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Triple Jeopardy
Book Club edition. Dust jacket is missing. Text is perfect. Same day shipping.
446 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 1962
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About the author
Philip MacDonald
148 books17 followersPhilip MacDonald (who some give as 1896 or 1899 as his date of birth) was the grandson of the writer George MacDonald and son of the author Ronald MacDonald and the actress Constance Robertson.
During World War I he served with the British cavalry in Mesopotamia, later trained horses for the army, and was a show jumper. He also raised Great Danes. After marrying the writer F. Ruth Howard, he moved to Hollywood in 1931. He was one of the most popular mystery writers of the 1930s, and between 1931 and 1963 wrote many screenplays along with a few radio and television scripts.
His detective novels, particularly those featuring his series detective Anthony Gethryn, are primarily "whodunnits" with the occasional locked room mystery. His first detective novel was 'The Rasp' (1924), in which he introduced his character Anthony Gethryn.
In later years MacDonald wrote television scripts for Alfred Hitchcock Presents ('Malice Domestic', 1957) and Perry Mason ('The Case of the Terrified Typist', 1958).
He twice received an Edgar Award for Best Short Story: in 1953, for 'Something to Hide', and in 1956, for 'Dream No More'. Indeed many critics felt that his short story writing was superior to his novels and they did win five second prizes in the annual contests held by 'Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'.
He also wrote under the pseudonyms Oliver Fleming, Anthony Lawless, Martin Porlock, W.J. Stuart and Warren Stuart.
During World War I he served with the British cavalry in Mesopotamia, later trained horses for the army, and was a show jumper. He also raised Great Danes. After marrying the writer F. Ruth Howard, he moved to Hollywood in 1931. He was one of the most popular mystery writers of the 1930s, and between 1931 and 1963 wrote many screenplays along with a few radio and television scripts.
His detective novels, particularly those featuring his series detective Anthony Gethryn, are primarily "whodunnits" with the occasional locked room mystery. His first detective novel was 'The Rasp' (1924), in which he introduced his character Anthony Gethryn.
In later years MacDonald wrote television scripts for Alfred Hitchcock Presents ('Malice Domestic', 1957) and Perry Mason ('The Case of the Terrified Typist', 1958).
He twice received an Edgar Award for Best Short Story: in 1953, for 'Something to Hide', and in 1956, for 'Dream No More'. Indeed many critics felt that his short story writing was superior to his novels and they did win five second prizes in the annual contests held by 'Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'.
He also wrote under the pseudonyms Oliver Fleming, Anthony Lawless, Martin Porlock, W.J. Stuart and Warren Stuart.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 19, 2017
Triple Jeopardy is an omnibus volume of three novels by Philip MacDonald. I have previously reviewed each novel separately; this review will basically be a compilation of those three reviews.
WARRANT FOR X
Philip MacDonald was a British writer of popular fiction. He wrote a series of mysteries about a sleuth named Anthony Gethryn. Warrant for X, published in 1938, was the eleventh book in the series. This is the first one that I have read.
Gethryn was an amateur detective, with strong connections to the London police. The first book in the series, The Rasp, was published in 1924; Warrant for X was the next to last one. In 1959, MacDonald published the twelfth and last book of the series, The List of Adrian Messenger.
The title Warrant for X is a reference to the fact that Gethryn and the police have almost no clues to the identities of the people involved in what they believe is the upcoming kidnapping of a child. An American playwright, in London for the launch of his new play, overhears two women talking and believes that they were discussing that impending crime. However, he only sees them from the back.
When the police dismiss the playwright's suspicions, he turns to Gethryn for help. The rest of the book is about the difficult task of ascertaining who is to be kidnapped and who the plotters are.
This is quite well written and certainly held my interest. The book is now almost eighty years old and some of the references may be obscure. For example:
[The playwright is speaking first.]
"It doesn't necessarily mean a thing."
Anthony grinned, "Because it ain't got that swing."
It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington, with lyrics by Irving Mills.
I have always found it annoying when non-official characters in a mystery decide that they need to solve the case themselves. There is often no good reason given to explain why they do this. In Warrant for X, the playwright has an excellent and believable reason for wanting to be actively involved.
There is a rather silly subplot about a romance between the playwright and another character. That can pretty much just be ignored.
THE POLFERRY RIDDLE
This is the fifth volume in Philip MacDonald's mystery series featuring Anthony Gethryn. Gethryn was a brilliant amateur detective with a close relationship with Scotland Yard.
In The Polferry Riddle, originally published in 1931, Gethryn helps the police to solve a mysterious crime. A woman is found with her throat cut in the large old house she lives in with her husband. Her husband and two other men were together all the time that this might have occurred and so provide one another with an alibi. There were four other people staying in the house, any of whom might have committed the murder. They rule out suicide because there is nothing found in the wife's room that she could have used to cut her throat. Nobody seems to have had a reason to commit murder and there is no suitable weapon found anywhere in the house.
Subsequently other deaths follow which appear to be accidents. And then more "accidents" occur. Are these all connected?
I very rarely figure out the solutions to mysteries but I did come up with half of the answer. Unfortunately, the ultimate solution is quite weak.
MacDonald writes well with a lot of humor. (Gethryn gets all the good lines.) I enjoyed this up until the disappointing final solution.
ESCAPE
This book is Escape by Martin Porlock. Or maybe it's really Murder in Kensington Gore by Porlock. Then again, it might be either one of those books, but written by Philip MacDonald.
Actually, Philip MacDonald wrote the book under the pseudonym "Martin Porlock." It has appeared under both of the titles above. I think that Murder in Kensington Gore was the original title, but I'm not certain. It was first published in 1932.
For most of the book, this is a fine thriller, very Hitchcockian, although it really preceded Alfred Hitchcock's similar stories. A totally broke young man, turned out of his lodging with nothing but the dress suit that he is wearing, is wandering the streets of London in the snow. He gains entry to a house, seeking food, shelter, and cigarettes. (In the course of the book, he smokes more cigarettes than Bette Davis in all her movies put together.)
A young woman surprises him in the house. He immediately finds her attractive (of course). She asks his help. It seems that she just happens to have a body to dispose of. Naturally, he agrees.
After his attempt to move the body, what follows is a complex tale of the couple in flight from the police. This is part of the plot of many films and books, but it is done here better than the usual. A startlingly abrupt dumb ending is not bad enough to ruin the otherwise very good book.
There are some other problems as well.
TRIPLE JEOPARDY
Just a few notes about the three-novel compilation as a whole.
I like the cover picture, three ropes, each frayed almost to the point of coming apart. I think this represents the concept of "triple jeopardy" very well.
The entire back of the dust jacket consists of a statement from renowned mystery author Erle Stanley Gardner. It says that "the modern mystery story is selling like hot cakes to the more intelligent class of reader." There is no reference to this book itself or to Philip MacDonald.
There is no publication date given for the book.
This is, on the whole, worth reading. However, I have read short stories by MacDonald that I feel are considerably better than any of these novels.
WARRANT FOR X
Philip MacDonald was a British writer of popular fiction. He wrote a series of mysteries about a sleuth named Anthony Gethryn. Warrant for X, published in 1938, was the eleventh book in the series. This is the first one that I have read.
Gethryn was an amateur detective, with strong connections to the London police. The first book in the series, The Rasp, was published in 1924; Warrant for X was the next to last one. In 1959, MacDonald published the twelfth and last book of the series, The List of Adrian Messenger.
The title Warrant for X is a reference to the fact that Gethryn and the police have almost no clues to the identities of the people involved in what they believe is the upcoming kidnapping of a child. An American playwright, in London for the launch of his new play, overhears two women talking and believes that they were discussing that impending crime. However, he only sees them from the back.
When the police dismiss the playwright's suspicions, he turns to Gethryn for help. The rest of the book is about the difficult task of ascertaining who is to be kidnapped and who the plotters are.
This is quite well written and certainly held my interest. The book is now almost eighty years old and some of the references may be obscure. For example:
[The playwright is speaking first.]
"It doesn't necessarily mean a thing."
Anthony grinned, "Because it ain't got that swing."
It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington, with lyrics by Irving Mills.
I have always found it annoying when non-official characters in a mystery decide that they need to solve the case themselves. There is often no good reason given to explain why they do this. In Warrant for X, the playwright has an excellent and believable reason for wanting to be actively involved.
There is a rather silly subplot about a romance between the playwright and another character. That can pretty much just be ignored.
THE POLFERRY RIDDLE
This is the fifth volume in Philip MacDonald's mystery series featuring Anthony Gethryn. Gethryn was a brilliant amateur detective with a close relationship with Scotland Yard.
In The Polferry Riddle, originally published in 1931, Gethryn helps the police to solve a mysterious crime. A woman is found with her throat cut in the large old house she lives in with her husband. Her husband and two other men were together all the time that this might have occurred and so provide one another with an alibi. There were four other people staying in the house, any of whom might have committed the murder. They rule out suicide because there is nothing found in the wife's room that she could have used to cut her throat. Nobody seems to have had a reason to commit murder and there is no suitable weapon found anywhere in the house.
Subsequently other deaths follow which appear to be accidents. And then more "accidents" occur. Are these all connected?
I very rarely figure out the solutions to mysteries but I did come up with half of the answer. Unfortunately, the ultimate solution is quite weak.
MacDonald writes well with a lot of humor. (Gethryn gets all the good lines.) I enjoyed this up until the disappointing final solution.
ESCAPE
This book is Escape by Martin Porlock. Or maybe it's really Murder in Kensington Gore by Porlock. Then again, it might be either one of those books, but written by Philip MacDonald.
Actually, Philip MacDonald wrote the book under the pseudonym "Martin Porlock." It has appeared under both of the titles above. I think that Murder in Kensington Gore was the original title, but I'm not certain. It was first published in 1932.
For most of the book, this is a fine thriller, very Hitchcockian, although it really preceded Alfred Hitchcock's similar stories. A totally broke young man, turned out of his lodging with nothing but the dress suit that he is wearing, is wandering the streets of London in the snow. He gains entry to a house, seeking food, shelter, and cigarettes. (In the course of the book, he smokes more cigarettes than Bette Davis in all her movies put together.)
A young woman surprises him in the house. He immediately finds her attractive (of course). She asks his help. It seems that she just happens to have a body to dispose of. Naturally, he agrees.
After his attempt to move the body, what follows is a complex tale of the couple in flight from the police. This is part of the plot of many films and books, but it is done here better than the usual. A startlingly abrupt dumb ending is not bad enough to ruin the otherwise very good book.
There are some other problems as well.
TRIPLE JEOPARDY
Just a few notes about the three-novel compilation as a whole.
I like the cover picture, three ropes, each frayed almost to the point of coming apart. I think this represents the concept of "triple jeopardy" very well.
The entire back of the dust jacket consists of a statement from renowned mystery author Erle Stanley Gardner. It says that "the modern mystery story is selling like hot cakes to the more intelligent class of reader." There is no reference to this book itself or to Philip MacDonald.
There is no publication date given for the book.
This is, on the whole, worth reading. However, I have read short stories by MacDonald that I feel are considerably better than any of these novels.
March 10, 2020
Warrant for X (Colonel Gethryn, #11)
Escape
The Polferry Riddle (Colonel Gethryn, #5)
Escape
The Polferry Riddle (Colonel Gethryn, #5)
February 4, 2014
It was too British for me. I didn't like thevoices of the characters.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews