The Door by Mary Roberts Rinehart, 1930

 

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About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

The Bell household:

• Elizabeth Jane Bell, protagonist and narrator
• Mary Martin,  secretary
• Joseph Holmes,  butler
• Robert White,  chauffeur
• Norah Moriarty,  cook
• Clara Jenkins,  housemaid
• Abner Jones,  gardener
• Sarah Gittings,  nurse

The Somers household, of New York City:

• Howard Somers 
• Katherine Somers, Howard's wife (Elizabeth's cousin)
• Judy Somers, their daughter (Elizabeth's niece)
• Wallie Somers, Howard's son by first marriage
• Jim Blake, Katherine's brother (Elizabeth's cousin)
  
• Dick Carter, Judy's boyfriend

Locale: not stated, but convenient to New York City

Synopsis: Our narrator Miss Elizabeth Jane Bell lives "alone" (with her staff of seven!), while her niece Katherine Somers is staying with her. One evening nurse Sarah Gittings goes out to walk the two dogs, and does not return. While awaiting Sarah, an intruder is seen in the house, but escapes. A search finds the dogs tied to a tree on the adjacent Larimer Lot, and later Sarah's body found in a  "sewer" which is a tall circular brick standpipe.

Review:

We have a nice opening sequence where Elizabeth describes the characters, and an in-depth description of the house floor plan. There is a sketch map of the property (above) showing poor planning in locating the garage (how does one get their car into it?); a sketch map of the house would be valuable as well. Once all the descriptions are done, we get to the story.

It is not clear why a nurse is employed, as Elizabeth seems in perfect health.

You may also enjoy this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

The Frightened Wife & Other Murder Stories by Mary Roberts Rinehart

 

About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

The Frightened Wife: Attorney Wade Forsythe II is hired by Anne Collier to make her will. It is a messy situation: her substantial accounts are in the name of Jessica Blake, a pseudonym she uses for writing a radio serial. She is afraid her domineering husband, Wilfred "Fred" Collier will get her money, leaving little for her six-year old son William Blake Collier. Wade realizes she was Anne Blake, a girl he knew when he was in college, and has pined for her ever since. Then Wilfred winds up shot to death, and Anne arrested for murder.

Mini-review: If you didn't know the author, you would swear it was Erle Stanley Gardner, with a tough-guy attorney doing the investigating for the wronged woman. A tight page-turner of novella length.

If Only It Were Yesterday: Amy had cared for her half-sister Jessie since her mother died when she was only nine. Now Jessie is an attractive young lady, and Amy's close friend Randolph Mason is beginning to move his attentions to Jessie. Jessie announces their engagement, and this is too much for Amy. Amy has a bottle of Jessie's sleeping pills.

The Scandal: Caroline Coleman, matriarch of the society family, is long dead and buried in a stately mausoleum. She had hoped the family scandal was buried with her: Her daughter, Jennifer, had an illegitimate child by the family chauffeur, Chris Burton. Jennifer and her baby, Edith, were estranged from the Coleman family. She and Burton planned to marry, but before they could, he was killed in a fire in the garage. Now Jennifer herself lies dying, and  the secret of Burton's death is coming out.

Murder and the South Wind: Coastal Florida is the scene for military practice during World War II. The locals are concerned about stray bullets from shooting practice. Hugh Gardiner is fishing for tarpon when he is struck, falls overboard, and drowns. Was it one of the stray bullets? Or did it come from his wife Pat? Or his ex-wife Fanny?

The Burned Chair: Elderly Horace Jewett lives next to his three children (and heirs). One morning he is found dead in his chair, and the M.E. notes a heart attack. Daughter-in-law Jessica Jewett is suspicious - it doesn't look right and she suspects murder. So do the police. Then his chair is set on fire - to destroy evidence? Which of the heirs hastened his death? Or was it his nurse Miss Scott?  

Affinities by Mary Roberts Rinehart, 1920

 

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About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Locale: England

Débutantes get into some crazy adventures in this collection of five charming girls-in-trouble stories. 

Affinities: Fanny and her friends (all married) have a marvelous idea: In addition to their husbands, each wife should have a platonic male friend (their affinity) and spend time with just them. The wives all match up with their chosen affinity and head off to a picnic on an island. There is a mixup and Fanny and her affinity get marooned by themselves. How will they save their reputations?

The Family Friend: Kit is ready to be married to Russell, but a friend convinces her to elope with her childhood friend Henry instead - the night before the wedding. 

Carla's Little Escapade: Clara and Roger are out for a drive and get stuck in a rainstorm. The car winds up stuck in the creek, and, soaking wet, they seek shelter. It is very late when they enter what they believe an empty house, but are surprised by who is waiting inside.

The Borrowed House: Poppy and her sufragettes have a bold plan: kidnap the Prime Minister and hold him hostage until he agrees with their demands for the women's vote. They take over an empty house for the adventure.

Sauce for the Gander: Poppy and her sufragettes set out posting votes-for-women signs and graduate to infiltrating a government meeting. Things get complicated when they get locked in with all the men, and the only key has been slipped down the back of Poppy's dress, completely out of reach.  

Mini-review: "Débutantes Gone Wild" would be a good subtitle. This collection of five stories has the girls getting into some crazy messes, chases, and situations as they try to resolve things without harming their reputations, yet always putting it on over the men. We have a lady stuck on an island with a man (not her husband!), sufragettes kidnapping the Prime Minister, housebreaking, stolen cars and boats, kisses in railway tunnels, keys dropped down corsets, and of course wild chases! A fun romp with Mary Roberts Rinehart!

The Great Mistake by Mary Roberts Rinehart, 1940

 

The original

This reprint edition features the standard-issue "Fleeing clip-art woman looks back over her shoulder at creepy Victorian house with lighted windows" No diaphanous nightgown and candleabra, so we call tell it's not a Gothic.

About the author:  Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Major Characters:

• Patricia “Pat” Abbott, Maud’s social secretary, our narrator
• Maud Wainright, a wealthy widow
• John Wainright, her husband (dead prior to story)
• Tony Wainright, Maud’s son by her first marriage
• Bessie Wainright, Tony’s estranged wife
• Audrey Morgan, Pat’s friend
• Lydia Morgan, her mother
• Don Morgan, her runaway father
• Dr. Bill Sterling, Audrey’s fiancé
• Julian & Margery Stoddard, neighbors to The Cloisters
• Dwight Elliott, Maud’s attorney
• Amy Richards, a nurse
• Jim Conway, chief of police
• Larry Hamilton, Audrey’s friend
• Evan Evans, night watchman

Locale: 1930’s Beverly (state not specified)

Synopsis: It is the tail and of the Depression, and rumors of war in Europe abound. The city of Beverly is divided in two society enclaves: the wealthy estates on The Hill (dominated by The Cloisters), and the village (home of the middle class). The Cloisters is a magnificent estate, comprising over 50 rooms and 20+ servants in a three story manse, square, surrounding an open courtyard; with an adjacent “playhouse” consisting of an indoor pool, indoor tennis courts, bar, and guest suites. Matriarch of The Cloisters is aging widow Maud Wainright, who lives there with her son Tony Wainright. She recruits young Patricia “Pat” Abbott from the village to serve as her social secretary.

Told in recollection, Pat describes her friendship with Audrey Morgan, daughter of Lydia and Tom Morgan. Tom had run away when she was a child and has not been seen since, and Lydia had divorced him in absentia. Pat fits in at the Cloisters, handling all Maud’s social affairs and correspondence with efficiency. There is concern when a prowler is seen lurking about The Cloisters and the adjacent Stoddard place, The Farm. The family dog, Roger, comes home one night with blood on his paws, having apparently walked through it. Checking about, they find the night watchman, Evan Evans, unconscious next to the pool, his trousers missing. His keys had been locked to a belt loop of the trousers, so the prowler now has all the keys to The Cloisters. Evans recuperates in the hospital, but escapes through a window and cannot be found.

Two long-forgotten people suddenly reappear in town. Bess, estranged wife of Tony, shows up at The Cloisters and begins to lord it over everyone. Don Morgan, Audrey’s father, comes home but is quite ill and seems near death; just looking for a place to rest quietly. Then he is missing - and turns up dead on a distant roadway, in his pajamas.

In the dark, Pat steps into an open elevator shaft and falls onto someone lurking at the bottom. This injures her ankle, but now it appears the lurker has used his keys to gain entry to The Cloisters. Tragedy will again occur - again at the swimming pool.

Review (Possible spoilers ahead): 

This is my second journey through this novel. I always enjoy Mary Roberts Rinehart, and this one does not disappoint, except for the "detective's list" trick pulled on the reader noted below. 

One thing which makes for easy following in the Had I But Known (HIBK) tradition, is that the important things are highlighted by the author for us to remember, such as:

“Perhaps I should explain here the elaborate telephone arrangement at the Cloisters … the library had its own outside connection. All our private talks took place over it, a fact which was to be important later on” (Chapter V).

By the final chapter, I had quite a list of loose ends awaiting closure. They all got resolved, although a couple were just red herrings. In particular, the explanation of the cemetery vandalism incident was a real stretch and I was hoping for something relevant to the plot (plot - cemetery - get it?)

I was amused at the description of “the playhouse”. Indoor pool, indoor tennis courts, bar, and guest suites? Today we would call it a YMCA! (Well, the bar rules that out, I suppose)

One  annoying point: The suspects are all nicely listed, reviewed, along with motives and opportunities, in the “detective’s list” in Chapter XXXV (page 317 in my 1946 edition). However, the killer is not on the list. Ouch! 

As for the “Great Mistake” of the title: We are teased in the first chapter (page 11 in my edition) when Pat writes “Someone has said that murder is the great mistake, the one irrevocable error any individual can make,” but the real Great Mistake is finally revealed  in Chapter XXXIX (page 348 in my edition). Maud’s first husband had been reported killed in the war (WWI in France), and she had remarried before waiting out the seven year period for him to be declared dead. That was the great mistake. Not a big deal, plot-wise, but there it is.

The Buckled Bag by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1914)

 

This short story is contained in The Mary Roberts Rinehart Crime Book, a collection of five stories published in 1925. This review is of that edition.

Major characters:

• Clare March
• George March, her father
• Mrs. --- March, her mother
• Fraulein Julie Schlenker
• Nurse Hilda Adams
• Detective Patton

Synopsis: Detective Patton enlists Nurse Hilda Adams to investigate a case, knowing that a private duty nurse could pick up more from the family than he. She is hired to nurse a Mrs. March, who is suffering from nervous anxiety. 

Mrs. March and her husband, George March, are worried as their 20-year old daughter Clare March disappered two months earlier while returning from their summer home in Maine to the city. There has only been one brief note from her, simply stating "I'm OK".

Nurse Adams notices a mysterious old woman lurking in the house at night, and it is neither one of the family nor one of the servants.

One night, Clare unexpectedly returns to the house. Nurse Adams finds her in terrible condition, almost starving. Once she recovers, she tells a story of being held captive in a derelict house outside the city.

Following clues from Clare's story, Detective Patton locates the house. Nurse Adams is not convinced it is the correct house, and investigates on her own to find a similar house nearby is the one Clare was confined in.

Review: This is a nice, tight little short story - being a missing-person mystery. It is a good introduction to the Hilda Adams series of longer stories. The descriptions of the two derelict shacks are very well done, and the reader can envision the exact scenes easily. The ending is a surprise explanation of the disappearance.

Bab: A Sub-Deb by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1917)

 

This book is an absolute riot and I laughed all the way through it. It consists of five “themes”, or reports written for school and diary entries.

The writer is 17-year old Barbara Putnam Archibald (Bab). She is a Sub-Deb, or a Debutante in waiting. She has an older sister, Leila, who is now a Debutante, having had her coming-out party upon turning 18. Bab cannot wait until she, too, is a Debutante, and can take her place in Society. One of her prime goals is to get Leila married off, as she (Bab) cannot “come out” until Leila is “out of the way”.

Bab is constantly getting into a series of misadventures, much to the horror of her family. The accounts are written in her 17-year old voice, complete with misspelled and misused words (which add to the flavor), with Important Things always capitalized.

1. The Sub Deb: Bab invents a lover of her own (Harold Valentine) and devises ways to get out of the house, and is horrified to find her friend Carter Brooks knows a real Harold Valentine and brings him to a dance to meet Bab.

2. The Celebrity: Bab finds a favorite actor of hers is staying at the adjacent beach house, and manages to rescue him after his family locks him inside a bathhouse without any clothing.

3. Her Dairy: Bab devises a way to get out of the house unaccompanied (forbidden for a Sub-Deb) and attend plays at which her favorite actor stars, and manages to get invited to his dressing room.

4. Bab’s Burglar: Bab receives an advance allowance for her year in school, and manages to spend it foolishly on a car. She then uses the car to provide a taxi service to earn back some of the money, and finds a suspicious man who has his eye on her home.

5. The G.A.C: Bab, in a frenzy of patriotism over the war (World War I) organizes a group of neighborhood girls into a scout-like organization she calls the Girls Aviation Corps and sets out to track down German spies, one of which appears to be the family butler who is engaging in suspicious conduct with secret codes. (less)

Sight Unseen by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1916)

 

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This story is contained in Sight Unseen and The Confession. Please see my separate review of The Confession.

About the author: About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Major characters:

The Neighborhood Club:

• Horace Johnson, our narrator, an attorney
• --- Johnson, his wife
• Herbert Robinson
• Alice Robinson, his wife
• Dr. Sperry, a heart specialist
• Mrs. Dane

and others:

• Arthur Wells, neighbor, and the victim
• Elinor Wells, his wife
• Suzanne Gautier, the Wells governess
• Arthur Hawkins, the Wells butler
• Miss Alice Jeremy, a medium
• Clara, Mrs. Dane's companion
• Charlie Ellingham

Locale: not stated

Synopsis: The Neighborhood Club is a gathering of six neighbors (see above list) who have dinner together Monday evenings in rotation at their homes. The dinners are followed by a discussion or some entertainment. 

It is Mrs. Dane's turn to host. She is confined to a wheelchair and has a companion, Clara, to assist her. The others are surprised to find she has lined up a medium to conduct a seance for them. The medium, a young woman named Miss Alice Jeremy, arrives and conducts the seance; and Mrs. Dave has Clara record the proceedings. It is 9:30 PM. They are surprised when Miss Jeremy describes a certain room, a man being shot to death while shaving, and someone trying to cover up the crime. The Club is shocked at this account but put it down to just a dramatic entertainment.

The party breaks up. At midnight Horace Johnson (our narrator) receives a phone call from Dr. Sperry. Sperry has received a call to attend their neighbor Arthur Wells.  Horace joins him and they go to the Wells home to him shot to death, and several aspects of the death align with Miss Jeremy's visions: the location of the house key, the time and location of the injury, and the fact the victim was in the midst of shaving.

Review: This short story started out strong but ultimately was disappointing. The premise was interesting: how could a medium give a real-time, play-by-play account of a murder happening a few houses away? I was expecting a "Murder of Roger Ackroyd" trick type explanation at the end of how this was accomplished, but the explanation was nothing remotely reasonable. I realize spiritualism and mind reading was a big thing as of this writing, but using that as the explanation doesn't really cut it. It came across as an easy way out to end the story quickly.

The other thing that bugged me about this story is - who is Charlie Ellingham, anyway? He is mentioned briefly in the story but never really introduced or connected up to any of the characters, and here he is a big part of the "solution".

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

Be sure to visit The Mystillery for my mystery reading challenges!

The Confession by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1921)

This short novella is included in The Crime Book and Sight Unseen and The Confession.  Please see my separate review of Sight Unseen.

About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Major characters:

• Miss Agnes Blakiston, the summer tenant, and our narrator
• Maggie, her maid
• Willie, her nephew
• Miss Emily Benton, the house owner
• Anne Bullard, telephone operator
• Martin Sprague, nerve specialist

Locale: not stated

Synopsis: Agnes Blakiston, as is her custom, seeks out a summer house rental in the country. She finds the perfect house, offered by Miss Emily Benton. Emily has a couple strange requirements. She wants the house rented out, no matter what, and no matter how low the rent is - even free, if necessary. Second, she insists it not only be rented, but be occupied.

Agnes is happy with the arrangement and moves in, with her maid Maggie. Maggie immediately takes a dislike to the house and to Emily. Then the hall telephone begins to ring in the middle of the night - and no one is there. Next, Agnes finds evidence that someone has been in the downstairs rooms during the nights: burnt matches, candles partly consumed, things moved about slightly. Agnes realizes that the two phenonema never occur on the same night - leading her to conclude the overnight visitor is also the one ringing the phone.

At the urging of her nephew Willie, Agnes consults her nerve specialist, Martin Sprague, who suggests that either Agnes is imagining things, or Emily has something in her past she is trying to reveal. Emily falls ill, and is cared for by Anne Bullard, who is also the night telephone operator; and is protective of Emily.

The strange occurrences all center around the hall telephone. Agnes asks Emily if she can install an upstairs extension, but Emily nixes the idea. Emily visits and hangs about the hall phone, and drops and loses a coin which slides under the telephone's battery box on the floor. Later, Maggie sets out to retrieve the coin, and opens the battery box to find a five year old murder confession written by Emily; and concludes Emily's actions have been trying to subtly direct attention to it. The question is: was this a real murder or just Emily's imagination?

Review: Three things I know of were born in 1921: My mother, our piano, and this story. This story is now 100 years old. For the first time in ages, I just had to finish a book in one sitting - staying up much past my usual bedtime. The various phenomena which seem supernatural at first all have explanations - and it is chilling how Emily tries to attract attention to the battery box. 

Rinehart always has a subtle humor. Agnes wants to identify the nighttime visitor, and so sprinkles flour on the floor to detect footprints (was this inspired by the account of Bel and the Dragon in the extended biblical book of Daniel?). She wants to determine if she is really creating the phenomena herself, and has Maggie lock her in the bedroom so she cannot get out to make footprints and burn the candles down herself.

I enjoyed her method of visiting the church and getting clues from the windows and the graveyard. The story has an eye-opening twist at the end, with a most satisfying ending.

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

Be sure to visit The Mystillery for my mystery reading challenges!

 

The Man in Lower Ten by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1909)

 

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About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Major characters:

• Lawrence "Lollie" Blakeley, attorney, our narrator
• Richey McKnight, Blakeley's partner
• Alison West, the love interest
• Alice Curtis, Alison's companion
• Simon Harrington, the murder victim
• Henry Pinckney Sullivan, missing, is he the killer?
• --- Sullivan, the woman with the copper colored hair
• Bronson, the forger at trial
• Mrs. Blanche Conway, Bronson's common-law wife, the tall woman
• Wilson Budd Hotchkiss, the amateur detective
• Johnson, a police detective

Locale: various location along the railway between Washington and Pittsburg

Synopsis: Lawrence Blakeley, attorney (and our narrator) is a partner in the law firm of Blakely & McKnight. He is en route to Pittsburgh to present evidence (forged documents) in a case against Bronson. 

Blakely books a sleeping berth on the Washington Flier. At the request of a tall woman in the station, he books an additional berth - getting Lower #10 and Lower #11. He gives her the ticket for #11. That night, he finds Lower 10 already occupied. He and the porter are unable to rouse the sleeper - Simon Harrington - and the porter puts him in Lower 9, apparantly the sleeper's berth. 

In the morning, he finds his clothes, and possessions - including the forged documents - gone, and other clothing in its place. Then he finds Harrington, in Lower 10, has been murdered in the night. It appears someone was after the documents and killed the wrong man - Blakeley being the intended target. It further appears the murderer swapped the berth signs around between 7 and 9, which caused Blakely to wind up in 7, thinking he was in 9. Making matters worse, the stiletto murder weapon is found under Blakeley's pillow in 7 - supposedly occupied by Henry Pinckney Sullivan - who is nowhere to be found.

The conductor is summoned, and in the midst of dealing with the body along with self-proclaimed amateur detective Wilson Budd Hotchkiss, the train is hit from behind by the following section, wrecked, and afire. Blakely, Hotchkiss, and two women - the tall woman and alluring Alison West - seem to be the only survivors from that car. 

Blakeley is assumed to be the killer and is followed by a police detective (Johnson). Blakely teams up with amateur detective Hotchkiss to track down the real killer, all the time falling in love with Alison West.

Review: I do enjoy railway mysteries, but they don't usually involve a train wreck messing up the works just when the first mystery is being sorted out, so that was a new twist! Blakeley is a good protagonist, and his alliance and flight with the amateur detective Hotchkiss reminds me of The Thirty-Nine Steps  -  (which I read carefully, but could never quite figure out where the 39 steps were*).  

Blakeley is gradually convinced that he must be the murderer (although the reader knows that is not so), even getting up the courage to eventually turn himself in to authorities. He has a friendly relationship with detective Johnson who is assigned to shadow him, even telling him where he is going, and taking him along as well.

Hotchkiss is the amateur detective, and I always suspect the amateur who shows up may be more than he seems. The authorities seem to be OK with him carrying around the murder weapon (so much for chain of evidence). 

There are a lot of people involved in this story. I did get confused on matching up the various nicknames (tall woman, copper-haired woman, etc.) with their real names (my partial list above may be not accurate) and family relationships. Some I could not untangle at all, they made my head spin, such as:

"Incidentally, he said that Alison was his wife's cousin, their respective grandmothers having, at proper intervals, married the same man..."

leaving me with the impression that everyone on the train was related to everyone else. 

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

* Wikipedia says:  John Buchan wrote The Thirty-Nine Steps while he was ill in bed with a duodenal ulcer, the name of the book originated when the author's daughter was counting the stairs at St Cuby, a private nursing home on Cliff Promenade in Broadstairs, where he was convalescing. 

The Case of Jennie Brice by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1913)

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Major characters:

• Bess Pitman, the landlady, our protagonist
• Lida Harvey, her niece
• Philip Ladley, her boarder; but is he a murderer?
• Jennie Ladley, a.k.a. Jennie Brice (stage name), an actress
• Ellis Howell, a newspaper reporter
• Mr. Holcombe, an amateur investigator
• Zacharia Reynolds, a boarder

Locale: Pittsburgh PA

Synopsis: The action takes place at a modest boarding house in the poor side of Pittsburgh, during the flood season. The flood has risen halfway up the first floor (see dust jacket illustration above) in Bess Pitman's boarding house, causing her to relocate her boarders - Philip Ladley and his wife Jennie (an actress with the stage name of Jennie Brice), and Zacaharia Reynolds to the second floor.

The Pitmans don't get along. Jennie has mentioned to her fellow actors that she expects him to kill her. They argue in the boarding house, and the next morning she is missing - and Philip is not too concerned, and vague as to her whereabouts. Bess Pitman immediately suspects murder has been done. 

Mr. Holcombe, retired merchant with a heart for animals, is in the neighborhood feeding cats and dogs stranded by the flood. He comes in to feed the Ladley's dog, Peter; and Bess fills him in. Mr. Holcombe is an amateur investigator, and immediately brings in his newspaper reporter friend Ellis Howell to help find out what happened to Jennie.

There are clues to Jennie's whereabouts, but she cannot be located. A body washes up in the flood but cannot be identified - is it her? 

Review: The landlady gets suspicious ... one of her boarder couples has a fight, the wife says the husband is going to kill her, and then she disappears and the husband acts nonchalant. The landlady assumes murder and sneaks around to prove it to the skeptical authorities. Could this have been the inspiration for It Had To Be Murder by Cornell Woolrich (1942) - later made into the Hitchcock movie Rear Window - in which a neighbor makes the same assumption and becomes the investigator? *And* both books have a dead dog and baskets on ropes as plot elements. Coincidence?

This is a dark little novel set in a depressing locale and time, but is a fascinating read. The characters take the flood in their stride, it happens every spring. There are none of the famous "Had I But Known" exclamations. The last page contains the shocking solution, as well as a surprising and satisfying twist to the character's relationships.

This is a short novel, but tight. There is no fluff or padding, just constant action in the style of Erle Stanley Gardner.

The Bat by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1926)

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The play came first (1920), then the book was back-written from it (1926). Wikipedia states in its article The Bat that "the The Bat is a three-act play by Mary Roberts Rinehart and Avery Hopwood that was first produced by Lincoln Wagenhals and Collin Kemper in 1920." It was remade into film several times as well.

Major characters:

• Courtleigh Fleming, bank president
• Richard Fleming, nephew and heir to Courtleigh Fleming
• Miss Cornelia Van Gorder, spinster
• Sally Van Gorder Ogden, her sister
• Dale Ogden, Sally's daughter
• Jack Bailey, a.k.a. Brooks, the missing bank cashier
• Lizzie Allen, the frenzied maid
• Billy, the Japanese butler
• Reginald Beresford, a young lawyer
• Dr. Wells, family physician
• "The Unknown", a mysterious amnesiac
• Detective Anderson

Locale: a country place near New York City

Synopsis: A master criminal, "The Bat", is at large in New York; having committed countless burglaries and a few murders. Newspaper reporters are eager o chase down The Bat in order to get the exclusive story. Police Detective Wentworth had tried to do so earlier, and wound up shot for his trouble.

Meanwhile, Union Bank has gone belly up (this predates the FDIC), and president Courtleigh Fleming passed away, along with the knowledge of where the missing funds went. Jack Bailey, the cashier is missing too. 

Spinster Miss Cornelia Van Gorder wants to rent a summer place in the country to get away from New York City, and seizes the chance to rent the now-vacant home of Courtleigh Fleming; making arrangements with Fleming's nephew, Richard Fleming. No sooner does she settle in than an anonymous letter tells her the house is "unhealthy for strangers."

Suspicion about the missing funds turns to Courtleigh Fleming (although dead). Many people have an interest in getting into his house, and the blueprints show a secret room somewhere. Could the money be there? To complicate matters, Cornelia's niece, Dale Ogden, is engaged to missing cashier Jack Bailey. Detective Anderson is installed in the house to figure it all out.

Review:

This book was back-written from the stage play, and it shows (not a criticism), but it easy to see this presented on stage as is; since all the action takes place in one room. I have seen the stage version, a nice period mystery. 

The middle portion of the book gets a bit tedious as the characters explore motives at length, point fingers at each other, and generally flail around as the lights regularly go on and off - expected in a stage version but a bit repetitive in a novel. The amnesiac "Unknown" stumbles, bleeding, into the house and yet no one seems too concerned about him and he is left to wander around unsupervised. 

There are a few comic episodes. Miss Cornelia's tricky interview of Brooks for the gardener position is hilarious, as she outwits him in her knowledge of gardening. At this point, it looks like Cornelia will be the one sharp enough to solve the mystery; since Detective Anderson just seems to harass people needlessly. Hysterical maid Lizzie brings laughs on the stage, but her mania is a bit tiring in print. The obligatory (real) bat makes an appearance too.

One loose end: chapter one is about an unnamed newspaperman itching to have a go at catching The Bat, and being turned loose by his editor to do so. I expected him to show up later in the story, but this story line is dropped and we do not hear from the newspaper angle again. 

The fascinating part of this book is that there is a person named "The Bat" who cannot be found, and a real person sitting among them whom they call "The Unknown". Could he be The Bat? No, that would be too simple. How these two are reconciled is a clever twist, although flirting with the standards of fair play.

Several instances of a light beam shining with a bat stencil applied to it to make a shadow must have been the inspiration for Batman's bat-signal. Wikipedia states Batman was created in 1939, so perhaps!

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

Miss Pinkerton by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1932)

dustjackets.com

About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Major characters:

• Herbert Wayne, deceased - but still warm - as story begins
• Paula Brent, his girlfriend
• Miss Juliet Mitchell, his elderly, deaf aunt
• Arthur Glenn, attorney
• Florence Lenz, Glenn's secretary
• Hugo, the butler
• Mary, the cook (Hugo's wife)
• Nurse Hilda Adams, a.k.a. "Miss Pinkerton"
• Inspector Patton
• Dr. -- Stewart
• Charlie Elliott, neighbor, Paula Brent's former boyfriend

Locale: unspecified

Synopsis: Herbert Wayne lives on the 3rd floor of his aunt's (Miss Julia Mitchell) run-down mansion. It has seen better days - the only servants remaining are Hugo (butler) and Mary (cook, and Hugo's wife). Herbert had been speculating on stocks and now he is found shot. No one can determine if it was murder, suicide, or accident (he had been cleaning his gun).

Miss Julia is feeling poorly so Inspector Patton plants Nurse Adams in the home as her nurse. Wayne's girlfriend, Paula Brent, is distraught. Then it comes to light that her former boyfriend, Charlie Elliott, has been hanging around and threatening to do away with Wayne in order to get Paula back. This puts him at the top of the suspect list.

Review:

Nurse Adams is a great sneak to be our investigator. When talking on the phone to Inspector Patton, she addresses him as "doctor" so the family won't suspect. A lot of the book is devoted to figuring out if waster Wayne is a murder, suicide, or accident - and there is a lot of hanky-panky going on with the crime scene evidence too. The use of a newspaper in a murder is a new one. 

I do like the amusing episodes - the funniest is when Nurse Adams is keeping watch over her patient, Miss Julia, at night; and each is waiting for the other to fall asleep (reminiscent of Humphrey Bogart in Treasure of the Sierra Madre) - with alternating peeps over the bed's footboard. Another amusing happening is repeated incidents of people getting trapped on the mansion's roof!

I learned a few essential things from this book:

• Risus Sardonicus - an involuntary grin caused by muscular action, "may be caused by tetanus, strychnine poisoning or Wilson's disease, and has been reported after judicial hanging." Do a Google Image search for some creepy pictures.
• How to tell if a person in a faint is faking - you will have to read the book to find this little technique out!
• Rolled Stockings - a rather rebellious action in the 1920's-1930's by ladies by unclasping their stockings from their garters and rolling the tops so they stay up all by themselves. Shocking! See this article.
• How to shoot somebody at close range without leaving the telltale powder burns.