The Frightened Fiancée

Sam Crombie #1

by George Harmon Coxe

A jilted lover finds himself implicated in a murder When John Holland proposed to his girlfriend, Tracy, she imposed a 31-day waiting period before they could see each other again. It's day 30, and Holland travels to her Long Island home for their reunion, only to receive the shock of his life when he meets Tracy's fianc�, Roger Drake. Tracy's mother invites Holland to stay there and win back Tracy's love, and within a few hours, Drake is dead. As it turns out, Drake was a private detective hired by Tracy as a test for her beloved--and it looks like Holland failed. Meanwhile, Drake's boss, hardnosed detective Sam Crombie, descends on the home, looking to avenge his comrade.

Genres: Mystery

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1950

About the author

George Harmon Coxe was an American writer of crime fiction.His series characters are Jack "Flashgun" Casey, Kent Murdock, Leon Morley, Sam Crombie, Max Hale and Jack Fenner. Casey and Murdock are both detectives and photographers. He started writing officially from around 1922, his work being for nickel and dime pulp fiction of the time. To earn money, he originally wrote in many genres, including romance and adventure stories, but was especially fond of crime fiction, his character "Jack (Flashgun) Casey" becoming a popular radio show through to the 1940s. He wrote a total of 63 novels, the last being published in 1975. He was associated with MGM as a writer.

Married to Elizabeth Fowler in 1929, Coxe had 2 children.

He was named a Grand Master in 1964 by The Mystery Writers of America.

Reviews

[Wemple · Rating 5 out of 5]

The writing style is fluid and conversational, with a solid background.

[Rym Sheikh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me ha gustado la premisa y la historia en sí, pero no la manera en la que ha sido ejecutada y ha sido una lectura MUY lenta.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of an odd duck. While considered part of the Sam Crombie PI series, Crombie hardly figures in the book at all.

A young woman seems to be jinxed. Her fiancees die after being engaged for a month. Her latest fiancee goes on a trip for a month. He comes back early, and finds his fiancee engaged to another man, who is quickly murdered.

It takes a while to get going, but once on track it proceeds nicely.