The Saint Steps In by Leslie Charteris, 1942

 

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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). 

Major characters:

• Madeline Gray, who seeks out The Saint
• Calvin Gray, her inventor father
• Frank Imberline, WPB (War Production Board)
• Sylvester Angert, a funny little man
• Hobart Quennel, head of Quenco Chemical
• Andrea Quennel, his daughter; a.k.a. Diana Barry
• Walter Devan, personnel manager of Quenco Chemical
• Karl Morgen, a tough
• Simon Templar, The Saint
• Inspector John Fernack, of the police

Locale: Washington, New York, and Conneticut

Synopsis: World War II is in progress. Simon Templar is in Washington. A young Madeline Gray recognizes him and seeks his help. She is the daughter of chemist Calvin Gray, and is trying to interest the Washington bureaucrats in her father's invention: a synthetic rubber; which would be invaluable for the war effort.

She sets up an appointment with Frank Imberline of the War Production Board. Then she is warned off from seeing him. Simon visits to Imberline to find he was unaware of the appointment. Suddenly various actors start having an interest in Madeline: Walter Devan of Quenco Chemical, and Sylvester Angert, a funny little man who listens at her hotel room keyhole. Someone shoots through the window of Simon's hotel room.

Simon wants to check out Calvin's Gray's process. He and Madeline travel to her home in Connecticut, to find Calvin apparently missing. Madeline sees a man lurking in the lab, and recognizes him as Calvin's former employee, Karl Morgen. Simon challenges him. Morgen flees. Simon chases, and trips over the body of Sylvester Angert. 

Review: This, being one of the early Saint stories, is when he is in his early tough-guy persona, which may have played well in the movies, but is a bit too hard-boiled. (He even refers to the actor who plays him in the movies!) He tends to hit or shoot first, not the subtle Saint we like so much later on. Plus, this is set in the US which is not his best venue.

I really prefer those set in the UK when he has Patricia Holm at his side, and matches wits with Claude Eustace Teal. 

Other than that, we have the stock bad-guys-after-the-scientist plot, complete with the beautiful daughter in distress. Overall, quite predictable with a lot of World War II era paranoia stirred in. 

Wolf in Man's Clothing by Mignon G. Eberhart, 1942

 

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The Nurse Sarah Keate series:

1. The Patient in Room 18

2. The Mystery of Hunting's End

3. While the Patient Slept 

4. From This Dark Stairway

5. Murder by an Aristocrat (a.p.a. Murder of My Patient)

6. Wolf in Mans Clothing

7. Man Missing

About the author: Mignon Good (1899-1996) was born in Lincoln, Nebraska. In 1929 her first crime novel was published featuring 'Sarah Keate', a nurse and 'Lance O'Leary', a police detective. This couple appeared in another four novels. Over the next forty years she wrote a novel nearly every year. In 1971 she won the Grand Master award from the Mystery Writers of America. (from Goodreads)

Major characters:

• Nurse Sarah Keate
• Nurse Drue Cable
• Craig Brent, shooting victim, Drue Cable's ex
• Conrad Brent, father of Craig
• Alexia Senour Brent, wife of Conrad
• Nicky Senour, Alexia's twin brother
• Peter Huber, a house guest
• Dr. Claud Chivery
• Maud Chivery, his wife
• Anna Haub, maid
• William Beevens, the butler
• Lt. Nugent of the police

Locale: The Berkshire mountains in western Massachusetts

Synopsis: World War II is in progress. Nurses Drue Cable and Sarah Keate are assigned a private duty case at the Brent mansion in western Massachusetts. Upon arrival, Sarah is startled to find that Drue already knows everyone in the household - and most of them are hostile to her. They are taken to the patient, Craig Brent, recovering from a minor bullet wound to the shoulder; and Sarah is again startled to find that Craig and Drue not only know each other, but were once married.

Craig's father, Conrad Brent, insists that Drue leave immediately, but she convinces them to allow her to spend the night with their patient. The next shock is that Conrad's wife turns out to be the former Alexia Senour, who was once engaged to Craig - only to have that engagement broken when he took up with Drue. It seems Alexia was enacting her revenge by taking hold of Craig's father - and likely his vast estate.

Conrad takes ill during the night. He has a heart condition which requires digitalis, and as it cannot be readily found, Drue administers some from her supply by hypodermic. Conrad collapses and dies instantly, and it appears Drue had intentionally murdered him to remove an obstacle to her getting back together with Craig.

The backstory is they had a spontaneous marriage, and when Craig found he could not take military  pilot training as a married man, got divorced so he could get the training; intended to remarry after the war. 

Review:

This was written while WWII was still ramping up, and it shows. We have lots of talk of German submarines, escaped sailors, and even references to the real-life Nazi saboteurs who landed on Long Island, NY.

The romantic escapades are a bit much, with everyone involved with someone else, and the particularly nasty revenge-marriage of Alexia.

The health care system during the 1940's is some different from today. One character gets a broken arm and was admitted to the hospital for five weeks. Meanwhile, Craig Brent gets shot, never goes to the hospital, has the bullet removed in his bedroom by the local G.P. and gets two private duty nurses all the way from New York.

The wrap-up scenes in the Chivery cottage are a bit melodramatic with lots of running up and down stairs, and Nurse Keate even engaging in some gunplay.

The logistics of the Craig murder are pretty clever but a stretch to believe - they reminded me of some of the weird solutions in Agatha Christie.

This book contains an actual MacGuffin: The Frederic Miller checks, which we never get a look at.

The book title contains a spoiler in itself, and gives away one of the murderers.

Not I, Said the Sparrow by Richard Lockridge, 1973

 

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.

Major characters:

• Arthur Jameson, wealthy master of The Tor
• Ursula Jameson, his spinster sister
• Rebecca Jameson, his first wife (dead prior to story)
• Ronald Jameson, son of Arthur and Rebecca
• Janet, Arthur's second wife (dead prior to story)
• Estelle Tennant, daughter of Arthur and Janet
• Dr. James Tennant, Estelle's husband
• Dorothy "Dot" Selby, Arthur's secretary, soon to be Arthur's wife #3
• Geoffrey Rankin, Dorothy's distant cousin
• Florence Selby, real estate agent, Dorothy's mother
• Barnes, the Jameson's valet/butler
• Captain Merton L. Heimrich, NY State Police
• Lieutenant Charlie Forniss, NY State Police

Locale: New York state

Synopsis: Merton and Susan Heimrich are invited to a birthday party for elderly Arthur Jameson, a Van Brunt local living in a castle-like mansion named "The Tor". They feel a bit out of place, but attend anyway. Arthur shocks the guests with a surprise announcement that he is going to marry his young secretary, Dorothy Selby. Everyone assumed Dorothy was the girlfriend of Geoffrey Rankin, although they describe themselves as distant cousins. 

The next morning Heimrich gets a call: Jameson has been found dead on a rowboat on a small lake on his estate, shot with an arrow. Heimrich goes to the Selby home and finds Dorothy unaware her fiancé is dead, as she had been hustled home early from the party by her overbearing mother Florence Selby. Florence did not want any appearance that Dorothy was spending the night with her (73 year old!) fiancé. But Heimrich walks into an awkward scene: Florence and Dorothy are in their back yard shooting arrows at targets.

The plot thickens when it is revealed Jameson had made a new will the night before, making Dorothy his residual legatee which gives her a pile of money, whether or not the marriage is ever made.

While the murder is being investigated, another incident occurs. Jameson's son-in-law, Dr. James Tennant, apparently falls down the steep lakeside steps and lands on his head; severely injuring him. This is a bit too much for coincidence, which causes Heimrich to think about a previous tragedy: Jameson's second wife, Janet Jameson, had been killed on the grounds after apparently being thrown from her horse.

Review: I particularly enjoyed how the opening cocktail party at The Tor was used by the author to give the reader the backstory on some of the characters. The various introductions which occur at the party not only introduce the characters to each other, but to the reader as well. Very seamless and elegant.

I also was fascinated how the author describes the layers of social strata, for example:

• When Susan explains her background as "the Upton girl" to Ursula, we see there is a distinct society difference between people from the two sides of town.
• The author describes how Capt. Heimrich, Forniss, and the other police act and speak differently just among themselves, then when there are civilians present.
• Frans Frankel, the yardman, makes a definite statement that he and his wife, while employees of the Jameson estate, are definitely not of the same class as the servants.

As for the murders - I was surprised at the identity of the killer. I had someone else pegged. The killer was responsible for the two deaths (Janet and Arthur) as well as the attempt on Dr. Tennant. I was puzzled by the last, as I could not see any motive for that one.

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

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.