Movie Review: The Case of the Curious Bride (1935) directed by Michael Curtiz Between movies, star defense attorney Perry Mason has successfully defended an alleged hatchet killer, humiliating the district attorney once again. He’s preparing for a victory feast, the crab dish of which he’ll cook himself, and then a Chinese vacation. At the restaurant, he’s… Continue reading Movie Review: The Case of the Curious Bride
Tag: blackmail
Book Review: The Hills of Homicide
Book Review: The Hills of Homicide by Louis L’Amour Before he landed the contracts that were to make him America’s most beloved Western writer, Louis L’Amour tried his hand at various other genres of pulp fiction. But the pulp magazine market was drying up, so it was generally a good thing he found other work.… Continue reading Book Review: The Hills of Homicide
Book Review: The Big Book of Victorian Mysteries
Book Review: The Big Book of Victorian Mysteries edited by Otto Penzler While stories that could be considered “mysteries” in some sense have existed as long as writing, and perhaps a bit before, the short story mystery came into its own during the lifetime of Queen Victoria (1837-1901). This volume collects forty-nine notable stories from… Continue reading Book Review: The Big Book of Victorian Mysteries
Comic Book Review: DC Special No. 3: Justice Society
Comic Book Review: DC Special No. 3: Justice Society edited by Paul Levitz As discussed in previous reviews, the Justice Society of America was DC Comics’ first superhero team, designed to showcase their characters that didn’t have their own individual titles. Thus Superman and Batman weren’t members, but were “honorary”, and Green Lantern and the… Continue reading Comic Book Review: DC Special No. 3: Justice Society
Book Review: The Crystal Stopper
Book Review: The Crystal Stopper by Maurice Leblanc Arsène Lupin should probably have been more cautious when two members of his gang, Vaucheray and Gilbert, asked him to assist with the burglary of the Enghien country home of government deputy Daubrecq. But Vaucheray is experienced, and Lupin is impressed with Gilbert’s good character (for a… Continue reading Book Review: The Crystal Stopper
Comic Book Review: Queen & Country Definitive Edition Volume 02
Comic Book Review: Queen & Country Definitive Edition Volume 02 story by Greg Rucka, art by Various Recap: Tara Chace is a special agent for Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) code-named “Minder Two.” Unlike regular agents who are stationed in a specific place, she and the other two Minders are sent wherever a developing situation… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Queen & Country Definitive Edition Volume 02
Book Review: Halo in Brass
Book Review: Halo in Brass by Howard Browne (writing as John Evans) Paul PIne, private detective, is hired on a missing persons case. It seems that Laura Fremont, originally from Lincoln, Nebraska, has gone incommunicado in the big city of Chicago. Her plain rural parents are worried sick. The first obstacle pops up in that… Continue reading Book Review: Halo in Brass
Book Review: Ding Dong Bell | Certain Sleep
Book Review: Ding Dong Bell | Certain Sleep by Helen Reilly It’s time for another Ace Double, paperbacks with two short books bound upside down from each other. This one, G-528, is from the Giant Double Novel Book series of mysteries. Although it wasn’t advertised as such, this line was entirely devoted to female authors.… Continue reading Book Review: Ding Dong Bell | Certain Sleep
Book Review: Widows Wear Weeds
Book Review: Widows Wear Weeds by A.A. Fair (Erle Stanley Gardner) Erle Stanley Gardner became famous thanks to his Perry Mason stories, featuring a defense attorney whose client is always innocent (of the particular murder the story is about.) But not every one of his story ideas fit that mold, so under the pen name… Continue reading Book Review: Widows Wear Weeds
Book Review: A Coffin for Dimitrios
Book Review: A Coffin for Dimitrios by Eric Ambler Latimer used to be a political economist at an English university, until contact with Nazi economical theory left him so out of sorts that he wrote a detective novel to relax. He turned out to be quite good at writing detective stories, and has become a… Continue reading Book Review: A Coffin for Dimitrios