The D.A. Calls It Murder

Doug Selby #1

by Erle Stanley Gardner, Otto Penzler (introduction)

In this legal mystery from the creator of Perry Mason, a newly elected District Attorney must prove his worth with a puzzling case.


In a small town north of Los Angeles, Doug Selby claims narrow victory in a hotly-contested race for District Attorney. Then his troubles First, when the local paper, supportive of the incumbent, immediately launches an effort to get Selby recalled. And then there’s the murdered man that turns up in the very hotel that housed Selby’s campaign headquarters. If he can quickly solve the case, Selby will prove that he deserves his new position; if not, he risks providing more fodder to his enemies at The Blade.



What follows is a fast-paced and twisty investigation involving a famous actress, a stolen identity, and plenty of red herrings as Selby, the sheriff, and a sympathetic journalist endeavor to determine whodunit. This clever Golden Age page-turner features the same legal acumen that fans expect from the author of the Perry Mason series and Erle Stanley Gardner’s signature snappy dialogue and quick plotting, as well.



Originally published in 1937 and reissued for the first time in over thirty years, The D.A. Calls It Murder is a classic legal mystery with a lead who starkly contrasts with Gardner’s more famous character. Doug Selby went on to star in eight more celebrated novels.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Legal, Detective, Classics, Mystery Thriller

102 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1937

About the author

Erle Stanley Gardner was an American lawyer and author of detective stories who also published under the pseudonyms A.A. Fair, Kyle Corning, Charles M. Green, Carleton Kendrake, Charles J. Kenny, Les Tillray, and Robert Parr.

Innovative and restless in his nature, he was bored by the routine of legal practice, the only part of which he enjoyed was trial work and the development of trial strategy. In his spare time, he began to write for pulp magazines, which also fostered the early careers of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. He created many different series characters for the pulps, including the ingenious Lester Leith, a "gentleman thief" in the tradition of Raffles, and Ken Corning, a crusading lawyer who was the archetype of his most successful creation, the fictional lawyer and crime-solver Perry Mason, about whom he wrote more than eighty novels. With the success of Perry Mason, he gradually reduced his contributions to the pulp magazines, eventually withdrawing from the medium entirely, except for non-fiction articles on travel, Western history, and forensic science.

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erle_Sta...

Reviews

[James Hold · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dave Selby preceded Perry Mason. He's a DA where Mason is a defense attorney. He's not terribly interesting. For the most part his being a DA has little to do with solving the crime. There's none of the courtroom scenes for which Gardner is famous, there are too many characters cluttering the pages, and the crime itself doesn't make a lot of sense. That or it was too convoluted for me to follow. ESG specializes in convoluted crimes. It's best to read them fast (something ESG's prose makes easy to do). I noticed this watching the Perry Mason TV show. They breeze right thru the explanations. It's only after you've seen the rerun a couple of times that it hits you to say, "Hey, wait a minute. That doesn't make sense. What about—" ESG is great entertainment; he's not necessarily great for logic. This first Selby story doesn't entertain. It reads right thru, slicker than...stuff, but when it's over you don't feel any the wiser. I thot at first Selby was a dry run for what would eventually lead to Mason; but that's not the case since he never enters a courtroom or does anything other than serve a few subpoenas. Read this only if you're a BIG fan of ESG. Otherwise skip it and you won't miss a thing.

[Mark Stratton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love me a good pot-boiler of a book. Pot-boiler = Page Turner. Oftimes, when I read it is solely to be entertained. To go where the writer will take me. And Gardner took me on a great trip this time.[return:][return:]This is the first book in the Doug Selby, District Attorney series. First published in 1937, I was amazed at how much of the situations ring so true today. For example, the book starts with Our Hero, Doug Selby winning a closely contested and divisive election for the job of District Attorney in a small town north of Los Angeles. The Sheriff was also elected in that same election. Instead of competing TV networks with their muck rakers like today, there were competing newspapers, The Clarion and The Blade. They sling mud in print and make life interesting/difficult for the D.A.[return:][return:]The story starts with a dead body being discovered in the local hotel. From all appearances, his name is Charles Brower. However when Mrs. Brower shows up she says Brower isn't Brower. And he wasn't. That was just the beginning of a bizarre trail that involved a Hollywood Starlet, a lawsuit, a camera and a poisoned dog. Oh, and Doug's "friend" Sylvia Martin. Who just happens to work at the Clarion. [return:][return:]Gardner's other series, Perry Mason, had already developed a successful and winning formula by 1937. The Selby book didn't adhere to that formula so for me it was fresh and new. More like a traditional whodunit, with very little legal angles thrown in. Straight detective work with politics taking more of a center stage than any courtroom antics.[return:][return:]I recommend this book for lovers of a good mystery. It's hardly dated, it was a good, solid page turnin' pot boiler of a novel. You really shouldn't have a lot of trouble finding a good readable copy on Amazon or eBay. Gardner sold so many books between the 30's and 80's that they are still very common...

[Laurie (Kwiltreader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast talking, fun mystery novel by Gardner. Reminded me off black and white films with Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell or maybe Tracy and Hepburn.

[tortoise dreams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not part of the Perry Mason series, but the first of nine books featuring newly-elected D.A. Doug Selby. All the titles in the series begin with "The D.A. ... ." Basically a police procedural (no courtroom scenes) with Selby trying to solve a crime with the help of the also newly-elected sheriff and a pretty young newspaper reporter -- rather than Perry Mason proving his clients are innocent (as they always were). Selby is fairly bland but tough when he needs to be and good in a fistfight. He has to be tough because politics is a constant issue, with two competing newspapers battling over his fate, one that supports him and one against him. The D.A. Calls It Murder is entertaining, quick-paced, good for passing the time. Reasonably complex, but not too deep and no Sherlock Holmes magic. Just a lot of basic leg work as directed by the D.A., who's kind of bossy and sends other people to do mountains of investigation while he gads about with a seductive Hollywood actress. A promising start, but this first book in the series didn't send me rushing to acquire the next, as so often happens. Capable, competent, enjoyable, average. [3★]

[Alan Tomkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a pleasant surprise. Ignore the reference to Perry Mason in the title of some editions depicted here on Goodreads. This was NOT a Perry Mason novel, nor did Mason figure in it, not even peripherally. This was the first in a different series featuring Doug Selby, a newly elected district attorney in a fictional California county clearly based on Ventura County. It was written in 1937, and like most of Gardner’s books is heavily driven by dialogue. It’s a great murder mystery centered on the poisoning of a gentle little Methodist parson from northern California who is in town on secret business. Red herrings abound. A Hollywood starlet is involved, as well as a shady hotel operator, and there is a newspaper war going on, not to mention a disputed will involving the local veterinarian. Lots of balls in the air to distract & confound Selby and the reader. All in all, it was a clever and entertaining whodunnit, and I am glad to have another well written series by Erle Stanley Gardner to explore after decades of savoring all of his Perry Mason novels.

[Manuel Alfonseca · Rating 2 out of 5]

ENGLISH: First novel starring District Attorney Doug Selby. The ending is a bit abrupt, although there were always suspicions about the culprit.

ESPAÑOL: Primera novela con el fiscal del distrito Doug Selby como protagonista. El final es un poco brusco, aunque siempre hubo sospechas respecto a quien resulta ser el culpable.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up at book sale. I was specifically looking for this author thinking it was a Perry Mason story. Was surprised to find it wasn't. But it was the first of this series. The main character is a recently elected District Attorney Doug Selby. It did not disappoint. I forgot how much I liked mysteries.... I'll be reading more of this author.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

I ventured off the normal Perry Mason / Erle Stanely Gardner track, and even though the characters names were different, it was is essence a Mason novel. None the less, a quick read, that kept me on the hook, trying to figure out who dunnit...a quick, fun read.

[Scott Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very entertaining. This was written in 1937 but it has hardly dated.

[Rick Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

Major characters:
Rev. Charles Brower - the deceased - or is he?
Mary Brower, his widow - or is she?
Shirley Arden, the wealthy femme fatale actress
Doug Selby, D.A.
Amorette Standish, his secretary
Sheriff Rex Baldwin
Chief of Police Otto Larkin
Sylvia Martin, crime reporter for The Clarion

Locale: Madison City, California

Synopsis: Doug Selby has just won election to District Attorney, and Rex Baldwin also just won election to sheriff. The populace is divided, and the election was close. The Clarion supported Selby and Baldwin, and rival paper The Blade opposed them. They have just taken office when a minister, Charles Brower, is found dead in a hotel room. Circumstances point to suicide, but Selby suspects foul play. An autopsy reveals the death is due to morphia (morphine).

The widow, Mary Brower, is notified - but when asked to identify the body, says it is not that of her husband. Either the body is not Charles Brower, or the widow is not Mary Brower - which is it? The deceased is also found to have been fascinated with actress Shirley Arden, who resides in the same hotel.

Review: This first Doug Selby story shows Selby a bit uncertain in his new role as D.A. There is a lot of emphasis on the pressure of the press. Reporter Sylvia Martin is a puzzle, she is sometimes a hard-boiled Brenda Starr with her feet up on his desk, and sometimes she comes to tears as she begs Selby to give her an exclusive story. Which is she? I do like the Brenda Starr version better.

There is a side story occurring about the "Perry estate" - this is a typical Perry Mason puzzle in which a couple die in a car accident, but who inherits depends upon which one died last. It seems unconnected to the main story until the last few pages when it is tied in.

Secretary Amorette Standish has a minor role. I was hoping she would be a Della Street but she is only marginal to the story. Perhaps she is developed more later in the series.

Overall, a good start to the series. Selby is not so confident and assertive as Perry Mason, and is bewildered at times by clues unravelling all about him as the press pounds at his door.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

#1 in the Doug Selby series. Author Gardner turns from his celebrated defense attorney, Perry Mason, to start a series about a District Attorney in a rural county north of L.A. The debut has honest Doug Selby narrowly winning the DA election against the corrupt incumbent. Now with the aid of a newspaper, The Blade, that supported the crooked regime, there is a movement to recall him for incompetence. With the aid of the sheriff and a reporter from a friendly newspaper, Doug has 24 hours to perform and name the murderer. Fun read and slam bang finale.

Newly elected district attorney Doug Selby has a problem on his hands. While he may have beaten the corrupt political machine in the election, a death takes place shortly after the recount election confirms his position. Aided only by his friend, a newly elected Sheriff who puts justice over politics, and a woman reporter, he finds himself in a case where he has only 24 hours to solve the case - or be recalled and let Madison City fall back into the hands of crooks who subvert justice.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first read by this author and I really enjoyed it. The clues (or clews, as it was spelled in the 1937 book), were laid out but there were red herrings to confuse us. Douglas Selby begins this first in the series as the newly elected D.A. of a small California county facing his first murder inquiry. He keeps getting clues and being baffled, but his training and intellect come through and he fits it all together for the big finish. I admit I didn't see the solution coming, even though I kept wondering about the side story that wove in and out and finally became vital. It was an entertaining story and a great dip into the vintage era of mystery for me. I'm restraining myself from going online and ordering the next several Doug Selby novels as I need to read what's currently on my shelves. We'll see how long I last. :)

[Merle E. Cannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first Erle Stanley Gardner book I’ve read. Watched many Perry Mason’s so thought I’d give this 1937 book a try. While this isn’t a Perry Mason story I can understand why it was so successful.

[Karen Jenkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

It made me realize how much mystery writing has changed since the 1930s.

[Olga · Rating 3 out of 5]

Бодрый детектив, несколько сумбурный, и построенный на совпадениях, но в целом вполне увлекательный.

[Bo Pickett · Rating 3 out of 5]

about as potboiler as a novel can get, but makes perfect sense once you know Gardner was a lawyer who wrote like 2000 words a day after work that resulted in like 200 novels eventually. Makes for enjoyable reading though so I can't blame the guy!

[Bookguide · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review on my book blog, Market Garden Reader.

Young D.A. Doug Selby and older sheriff Rex Brandon have only just been elected, replacing a Sam Roper, a D.A. who was rumoured to be corrupt. In fact, their election is so recent that their campaign office in the Madison Hotel has not yet been dismantled. By chance they travel up in the hotel lift with the unprepossessing minister Charles Brower. Later that day, Brower is found dead in his hotel room, presumably a heart attack after taking sleeping tablets. However, something about the room where he was found niggles at the back of Selby’s mind so that he can’t sleep. But what really throws a spanner in the works is Brower’s wife. After being informed by phone of her husband’s death, she is very keen to collect her husband’s life insurance money and immediately flies in to set the wheels in motion. But when she sees the body, she claims the man is a stranger and demands that her travel costs be reimbursed. All most peculiar.

Of course, all is not as it seems. There’s a beautiful and famous actress also staying in the hotel and the D.A. noticed the dead man knocking on her door the day before he died, before he knew who was staying in that room. There are also other documents in his room that don’t seem to explain why he was there. The hotel manager is extremely keen to keep the death under wraps and the actress’s agent is excessively protective. The D.A.’s investigation is not helped by two competing newspapers in the town, one that supports him and the other strongly against him. Fortunately for Doug, the reporter for one of the papers is an attractive and enthusiastic young female reporter, keen to make her mark. She will do some of the legwork for Doug if he gives her some of the intel to use in her reports.

The coroner warns Selby that it would be better if he didn’t have any notable cases for a month or two after the election so that even the people who didn’t vote for him get the chance to get used to him being there. He warns him a murder case will be ‘a boomerang’. I assume he means it will come back to haunt him; it’s an American phrase for something that backfires on someone. But Selby has morals: the facts have to add up to make a case.

As you would expect from such a popular author, the twists, turns and red herrings are many and unexpected. He is wrongfooted more than once, discovers some good clues by following up his hunches and leads, makes some interesting observations along the way and finally solves the puzzle. Last-minute ‘confession’ and solution. Some people may be put off by the fact that a previous non-suspect is implicated at the last minute by a new development that turns out to be relevant to concluding the case. Not me! I prefer to have that than to have the solution revolve around something that was mentioned in passing and I have since completely forgotten. This was all good fun and a most enjoyable and engaging read.

[COL(ret.) Frank J. Stech, PhD · Rating 4 out of 5]

HBO has everybody watching the backstory of Perry Mason. I wanted to see a bit of the back story of his daddy, Erie Stanley Gardner. ESG wrote several series, Mason being one. The others form the same pattern-- the jigsaw puzzle where none of the pieces seemed to come from the same box, let alone the same puzzle picture. Today, the murder squad would have the pieces pinned to the wire board and lines and arrows and circles trying to connect the pieces. ESG has the pieces scattered through the pages of action and dialogues. The pace is relentless and the puzzle stays baffling. Until the end. Then pieces are tossed aside. The lines connect the pieces. The picture is clear. And ESG's hero (and his faithful bright female sidekick) nail somebody. It works. ESG sold a million books a year. What can be more fun than watching his Sherlocks fit that puzzle picture together right before our eyes?

[JDL · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written start to the Selby series. It's interesting to see how we were actually supposed to meet the characters in the beginning - although what happened between Selby and Brandon between this and Holds a Candle I can't imagine. Gardner's plotting in this one is tight, with lots of threads hanging around here and there for you to pull on, but in the end this acts equally as the expected legal thriller and as a carefully-plotted, mostly fair-play whodunit with a smart solution. I'll be honest in saying that I didn't enjoy this as much as I did The D.A. Holds a Candle, but it is still recommended by me.

[Ckline · Rating 5 out of 5]

2nd book in the summer reading with my son :)
Really enjoying these books - am going to haveto put these authors on my reading lists. Can see why they are classics . Thought this was going to be a Perry Mason story but it was his adversary across the court. Mason wasn't even mentioned. Anyway really liked it!!

[Robert O'Reilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first Doug Selby novel I've read and it also happens to be the first one in this series by Erle Stanley Gardner. It was very good. I'll be reading more books in this series -- maybe even all of them.

[Fred · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a shame that Gardner’s non-Perry Mason books have fallen out of favor. He has puzzle-perfect plotting and a real sense of pacing for the lead characters, especially for the era he wrote in. The first of his DA series is a good introduction to Doug Selby that is worth looking for.

[Tansy Hepton · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy, if old-fashioned, read. Not Perry Mason, but a similarly forceful and attractive young District Attorney and a confusing murder.

[Nita Wilkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never knew Earle Stanley Gardner wrote other than Perry Mason, so this was a very pleasant surprise. And I wasn't expecting the ending at all.

[Tristan Wilkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Noirvember is more than just movies. It's a state of mind.

[Gary Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two Perrys! But Neither One of 'Em's a Mason

This first DA Doug Selby book is a winner! Easy to see how its momentum carried the character through eight more novels. If you see protagonist Doug Selby as Perry Mason, then Sylvia Martin plays both the Paul and Della roles, doing the Drake Detective Agency legwork and serving as Doug's confidant to float theories, think out loud, and share secrets not for publication.

I suspected Sylvia was inspired by Glenda Farrell's indefatigable lady reporter Torchy Blane, who first appeared on screens in 1936, the year prior to this novel's publication. Torchy would later inspire Lois Lane, and the similarities between all three newshounds are striking.

Newly elected Sheriff Rex Brandon appeared poised for a bigger role, but he and his trademark sombrero were sidelined for most of the narrative. He wasn't missed as Sylvia proved an able and appealing co-star.

Speaking of stars... Shirley Arden was a fascinating and well-drawn character (name inspired by the ardent Dale Arden of Flash Gordon serials fame?). Gardner knew intimately of what he wrote, having himself been lured by the bright lights of Hollywood, which produced six Perry Mason films between 1934 and '37. Undoubtedly Gardner met many of the boldface names on movie marquees and their agents, producers, and studio moguls... and found them wanting.

Gardner's cynical take on Hollywood, especially as expressed in the final meeting between Doug and Sharon, were unsettling and sobering to this romanticist of film's golden age. But Gardner's right, people as phony as the facades on movie sets, but with an irresistible and hypnotizing allure even Doug knows he'd succumb to: "I'll be impressed in spite of myself, by the artificial glitter you're complaining of" (p. 182). These passages read like Gardner's own morning-after confession after the shine came off of Tinseltown.

I loved Doug's folksy description of Madison City, which could have been Sheriff Andy Taylor waxing wistful about Mayberry: "Your life lies in the glitter and the glamor. Mine lies with the four-square friendships I've made in a community where everyone knows everyone else so intimately there's no chance for a four-flusher to get by" (p. 182).

Nice, but, uh... Isn't Madison City the town that turned on a dime against Doug and was ready to recall him from office? More like fair-weather friends than the "four-square friendships" he imagined. And it sounds like four-flushers were three for a nickel in this burg that boasted the rogues' gallery we met over the course of this compelling story. I guess we're all a little blinded to the blemishes on our hometown.

Reading The D.A. Calls It Murder on the heels of Perry Mason's The Case of the Sleepwalker's Niece proved interesting as plot points in the earlier novel appeared again here, including an interlocutory decree of divorce; Yuma, Arizona as the quickie-marriage destination (before Las Vegas cornered the market), the novelty of flying in a small plane, consulting oculists about eyeglass prescriptions, and astrology: those who believe in it and make decisions based on the stars. That's a lot of thematic overlap in two books, possibly written in succession.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this page-turner of a novel and I believe Gardner enjoyed writing it, taking a refreshing break from Perry Mason after nine novels. Doug Selby gave me insight and dare I say sympathy for the struggles of DA Hamilton Burger. If I had to identify a shortcoming it would be the same one I see in the Mason novels: Rushed endings lacking satisfying closure.

I mean, did Sheriff Brandon nab the baddie outside? Whatever happened to that ringer reporter Carl Bittner after he left The Blade with egg on its face? Who tipped him to Selby's meeting with Shirley and how did he evade security to get so scarily close to her? Whatever happened to the perfumed five grand? Was there a funeral in Riverbend for the Rev. Larrabie and did Selby, Sylvia, and Shirley attend? Who prevailed in Perry v. Perry? And why can't an upstanding, taxpaying citizen find a parking spot for Wednesday Rotary meetings?

Yes, I know to tie up all loose ends would prove unduly burdensome, but maybe just a few? Gardner likes the snappy "mic drop" finish, but they often leave me a little jarred and vaguely unsatisfied when I reflect on the book when writing a review here. A mere bagatelle.

Here's looking forward to the next eight novels, harboring high hopes for happiness to come to Doug and Sylvia. Move over and make way, Nick and Nora!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no ideal ESG wrote a series about a Southern California D.A.

This was a very fast read, and my copy was a beautiful edition, with silver edges on very hearty paper put out by The Franklin Library.

The plot is interesting, and although Madison City is a fictional place, Riverbend appears to be in Fresno County.

The newly elected DA Doug Selby and Sheriff Rex Brandon are immediately hit with an apparent natural death at the Madison Hotel. When the body turns out to not be the person who's name the deceased was registered as, Doug begins to believe that this was not what it appeared.

The characters ran the gamut from famous actress, her business manager, Doug's steady secretary, an effusive Hotel Manager to the crusading yellow press. The politics of being a D.A. were fully exposed.

Running in the background is a civil trial about who the inheriting beneficiaries are in the Charles Perry estate, the local veterinarian H Franklin Perry or Charles second wife's son Herbert F Perry.
More interesting names are Carl Bittner of The Blade and Ben Trask the business manager.

I was interested in the typewritten note in the hotel room, and the issues with the camera. Who was typing in the dead man's room at 3 am, and who took pictures with his camera after his body was discovered. Confusing the issue further is the five thousand dollars placed in the hotel safe.

I had a hard time believing the DA would travel with Sylvia Martin, a member of the press, despite the limb she crawled out onto on his behalf.

I borrowed a copy from the public library.

[Michael Reilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 1937 murder mystery is a recent American Mystery Classic reprint. Gardner wrote 84 Perry Mason books. He wrote another fifty or so, some under different names. He had several other series characters.

This is the first book of nine featuring Doug Selby, the newly elected district attorney of Madison County, California. It was a hotly contested election and one of the local papers is out to get him.

Selby gets the report that a minister is found dead in his room at a local hotel. When the minster's wife shows up to identify the body, it turns out that it was not the minister. The body is unidentified and has been murdered.

The plot gets fairly complicated very quickly. There is a Hollywood starlet in the middle of things. A big-time city crime reporter gets brought into town to try to get embarrassing stories on the job Selby is doing. A female reporter from the friendly local paper is trying to help Selby. All the loose ends get wrapped up in the end.

At the time of his death in 1970, Gardner was the bestselling American author of the twentieth century. He produced at an amazing clip. He worked in what he called his "fiction factory". He would dictate books. a team would type them up. He didn't worry about style. He wrote in a plain straight forward style. There was none of the cleverness of a Chandler or Hammett. There was almost no humor. It was "just the facts".

Selby never comes alive as a character. The plot is all over the place. This is a mediocre Gardner story.

[Serdar Poirot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Madison City şehrinde seçimlerle yeni savcı olan Douglas Selby, yeni Şerif Rex Brandon işe beraber ilk vakasını ertesi gün alır. Bir otelde bir rahip ölmüştür. İntihar etmiş gibi durur. Charles Brower adındaki rahibin odasına girince bir şeyin olması gerektiği gibi olmadığını görür Selby. Otopsiden de mprfinle ölüm çıkınca cinayet vakası kesinleşir. Blade gazetesi savcı aleyhine bir kampanya başlatır. Doktor Perry de bir evlilik davası sebebiyle istediği mirası alamamıştır. Brower'ın karısı gelir ve cesedi teşhis edemez. Çünkü ölen adam Larribie adında bir rahiptir ve kasasından 5000 dolar çıkar. Hollywood yıldızı Shirley Arden de işin içindedir. Parfümünü değiştirmiştir. Aslında parayı o vermiştir. Otelin sahibi de öz babasıdır. Bu sırada Selby'nin cesetten aldığı kameradaki fotoğraflar değiştirilir. Çünkü adli tıp doktorunun köpeği zehirlenir ve Perry'ye götürülür. Blade Selby'yi Arden mevzusu sebebiyle paçavraya çevirir. Ona iyi davranan Clarion gazetesi yazarı Slyvia Martin ise akşam dörde kadar olayı çözmesi gerektiğini söyler. Çünkü gazeteye işi çözdüğün söylemiştir. Eğer Selby çözemezse Şerif ve gazeteci de işinden olacaktır. Otel müdürünü araştırırlar. Bir senaryo, 500ü dolar, kayıp fotolar vardır? Peki zehirleri iyi bilen bu katil kimdir? Neden cinayeti işlemiştir? Köpeğin zehirlenmesi konu ile ilgili midir? Selby Katili yakalayabilecek midir? Keyifle soluksuz okunan bir roman.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story involves the main character of Douglas Shelby, the District Attorney of Madison City. When a rather nondescript clergyman is found dead in the Madison Hotel and the cause of death seems to be an accidental overdose of sleeping powder, there is pressure to close the case. However, Shelby has his doubts and keeps the investigation open.
The case moves rather methodically, until it is proven that the man was in fact murdered. Unlike the much more dynamic Perry Mason stories by Gardner, this one has no real high point of tension. The dialog is also much tamer than in the Mason stories and this one lacks the high tension between Mason and the members of law enforcement. It is clear from reading this book how critical those relationships are to the success of the Mason series.
As a mystery, this one has some of the requisite twists and turns. However, it lacks riveting dialog or a great deal of action. In that sense, as a fan of the Mason stories, I found this one disappointing and somewhat dull.