The Man Who Was Taller Than God

Carl Wilcox #9

by Harold Adams

Carl Wilcox really does try to stay out of trouble - he's had enough of it over the years - but the times being what they are, the choice isn't always his. For now, though, he's taken a job painting signs for the town of Hope, South Dakota. It beats hanging around his folk's hotel in Corden and gives him the chance to earn an honest dollar. Then, late one July day, the McGillacuddy kid rides up on his bike and tells him that there's a body in the sandpit outside of town. Nothing about the death was natural. Everyone knew Felton Edwards, but there didn't seem to be many who liked him, except for some of the women. And while the local police were willing to let matters just go their own way - without any help from Carl - the mayor had a different idea. It seems that Edwards left town about fifteen years ago and his last known location was Edenberg, but before he left, he'd had his way with some of the women in town, never giving any thought to whether they were married. Now, if Carl would just do some investigating on the mayor's behalf, well, there just might be some other work available around town. One of the first things Carl discovers in Edenberg is that Felton Edwards's reputation was deserved. The second thing he discovers is another body - and another warning to steer clear of doing any investigating on his own. Still, most of the people Carl will have to talk to are women, and there was the promise of more work . . . There were lots of people with cause to kill the man who was taller than God, but only one of them did it. There were also some people taking potshots at Carl Wilcox. But a puzzle or a fight just broke up the tedium of a long summer day. . . .

Genres: Mystery

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

BORN 1923

Reviews

[Shane Moore · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't have a lot of expectations of this murder mystery set in South Dakota during the 1930's, so I can't say I was disappointed. The mystery itself was pretty interesting, and the story wrapped up neatly by the end.

What surprised me, given the generally folksy setting and writing style, was how incredibly horny the main character was. He basically went through this murder investigation insistently hitting on every single woman he encountered, with almost universal rejection. It wasn't ever funny, but I think that's what the author was going for.

[Ava · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring mystery, too many characters to keep track of. Would not read again.

[Marsha Valance · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the Shamus Award-winning THE MAN WHO WAS TALLER THAN GOD, Carl is painting street signs in Hope, South Dakota, when a small boy comes pedaling up telling of a body in the sandpit. Investigating, Carl finds Felton Edwards, a man who left Hope 15 years before. A tall, strong handsome widower, Felton had cut a swath through Hope's womenfolk, married & unmarried. Suspects included the grocer & his wife, the jeweler & his wife, 2 schoolteachers, a spinster & a widow; the undertaker & his wife; a local widow, a woman bar owner & her bartender boyfriend; a cardsharp; & innumerable other husbands & boyfriends. Since the town police officer is sweet on one of the schoolteachers, the mayor hires Carl to investigate the crime. A sympathetic listener, Carl soon has all the women on his suspect list pouring their hearts out to him about their relationships with Felton. A lazy underachiever, Felton had eased thru life dreaming up get-rich-quick schemes, until (as Carl discovers) they led to his involvement in murder, first as murderer, then as victim. As Carl crisscrosses South Dakota and Minnesota, following the threads of Felton's career, the reader enjoys the Spartan prose and crisp descriptions of small town life in the Great Plains drought, descriptions worthy of Hammett in RED HARVEST. Carl is a rural version of the Prohibition-era pulp detective, a principled loner who must search through the evil under the surface of everyday life, making moral decisions as he comes toward the solution to the mystery. Fans of early hard-boiled novels and stories, & fans of mystery fiction that brings to life a distant time and place will enjoy Carl Wilcox, a 20th century SHANE.

[Maddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

PROTAGONIST: Carl Wilcox, PI
SETTING: 1930s South Dakota
SERIES: #9 of 16
RATING:3.5
WHY: When a young boy finds the Felton Edwards' body in a sandpit, the mayor of small-town Hope, South Dakota, asks Carl Wilcox to help investigate. Wilcox is passing through, painting signs to make money, but has been an unlicensed private investigator for quite some time. Edwards was a con man, always trying to get people to invest in one of his schemes, and exceptionally tall. This series presents a view of the US Midwest during the 1930s, during the time of Prohibition and drought. One of the better entries in the series. All the books have common elements which make it hard to tell them apart. I appreciated that for a change, Wilcox didn't bed any eligible female that he happened upon.

[Cathy Houston · Rating 2 out of 5]

rather dull murder mystery

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: the Mayor asks Carl to investigate a body found in the sand. Wrap this up quickly he says.