Book Review: Dead Men’s Plans by Mignon G. Eberhart
Sewal Blake is the stepdaughter of Julius Minary, the child of his first wife. Only a few years into their marriage, Sewal’s mother died, and Julius almost immediately remarried. She bore him a daughter, Amy, and a son, Reg, before passing away herself. Bereft and knowing nothing about raising children himself, Julius reached out to a friend of his first wife’s, Cara Ingram, who had become penniless, and invited her and her son Barny to live in the Minary house in exchange for taking care of the other children. So it was that the four grew up together.
The Minary Line of iron ore freighters that take ore from Duluth to Gary had some rough times early in the Depression, but then got their footing and became prosperous again, doing very well during the War. Barny had gone to South America after serving in Europe, and Reg had gone to England to look in on matters there for the company. There, Reg married a woman named Zelie and went on an extended honeymoon. While he was gone, Julius unexpectedly passed away. It’s been two months, and only now is Reg returning with his bride.
Amy, who inherited 49% of the company but no actual cash from her father, wants to sell and live high off the proceeds. Sewal feels strongly about the Minary Line staying in the family, as she has a sentimental connection to it, but did not inherit anything. Reg has the other 51%, the house and the cash holdings, so he will be the one to decide.
When the newlyweds arrive, it’s clear that Zelie is dominant in their relationship, and wastes no time making herself noxious to everyone else. Under her instructions, Reg will not be selling the company, but will be selling the house. Amy, Sewal and Cara will have to find somewhere else to live, and in Sewal and Cara’s case, some way of supporting themselves, since no money will be forthcoming. The Diccons, loyal servants for the last thirty years, will be turned out without a pension. Barny, who it turns out knew Zelie in Europe under unfavorable circumstances, will under no circumstances be allowed to work for the Minary Line. Zelie’s even rather rude to her own maid Marianne.
Shortly thereafter, Sewal goes for a walk in the cold October Chicago fog, and finds Reg, shot! And apparently with Barny’s gun, which shows up in her desk. She hides the gun (amateur mistake) as Reg hovers between life and death.
Who shot Reg, and why? Where has the French maid gone off to? Everyone has some motive or other, none of them have alibis that will stand up to inspection, and there’s just enough at the edge of Sewal’s perception to indicate that someone’s been stalking about the house. Captain Waggon of the Chicago police will need to unravel this knot despite the suspects keeping dark secrets, concealing evidence, and just not thinking to mention important details.
This is described on the back cover as “romantic suspense.” While it’s possible to work out whodunnit by a careful examination and knowledge of mystery fiction tropes, our focus is not on the detective, but on the bewildered Sewal who is in theory engaged to one man but has strong feeling for another that might not love her back…and also may be the murderer. This helps build suspense as she can never be quite sure that she’s telling the right person details, or who can be trusted alone with her.
The writing is good, if a trifle dated. Amusingly, the newspaper reports are described as being fair and not particularly sensationalistic.
Content note: Period sexism is a strong undercurrent in the story. It’s seen as somewhat shocking that Sewal might have to get a job, and people seem much more comfortable with her making a good marriage to be supported that way. Zelie’s strong influence over her husband is treated as a negative, but in fairness this is through the eyes of those adversely affected by it. And of course, no woman could ever run a major shipping line!
Overall: A decent enough mystery that’s become a period piece. This one might be a little hard to track down; try a good library or used book store.
