Series: This is Captain Heimrich #4.
About the author: Richard Orson Lockridge (1898 –1982) was an American writer of detective fiction. Richard Lockridge with his wife Frances (1896-1963) created one of the most famous American mystery series, Mr. and Mrs. North. (wikipedia).
Major characters:
- Lucretia Bromwell, the matriarch widow
- Scott Bromwell, her son
- Marta Bromwell, Scott's wife
- Elspeth "Pethy" Bromwell, their daughter
- Laurence "Lorry" Bromwell, their son
- Karen Mason, Lucretia's secretary
- William, the butler
- Flora, the maid
- Pauline James, the children's nurse
- Everett Hume, a.k.a. Stephen Nickel, the mysterious stranger
- Bill Higgins, a small time thief
- Captain Merton Heimrich
Locale: Westchester County, New York
Synopsis: The Bromwell estate, High Ridge, is controlled by widow matriarch Lucretia Bromwell. The estate is the center of a lot of drama; all revolving around Scott Bromwell's wife, Marta Bromwell. No one really wants her around, and Scott would love to separate if he can manage to keep the kids, Elspeth and Laurence. Tiptoeing around the family is Lucretia's secretary, Karen Mason, the only normal one of the batch, and our protagonist.
The fog has settled in firmly one night when everything happens all at once. A stranger, Everett Hume, shows up, looking to use the phone to call in help with his flat tire. Young Laurence has disappeared, and has apparently gone outside somewhere. During the search for Laurence, Karen Mason wanders into a swampy area and trips over the body of Marta. Everett Hume comes to her aid and declares it was murder.
Police pull over a stop-sign violation and find a small time crook, Bill Higgins, driving the Bromwell Cadillac, with no explanation but a box full of Marta's jewels on board. Captain Merton Heimrich finds him the obvious suspect in Marta's death, but that only lasts until Higgins is murdered as well.
Review:
You may also enjoy this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader’s Block.
Feb 2 2026: Reading now, please check back again for more. RM
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