Fourth Side of the Triangle by Ellery Queen, 1965

 

About the author: Avram Davidson ghost-wrote this title, from an outline by  

Frederic Dannay.

Major characters:

• Dane McKell, aspiring writer
• Ashton McKell, his father; a.k.a. Dr. Stone
• Lutetia McKell, his mother
• Judy Walsh, Ashton's secretary
• Sheila Grey, the other woman
• "Aunt" Sarah Vernier, Dane's godmother
• Ramon Alvarez, chauffeur

Locale: New York City

Synopsis:  Wealthy Ashton and Lutetia McKell live in a palatial New York apartment. Their son, Dane McKell, is more interested in being a writer than following in his father's business footsteps, but has yet to be successful at it. 

There is a sudden upset when Lutetia, sensing Ashton is becoming distant, asks what is wrong; and Ashton reveals there is "another woman". Lutetia takes this in stride, and focuses on being the obedient wife and avoiding any sniff of scandal in society, and in their church.

Dane feels it is his duty to break up this illicit romance, but doesn't know the identity of the other woman. He follows his father to an assignation to learn the woman is fashion designer Sheila Grey, and she lives in the penthouse of the same apartment building. She is young - about the same age as Dane. Since Ashton does not want to be recognized visiting her, he assumes a disguise as "Dr. Stone", even to carrying a physician's bag.

Dane sees Sheila in the guise of researching her industry for his book. He gradually falls in love with her, and when she rejects his marriage proposal, he attempts to strangle her. He leaves, and in the interval before Ashton arrives, Sheila is shot by a person unknown.

SOME SPOILERS BELOW!

Review: This book is written in four chapters, each named for a "side of the triangle".

Chapter 1, "Sheila", moves right along as we follow Dave discovering his father's elaborate disguise and the other woman's identity. It opens with some historical McKell family background which fleshes out the family characters nicely and helps the reader understand their Victorian background, and ends with Sheila's murder.

Chapter 2, "Ashton" covers the arrest of Ashton for the murder.

Chapter 3, "Lutetia" covers her arrest for the murder, following Ashton's acquital.

Chapter 4, "Dane" leads us to the murderer, with a nice red herring episode, following Lutetia's acquital. Not too many possibilities left!

This book follows a typical Queen methodical formula of chapters, and also includes a solution which involves solving a formula left behind by the deceased. I had the murderer all picked out but on the last pages I found I was wrong. 

A nice aspect of this story is the limited cast of characters. It is never difficult to keep track of who is who. Another unique aspect is that Ellery solves the case from his hospital bed (following breaking both legs skiing).

I was a bit skeptical that this ghost-written title could stand up to the Queen reputation, but it does easily. 

The Camera Clue by George Harmon Coxe, 1937

 

This is Kent Murdock #3.

About the author: George Harmon Coxe (1902-1984) began writing in the nickel and dime pulps for pennies a word. He was a particularly prolific author, writing a total of 63 novels, his last published in 1975. The Mystery Writers of America named him a Grand Master in 1964. (condensed from fantastic fiction)

Major characters:

• Kent Murdock, news photographer
• Joyce Murdock, his wife
• Nora Pendleton, Joyce's friend
• Dana Pendleton, Nora's father
• Jerry Carter, gossip columnist and blackmailer
• Johnny Gowen, Kent's associate photographer
• Lew Novak, cheating private detective
• Gordon Thorndike, cheating socialite
• Wilfred Witherbee, an embezzler
• Robert Ostrum, a.k.a. George Brown

Locale: Boston

Synopsis: Newspaper photographer Kent Murdock comes home to find his wife's friend, Nora Pendleton. She is upset and reveals she has just shot a man, columnist Jerry Carter, who has been blackmailing her. Kent's wife, Joyce, urges Kent to help her out. Kent goes for a look-see. In front of Carter's office building, Kent first sees a man on stilts wearing an advertising sandwich board followed by a troop of kids. Sensing a human interest photo, Kent takes a photo of the scene, with several other passers-by in the background.

Kent enters the building and  finds the body as advertised, but Nora's gun is nowhere to be found. He takes photos of the body and scene. Nora finds the gun - in her father (Dana Pendleton)'s drawer, in his attempt to cover the murder up.

Kent returns to his office to have the photos developed. Soon a number of people show up wanting to get the photo of the sandwich-board man. It seems they were in the background of the photo and don't want it published. Things get pushy and someone slugs Kent's associate, Johnny Gowan, who dies.

Kent now has two goals: exonerate Nora, and avenge the death of Johnny Gowan.

Review: This one takes a great deal of suspension-of-disbelief. There is Kent's rush into a murder scene without notifying the police, there is the buddy-buddy relationship between them, and there is the crowd of cheaters, crooks, gamblers and embezzlers who just happen to wind up in the background of an innocuous photo. 

That said, this is a nonstop not-quite-hardboiled action book with lots of action, a cast straight out of Guys and Dolls, and provocative descriptions of the dames involved. Repeated recitations of the list of possible suspects should give the reader a clue that the murderer is "none of the above".

I enjoyed the specific descriptions of the streets of Boston (being familiar with them first-hand), and was surprised how little has changed from 1937 to today.

Please also see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block. 

Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie, 1940

 

dustjackets.com

This is Hercule Poirot #19.

Major characters:

• Elinor Carlisle, sophisticate of London
• Mary Gerrard, daughter of the Hunterbury lodgekeeper
• Ted Bigland, Mary's sort-of boyfriend
• Old Gerrard - Mary's father, the lodgekeeper
• Roderick "Roddy" Welman, Elinor's short-term fiancé
• Laura Welman, aunt to Elinor and Roderick
• Dr. Peter Lord, young and eligible
• Mrs. Emma Bishop, housekeeper
• Nurse Jessie Hopkins
• Nurse Eileen O'Brien

Locale: Hunterbury estate, England

Synopsis: We open with Elinor Carlisle on trial for murder of life-long friend Mary Gerrard in a brief unfinished courtroom scene, then we flashback to the story to see how we got here. Laura Welman is matriarch of Hunterbury, and is near her end. She has two favorites: Niece Elinor Carlisle of London (engaged to Roderick Welman, a sort-of cousin by marriage), and Mary Gerrard (no relation, but daughter of long time lodgekeeper "Old" Gerrard).

Under the direction of young, eligible Dr. Peter Lord, Nurses Jessie Hopkins and Eileen O'Brien care for Laura. While visiting, Elinor realizes that her fiancé "Roddy" has fallen in love with Mary, and so she breaks the engagement and urges him to go abroad and get it out of his system.

Soon Aunt Laura passes away - intestate - leaving her only blood relation Elinor to figure out the estate. Both she and Mary had been hoping for a windfall, but Elinor winds up with it all. Elinor passes out legacies as she thinks Laura would have wished, including a generous £2000 to Mary. This activity makes both realize the value of a will, so Elinor and Mary each make one out. Reluctantly, Elinor puts Hunterbury on the market and sells it. While cleaning the place out, Elinor serves sandwiches, and Mary dies from poison within it. Elinor is suspect #1.

Dr. Peter Lord, now realizing his love for Elinor (now that Roddy is out of the way) engages Hercule Poirot to find evidence to clear Elinor. His first stop is to interview Mary's sort-of boyfriend, local Ted Bigland. Between Ted and the nurses, Poirot finds the killings have long-ago ties.

Review: My, is Roddy a fair weather friend, stringing Elinor along until something better comes along. Here is a diagram of who-loves-who:

Dr. Peter Lord > Elinor > Roddy > (Mary) < Ted

I enjoyed the episodes of the two nurses conversing and exchanging letters, and filling in the reader on the back story of the characters. This was well done and effective, and planted plenty of clues along the way. 

It became obvious quickly that something in Mary's past led to all this. The various clues are all there. I had a theory but it wasn't quite right. The solution is a bit convoluted by believable and satisfying. 

Please also see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

The Man Who Could Not Shudder by John Dickson Carr, 1940

 

About the author: John Dickson Carr (1906 – 1977) was an American author, who also published using the pseudonyms Carter Dickson, Carr Dickson, and Roger Fairbairn. He lived in England for a number of years, and is often grouped among "British-style" mystery writers. Most (though not all) of his novels had English settings, especially country villages and estates, and English characters. His two best-known fictional detectives (Dr. Gideon Fell and Sir Henry Merrivale) were both English. (excerpt from this Wikipedia article.)

Major characters:

• Martin Clarke, new owner of Longwood, and host
• * Bob Morrison, our narrator, a writer
• * Tess Fraser, his fiancée
• * Andrew Hunter, architect
• * Archibald Bentley Logan, grocery wholesaler, "the man who couldn't shudder"
• * Mrs. Gwyneth Logan, a "packet of super-femininity"
• * Julian Enderby, a solicitor
• "Eric the Hand" name given to the ghostly hand
• Detective-Inspector Elliot, Scotland Yard
• Dr. Gideon Fell, Scotland Yard

Locale: England

Synopsis: Martin Clarke is somewhat of an adventurer, and has purchased Longwood, a mansion house with a shady past and a reputation for being haunted. It is said an elderly butler (William Polson) once lost his life by jumping up and swinging on the dining room chandelier, which then fell on him. A chair in the study moves about on its own. Clarke tells his friend, our narrator Bob Morrison, he intends to invite some friends (the six marked * above) to stay for a few days in hopes of seeing for themselves. 

As they arrive at Longwood, sexy Gwyneth Logan feels an invisible hand snatch at her ankles, but nothing can be seen. The guests settle in for a four day stay,  along with maids Mrs. Winch and her niece Sonia. Clarke proudly displays his collection of antique firearms mounted on the wall of the study, one of two rooms reputed to be haunted (the other is the dining room). Bob Morrison hears a thud in the night, goes downstairs to find Gwyneth in a revealing black nightgown, holding a small key.  Jealous husband Bentley Logan finds them, and accuses Morrison - at gunpoint - of being her lover. 

Longwood is described in detail, but the book lacks a sketch map. Here is my interpretation:

click to enlarge

The next day, Bentley Logan is trying to keep up with his correspondence by typing in the study. As he adjusts the typewriter position, Gwyneth is shocked to see a pistol jump from the wall display and discharge, killing Bentley instantly. How could this happen? It is found it was Bentlet's own pistol, which had been substituted for one of the antiques. 

click to enlarge

Detective Inspector Elliot and Dr. Gideon Fell are on the scene. No one doubts Gwyneth's account, as there were several others who support her story: The gardener MacCarly was looking in a window, Julian Enderby looking in the opposite window, and the maid Sonia in the doorway. The guests speculate on a ghostly hand doing the deed, whom they name "Eric".

While the investigation progresses, a crash is heard, and the chandelier has claimed another victim. 

Review: There are bits of Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera recycled here - both have a killer chandelier, and both have a phantom named Erik (here spelled Eric). Not quite a locked room mystery - but an impossible murder. Carr sets the scene nicely in a simple setup (albeit lacking the obligatory map) with a concise description and plenty of witnesses. The upstairs is not described, but is irrelevant to the story.

I find some of Carr's books to be hard to follow, but not this one. There are no distracting side stories - just a steady progression of the plot.

[Spoiler clue ahead] The reader may get wind of the explanation when it is revealed the moving chair in the study was not one of the study's wooden ones, but a metal patio chair which had been brought inside. 

The House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers, 1925

 

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.