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Major characters:
- Harrington Faulkner, real estate agent and goldfish hobbyist
- Jane Faulker, his second wife
- Genevieve Faulkner, his first wife
- Elmer Carson, real estate agent, Harrington's partner
- David Rawlins, pet shop owner
- Tom Gridley, pet shop employee, boyfriend of Sally Madison
- Sally Madison, the elegant golddigger, and Mason's client
- James L. Staunton, insurance agent
- Adele Fairbanks, friend of Jane Faulkner
- Alberta Stanley, stenographer for the real estate office
- Wilfred Dixon, financial advisor for Genevieve Faulkner
Locale: Los Angeles
Synopsis: Real estate agent and goldfish fancier Harrington Faulkner approaches Perry Mason in a restaurant. He wants to Mason to deal with a lawsuit against him by his partner Elmer Carson. Faulkner has two problems: Carson is suing him for defamation, and Faulkner's dinner companion, sexy Sally Madison (the golddigger) is charging him more and more money for the services of her boyfriend, Tom Gridley. Gridley, a pet shop employee, has developed a secret cure for the gill disease which Falukner's exotic fish have contracted.
The defamation suit stems from Faulkner's accusal of Carson having entered their joint office and making off with a pair of his precious Veiltail Moor Telescope fish. Ownership of this fish is a bit ambiguous: while the tank is a fixure of the office (therefore jointly owned), Faulkner had placed his personal fish in it.
Their office is one half of a duplex. The other half is Faulkner's residence. Mason initially declines getting involved, but reconsiders after a call from Sally Madison. They find the fish in the possession of James L. Staunton, an insurance agent who writes policies for the Faulkner-Carson agency. They go to tell Faulkner and arrive the same time as his (second) wife, Jane Faulkner. They all go inside and find Faulkner shot to death in the bathroom. Next, Mason finds the murder gun in Sally's purse. The gun winds up with the police, and they find Della Street's fingerprints on it!
Review: My notes show I read this years ago, but I did not remember anything about this plot, certainly the most absurd I have found in the Perry Mason series. It is hard to believe, on the face of it, that so much to-do and murder occurs over two goldfish.
Some authors I like to take my time with - particularly Manning Coles (my reviews) and Leslie Charteris (my reviews) - as I enjoy their use of language so much and like to savor them slowly. But Gardner's works don't emphasize language so much as action, and once you start one you have to keep gulping it down as fast as you can until it's done.
You have exactly my reaction. I can read Manning Coles over and over (except Drink to Yesterday which breaks my heart.)
ReplyDeleteI haven't read the Charteris books in many years. I loved them and I am afraid to reread. The exception is The Saint Meets the Tiger, my husband bought it recently as a gift. For an early book, I thought it was good.
Thank you for your comments, Chris! You may also be interested in one (or more) of the mystery reading challenges I host, at The Mystillery.
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