Wax Apple

Mitch Tobin #3

by Tucker Coe (Pseudonym), Donald E. Westlake

At a mental institution, Mitch Tobin searches for a patient with a violent sense of humor

Mitch Tobin is about to be committed. Since his abrupt dismissal from the NYPD, Tobin’s nerves have been frayed, and if it wasn’t for his work as a private detective, he might well be in need of actual psychiatric care. But during his stay at the Midway, a halfway house for those recovering from mental illness, he’ll only be impersonating a patient while trying to uncover the identity of a particularly dangerous prankster.

Four booby traps have been set on the grounds of this stately old institution, each one more dangerous than the last. Tobin has only just checked in when he finds trap number five: a tripwire that sends him tumbling down the stairs, snapping his arm. This prankster is not playing around. Tobin will be lucky to leave the Midway with his life intact; hanging onto his sanity may prove even tougher.

Genres: Mystery, Crime

208 pages, Hardcover

First published July 24, 1975

About the author

A pseudonym used by Donald E. Westlake.

Series:
* Mitch Tobin

Reviews

[Alecia · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a long-time fan of the wonderful Donald Westlake, I decided to try one of his older, lesser-known novels written under the pseudonym Tucker Coe. His writing is very good, as always, but the best part of the book for me was the few pages of the introduction he wrote to this book.

His hero, Mitchell Tobin, is not well defined, although amiable and likable. I think this might be the third and last installment of books starring this character, and I had not read the other two. This is set at The Midway, a halfway house for mental patients, and Mitch is searching for one of the residents who has been causing dangerous accidents for the other residents. Even though the story becomes a bit muddled, I always appreciate reading anything Westlake did in his long, accomplished career.

[Allen Gregory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Accidents Happen!
This is the first in the Mitch Tobin series I've read and I thoroughly enjoyed it! It's not quite at the same level of some of his other books I've read, but an intriguing mystery nonetheless. An undercover cop in a so-called "loony bin" (not so politically correct these days) where a series of unfortunate "accidents occur makes for a great story. Well worth the read for Westlake fans and those late to the party.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Narrator ex-cop feels like the ringer, fake apple hidden in bowl of real fruit, ready to find ex-mental inmate setting booby traps in halfway house that result in murder. Facts about the treatment conditions of the time, recividism ending in permanent residents, and his personal unbalanced state, are both discouraging. Surprise ending.

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing is not engaging, but the story line is interesting. There's some strange things happening at a mental institution and an excop is sent in to investigate. He is admitted as a patient. Events begin as soon as he enters the facility.

[Robert Henderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely different story about the main character going in undercover at a mental institution halfway house. Interesting to see the difference between then and now about crimes. Good resolution too and lots of surprises. Hard to find now but fun to see some of the different works of the master.

[Christian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half. Maybe three and a quarter. So far, I think this is my least favorite in the Mitchell Tobin series, and, yet, it started off so promising. I loved the idea of him going undercover in a mental hospital when, really, Tobin may belong in one himself (what with his obsessive wall-building and all.) I really liked some of the characters in this but there were so many that even a close reader could easily lose track. The highlight of the book for me was Dewey and the blackout line at the end of an early chapter asking "Who is Dewey?" It gave me chills, but maybe a window was open or something because the rest of the book did not move me in any other way. It ends abruptly as if D.E.W. got as tired of writing this book as I did of reading it. Lesser Westlake to be sure but still a fairly enjoyable read.

[Jure · Rating 2 out of 5]

150 pages of small print without much white space at all. Endless dull descriptions sometimes broken into no more than a couple of paragraphs per page. Poor dialogues that don't help at all in bringing characters from their comatose state. Uninspired and simplistic plot... It was just a struggle to finish this one.

You never know with Westlake. The last one of his I read was "The Comedy is Finished" few months ago and really liked it. He is the Grand Master but I think he was too prolific and some of his stuff is very mediocre. Like this one which is memorable only for its crazy ending. Skip the whole thing or just read the 24th chapter.

More here (review includes spoilers!):
http://a60books.blogspot.ie/2015/12/w...

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Donald Westlake was quite prolific. I love his Dortmunder books, and his Parker books. I've read most of the standalone books too. But I didn't recognize this title when I saw it on Kindle, so I grabbed it and read it. It's fine. Mitch Tobin just isn't that exciting or that funny, his stories are more intellectual. It's clever and well-plotted, but I just didn't find it that engaging. Ah well... I can always re-read the other books that I enjoy so much! And there have been great deals on them on Kindle, I now have an extensive Westlake library there...

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reluctant PI Mitchell Tobin goes undercover at a half way house for mental patients looking for a prankster causing accidents. The Doctor running it doesn't want the police coming in because it will upset the residents. The first night there, he gets caught in one trap and suffers a broken arm.

Then when another resident gets killed in one of the pranks, Tobin has real problems. He's not a licensed PI and it can cause him trouble.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a 40 year old first try for Donald E westlake, writing as Tucker Coe.

It seems to be a light-weight murder mystery but , in its own way, a compelling little story to read.
I liked the reluctant hero. PI Mitchell Tobin goes undercover at a half way house for mental patients looking for a prankster causing accidents.

I've turned into a Westlake groupie. Our humor is quite similar.

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very different from anything else of his I've read. It feels really dated - not because of mobile phones or iPads but because of gender roles & attitudes to psychiatry etc. There's also no humour & I associate him with comedic writing - even though his subject matter tends to be copps & robbers & murder & mayhem.
I think this must be an early book of his (certainly hope so anyway) because it's clunkily written & extremely repetitive even though it's pretty short.

[Matthew Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent who done it novel of a very common form. This is the kind of novel where you read and can't really figure out who did it and in the end the central figure who narrates tells you who did it and why. This is all fine, but it is not among Westlake's best writing where you get twists and turns and amazingly crazy things that all seem plausible.

A good read but more similar to other authors than to Westlake's famous works.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think like the last one I read there's a lot of buildup for a payoff that isn't that great. If you think of the movie Scream, you might better understand the ending. But it's not bad either.