The Horla by Guy de Maupassant, 1887

 

About the author: Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (1850 – 1893) was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, as well as a representative of the Naturalist school, who depicted human lives, destinies and social forces in disillusioned and often pessimistic terms. (Wikipedia)

Synopsis: Our narrator has written a daily journal, beginning with his pleasant daily life in France. One day while resting by the Seine, he admires a Brazilian sailing ship pass by. Soon his journal reflects an increasing sense of foreboding, various physical ailments, and anxiety.

He becomes aware of a presence in his home, and finds mysterious things happening. His water bottle is repeatedly empty, and his milk disappears as well. He sees a flower picked from his garden, and hover in midair. He sees one of his books on the table, open, with the pages turning by themselves. He questions whether he is going mad, but discounts it as he is fully aware of his situation. He begins to believe there is an invisible, physical being in his house. This is confirmed when he looks in a mirror and fails to see his own reflection - and realizes the being is standing between him and the mirror, blocking his reflection.

He reads a newspaper account of Brazilians fleeing from a similar situation, and realizes the being - now called The Horla - must have jumped off the Brazilian sailing ship and followed him home.

He manages to trap The Horla in one room, and frantically sets the house on fire in an effort to kill him.

Review: This Edgar Allan Poe-like short story is certainly creepy and has an unsatisfying ending (which I won't reveal). The journal format is quite effective, slowly transitioning from his pleasant day-to-day life to increasing anxiety over the strange happenings. 

His method of detecting the invisible being using the mirror is quite clever and effective.

The Case of the Stuttering Bishop by Erle Stanley Gardner, 1936

 

Major characters:

• Bishop William Mallory
• Janice Seaton
• Renwold C. Brownley
• Oscar Brownley, Renwold's son (deceased)
• Julia Branner, Oscar's widow, Perry Mason's client
• Janice Brownley, Oscar & Julia's daughter
• Philip Brownley, Oscar's nephew
• Perry Mason, attorney at law

Locale: Los Angeles

Synopsis: Bishop William Mallory consults attorney Perry Mason - he is concerned about the statute of limitations on a drunk driving/manslaughter charge from 22 years ago. It is gradually revealed that the driver was Julia Branner, daughter-in-law of wealthy Renwold C. Brownley. She had become widowed upon the death of her husband, Oscar Brownley prior to the story. She has not been heard from for years. As there is no statue of limitations on a manslaughter charge, she is still a fugitive.

Renwold Brownley is about to change his will, reducing the inheritance to grandson Philip Brownley, and in favor of his granddaughter Janice Brownley, who is living with him. Several people suspect that Janice is not his real granddaughter, but a fake planted there by a rival detective agency to get the inheritance. It seems that the bishop's friend, Janice Seaton, may be the real granddaughter.

Renwold Browney is lured to the waterfront one night, and is shot by a woman unknown. Julia Branner calls on Mason, and although a fugitive, Mason takes her on as a client. The case hinges on identifying who the real granddaughter is, and the one person who can vouch for that - Bishop Mallory - is missing.

Review: This is one of the earlier (#9 in the series) Masons, and has the hard-boiled, more dominant Mason than in later books; and he is a better character for it. He is not afraid to kick in doors and punch faces. His relationship with D.A. Hamilton Burger is one of mutual wariness.

Early in the story Mason has a tense standoff discussion with Renwold Brownley. It is a long, excellent scene. Mason has met his match, and neither one budges an inch. 

The plot device of announcing a will change to the relatives - in advance - always means a murder in the offing, and this one is no different. 

The story ends with a teaser of the next book, The Case of the Dangerous Dowager; reminiscent of the teasers at the end of a Hardy Boys book.

The Saint at Large by Leslie Charteris, 1942

 

About the author: Leslie Charteris (1907 – 1993), was a British-Chinese author of adventure fiction, as well as a screenwriter. He was best known for his many books chronicling the adventures of his charming hero Simon Templar, alias "The Saint". Charteris spent 55 years – 1928 to 1983 – as either writer of or custodian of Simon Templar's literary adventures, one of the longest uninterrupted spans of a single author in the history of mystery fiction, equalling that of Agatha Christie (from Wikipedia). 

This is a collection of 14 short stories, all reprinted from earlier 1930's collections. 

Mini-synopses:

The Export Trade - Simon's old friend is an expert at making copies of jewelry. Then a priceless necklace is stolen, and Simon is hired to take a small package to Paris. Light and predictable.

The Owner’s Handicap - Patricia Holm steps in to convince an ungodly race horse owner that it would be to his benefit to intentionally lose a race.

The Perfect Crime - The Saint gives an unscrupulous moneylender a taste of his own medicine, with what appears to be a swindle, but isn't.

The Unpopular Landlord - The Saint is on the trail of a devious landlord whom none of the real estate agents will touch. The Saint rents an apartment from him, then turns the tables on him.

The Five Thousand Pound Kiss - The Saint is after a valuable diamond necklace at a society party. Unfortunately, he has a pretty competitor who wants it, too. The Saint grabs it first - and gets caught.

The Unfortunate Financier - W. Titus Oates has perfected a stock scheme. The Saint devises a way to get Oates out of the picture at the critical time, and turn the scheme to his own advantage. 

 
The Prince of Cherkessia - The prince is in London to oversee the purchase of a priceless new crown, a tempting tidbit for The Saint. Scotland Yard provides a ring of extraordinary security around the prince and the crown, but Simon manages to penetrate it easily.

The Treasure of Turk’s Lane - A quaint row of cottages is being gobbled up by a real estate developer, and Simon figures out a way to mitigate the damage. 

The Uncritical Publisher - a publisher runs a vanity printing press (still common nowadays) in which desperate authors pay dearly to have their book published. Of course, Simon cannot resist and becomes an author himself.

The Man Who Liked Toys - A locked room murder mystery. Lewis Enstone is found murdered in his room, the gun in his hand. But who shoots a gun using their thumb on the trigger?

The Wicked Cousin - Jacqueline Laine had been caregiver to her elderly grandmother for years before she passed away. Jacqueline is peeved as the grandmother changed her will in favor of Jacqueline's cousin,  stiffing her with only $100 and some worthless old love letters. Simon finds a way to increase the value of the letters tremendously.

The Charitable Countess - A dilettante countess loves to do charity work. She and Simon hatch with a amusing idea: At a fundraising dinner, Simon will steal her $100k necklace for charity as the guests watch. This sells lots of tickets. But the necklace is safely in the bank vault while she wears an imitation. How can the Saint get it?

The Mug’s Game - A couple Simon encounters are in deep trouble - the husband has been gambling away their house fund. Simon also meets a salesman for a marked cards system. Simon figures the husband must be one of the marks. 

The Man Who Liked Ants - Simon encounters a mad scientist who is breeding ants to extraordinary size, capable of dominating mankind. While Simon ponders this, some of the ants escape from the lab.

Mini-reviews: 

The good:

The Perfect Crime and The Unpopular Landlord are The Saint at his best - when he is not out for his own gains, but is out to right wrongs inflicted upon the innocent. 

The Unfortunate Financier contains a hilarious episode when Titus Oates is misdirected to an insane asylum and tries to convince the administrators he is sane, in this Manning Coles style adventure. 

The Wicked Cousin has a clever plot by which Simon saves the heroine, and makes a fool of the wicked cousin. Perfect. 

The Mugs Game has a lot of tedious poker play-by-play (yawn), but the real sparkler is the sudden twist at the end which redeems the whole story if you stick with it. 

The so-so:

The Owner's Handicap is all about horse racing, and heavy on mathematical odds discussions. Not knowing anything of the topic, I was really unable to follow the plot other than Simon and Patricia convince an owner to throw a race. 

The Treasure of Turk’s Lane is different in a couple of aspects... Simon cannot save the cottages from being developed, and I found the ending ambiguous and could not really figure out what happened.

The Man who Liked Toys is a longer story, a bit predictable. Was is suicide, accident, or murder? It is left to the reader to decide.

The Man Who Liked Ants is really a science fiction story. No mystery to it, but puts the Saint in the position of making an ethical choice. 

Murder Roundabout by Richard Lockridge, 1966

 

photo: AbeBooks

About the author: Richard Orson Lockridge (1898 –1982) was an American writer of detective fiction. He began the Captain Heimrich series with his wife Frances (1896-1963), and continued the series following her death.

This book concerns the murder of Annette LeBaron Weaver, former actress. She was on her third marriage at the time of her death. She lived next door to matriarch Emily Drake, mother of her first husband Stephen Drake. Emily also has another son, Oliver Drake, an architect.

Annette's husbands, in order:

1. Stephen Drake (now married to Florence Drake)
2. James Brennan (now married to Leslie Brennan)
3. Ralph Weaver, current husband, theatrical agent

Everyone else:

• Leslie Brennan, real estate agent, married to James Brennan
• Father Jonathan Cunningham, Leslie's father, a bishop
• J. K. Knight, potential house buyer
• Harriet Larkin, cleaning woman
• Captain Merton Heimrich
• Sgt. Charlie Forniss

Locale: Westchester County, NY

Synopsis: Real estate agent Leslie Brennan is on her way to show a house to potential buyer J.K. Knight. The house is for sale by current owner, glamorous ex-actress Annette Weaver. (Leslie is married to James Brennan, Annette's ex #2). Annette had recently hosted a Fourth-of-July party - confident her house had been sold and she was moving away for good, and used the opportunity to tell off her low-life Van Brunt guests over the musician's P.A. system. This was a move she came to regret when the real estate deal fell through and she had to stay on. Leslie, finding no one (apparently) home, uses the key from the real estate lock box, opens the door, and finds Annette's body, shot to death.

Harriet Larkin, cleaning woman, arrives the next morning and is the second to find the body. She notifies authorities. Captain Merton Heimrich and Sgt. Charlie Forniss set about untangling the family relationships. The prospective house buyer, J. K. Knight, had been a no-show; but he calls Leslie on the phone. Leslie suspects it is a different person entirely, and consults with her father, bishop Jonathan Cunningham who is somewhat of an expert on voices. Then, on her way home, she disappears.

Review: I had a bit of trouble getting oriented in the first chapter (in which Leslie finds the body). It is told in first person, but the narrator's identity is not revealed. The narrator seems to be someone going to the house with Leslie, but in a separate vehicle.

Beginning in the second chapter, the rest of the story is told in the normal third person. Suddenly cleaning lady, Harriet Larkin, becomes the second person to find the body - huh? A bit startling, that. What happened to Leslie? Did she flee the scene and not bother to tell anybody? It eventually comes out that she was scared off by hearing a loud Porsche leaving the scene - and her husband, James, has one - and maybe he had done away with his ex.

The parade of Annette's ex-husbands and subsequent remarriages could be confusing to the casual reader, but I had made notes along the way to keep them straight (list above). The ex's all remained surprisingly cozy with Annette, as she enjoyed going out to lunches (and other after-dessert activities) with them. She is termed a 'nympho' by one of them.

Leslie's disapperance and pursuit in the woods was a tense, dramatic episode which kept me turning pages past my bedtime. Lockridge succeeded in fooling me - I had two prime candidates for murderer picked out, but neither of them turned out to be the one.

The question of who-is-the-Chapter-One-narrator finally got resolved in the end. Please also note one occurrence of the n-word.

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

The Old Silent by Martha Grimes, 1989

 

About the author: This is #10 of 25 books featuring Richard Jury. See this Wikipedia article for biography and list of the 25 Richard Jury books. Click this Martha Grimes label to see all my reviews of this series.

Major characters:

• Roger Healey, arts/music critic
• Nell Citrine Healey, his wife
• Billy Healey, their son
• Toby Hoyt, Bill's friend
• Charles Citrine, Nell's father
• Irene "Rena" Citrine, Nells' aunt (Charles' sister)
• Martin Smart, publisher
• Mavis Crewes, editor of Travelure, a Smart publication
• Charlie Raine, heart-throb musician
• Morpeth Duckworth, American musician
• Ann Delholme

The regulars:

• Superintendent Richard Jury
• Divisional Commander Brian Macalvie
• Melrose Plant
• Vivian Rivington
• Marshall Trueblood, antique dealer
• Carol-anne Palutski, Richard's upstairs neighbor
• Mrs. Wasserman, Richard's downstairs neighbor

Synopsis: Superintendent Richard Jury is having some time off and idly watching an attractive woman, Nell Healey, visiting shops. Jury stops in the Old Silent Pub and is surprised when she comes in and meets briefly with a man - they have words, she pulls out a gun and shoots him dead right in front of Jury.

The victim turns out to be her husband, arts critic Roger Healey. The authorities respond under the supervision of Divisional Commander Brian Macalvie. The Healeys are known to him: eight years earlier, their young son, Billy Healey, and his friend, Toby Holt, were kidnapped and never seen again after the family refused to pay the ransom demand.

The rest of the book concerns sheep, rock musicians, dogs, cats, motorcycles, guitars, and various random people.

Review: This one started out strong but I lost interest about halfway, after a few side plots I had trouble following. 

The good:

I enjoyed the obligatory scene of Racer, Fiona Clingmore, and the cat Cyril. I also enjoyed the accounts of Vivian Rivington as she prepared to go to Italy (this is the tenth book in the series, and she is still preparing).

The not-so-good:

I had trouble relating two side stories (1. Melrose and his long visit to the little girls who live in a sheep barn, and 2. the long accounts of Charlie Raine and his band) to the main plot (the kidnapping of the boys and the murder of Roger Healey. They did not seem relevant.

Grimes starts off many side stories cold, without the reader being introduced to the situation or the characters. One long passage had me mystified until I finally caught on it was a stream-0f-consciousness account by a sheepdog as he was herding sheep!

We have only a minimal pub scene, which is too bad. The pub scenes are the best elements of these stories. And no appearance by Aunt Agatha!

(Spoiler follows, select text to reveal): Here's the big thing: We have two missing kids - Billy and Toby. It is never revealed exactly what happened to them. We also have two bodies to account for - is it them? Well, one might be Billy. Toby turns up alive at the end. So at least one of the bodies is someone else, but we never find out what happened to Billy, nor who the bodies really are.

C is for Corpse by Sue Grafton, 1986

 

About the author: Sue Taylor Grafton (1940 – 2017) is best known as the author of the 25 "alphabet series" ("A" Is for Alibi, etc.) novels featuring private investigator Kinsey Millhone in the fictional city of Santa Teresa, California (based upon Santa Barbara). She was the daughter of detective novelist C. W. Grafton.

Major characters:

• Bobby Callahan, twice the victim
• Glen Callahan, his mother
• Derek Wenner, his stepfather
• Katherine "Kitty" Wenner, his stepsister
• Rick Bergen, another victim, and Kitty's boyfriend
• Sufi Daniels, friend of the Wenners
• Dr. Leo Kleinert, a psychiatrist
• Dr. James Franken, M.D. & his cougar wife Nola
• Kinsey Millhone, private investigator and narrator
• Henry Pitts, Kinsey's landlord
• Lila Sams, Henry's new lady friend

Locale: Santa Teresa, California

Synopsis: Kinsey meets 23-year old Bobby Callahan at her gym. He is recovering from a host of  injuries, sustained in a car crash in which he was driving, and his friend Rick Bergen was killed. Upon learning Kinsey is a P.I., he hires her to investigate the accident. He had been forced off the road by someone, and Bobby claims it was attempted murder.

Kinsey meets Bobby's wealthy family: mother Glen Callahan, stepfather Derek Wenner, and stepsister Katherine "Kitty" Wenner  - who is heavily into drugs. Kinsey begins the preliminaries, but no sooner has she begun meeting with the family and doctors, than Bobby is killed in a second car accident, which turns out to be no accident at all.

Meanwhile, Kinsey's landlord, Henry Pitts, has a new lady friend Lila Sams; but she ain't no lady. She is a gold digger out to scam Henry of his savings. 

Review: I really enjoyed this third book in the series. There is a small cast, and the action moves right along. It adds to the enjoyment when Kinsey, as our narrator, constantly thinks-out-loud her comments about the various people. The scenes in the Callahan/Wenner household gave me a good idea of how the other half lives.

Sufi Daniels was a puzzle, she pops in and out but her connection to the story is quite slim and I never quite figured her out.

The sub-plot about Henry and Lila Sams also adds another dimension, even though you know how that is going to wind up.

The book builds to a climax which occurs in a hospital morgue, where Kinsey finds herself alone with the killer. If you enjoyed Robin Cook's Coma, you will enjoy this hospital chase too. 

The White Cottage Mystery by Margery Allingham, 1927

 

About the author: Margery Louise Allingham (1904 – 1966) was an English novelist from the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", best remembered for her hero, the gentleman sleuth Albert Campion. Initially believed to be a parody of Dorothy L. Sayers's detective Lord Peter Wimsey, Campion formed the basis for 18 novels and many short stories. (from Wikipedia)

Major characters:

• Chief Inspector W. T. Challoner
• Jerry Challoner, his son
• Roger William Christiansen, owner of The White Cottage
• Eva Grace Christiansen, his wife
• Joan Alice Christiansen, their daughter, age 5
• Norah Phyliss Bayliss, Eva's sister
• Eric Crowther, their neighbor at The Dene, and the victim
• Clarry Gale, a.k.a. William Lacy, valet to Eric Crowther
• Latte Cellini, resident of The Dene

Locale: England, Paris, and Mentone, France

Synopsis: Jerry Challoner encounters, and is enchanted by a young lady - Norah Phyliss Bayliss - whom he meets as she steps off a bus. He watches as she enters The White Cottage. The Cottage is also home to Roger and Eva Christiansen, and their five-year old daughter Joan Alice. 

Almost immediately a shot is heard from the cottage, and a cry of murder. Jerry rushes in to find the house in turmoil and a body (D below) in the dining room. It is Eric Crowther, their neighbor, who lives next door at 'The Dene', an imposing institutional-like grey building. Jerry identifies himself as the son of Scotland Yard Chief Inspector W. T. Challoner. 

Crowther has been killed by a shotgun blast, the gun found resting on the dining room table (E). The Challoners soon find that Crowther was disliked by all, and took pleasure in tormenting others. There was a past affair between him and Eva, and he had taunted Roger (confined to a wheelchair) about it, daring him to shoot him - even conveniently providing the shotgun which he had left propped up in a corner (C) of the dining room. 

The Dene was also home to Latte Cellini, a mysterious Italian who suddenly disappears. Taking this as a sign of guilt, Challoners follow him first to Paris, then to Menton on the French Riviera. The Challoners are surprised to find Eva and Norah there as well.

Here is a possible layout of The White Cottage, reverse-engineered from the text showing the rooms of significance - omitting stairs, bath, etc. The Dene is off to the right. You may find this helpful as much conversation is about how the killer got in and out, and movements of the family during that time.

A - the narrow door

B - French windows

C - where Crowther propped the gun

D - body of Crowther

E - dining room table

F - coat rack

G - front door

Review: This is my first Allingham read, and it was quite enjoyable. Originally published as a serial, its heritage is apparent. Similar-length tight chapters are quite focused and well organized. It was edited prior to publishing as a book to remove the traditional lead-in synopses. The murder occurs immediately in chapter one, and all the characters introduced neatly in chapter two.

The story is stretched a bit by several coincidences, as the Challoners just happen to meet up with Eva and Norah in Paris, and then again in Menton. 

One story line which I expected but did not occur was some explanation of The Dene - being described several times as a grey, institutional building - I expected some creepy hanky-panky going on there but no.

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