Murder, Murder, Murder: The Norths Meet Murder / Murder Out of Turn / A Pinch of Poison

Mr. & Mrs. North #1 - 3

by Frances Lockridge, Richard Lockridge

A Mr. and Mrs. North Omnibus
including
The Norths Meet Murder
Murder Out of Turn
A Pinch of Poison

Genres: Mystery

477 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1956

About the author

Frances Louise (Davis) Lockridge wrote popular mysteries and children's books with husband Richard Lockridge. They also published under the shared pseudonym Francis Richards.

Reviews

[Debi Emerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was young, my grandfather introduced me to Perry Mason via the Raymond Burr TV show, then Grandpa gave me the books. Around the same time, my dad introduced me to Sherlock Holmes via the Basil Rathbone movies, Dad gave me the books. Dad also introduced me to Nick & Nora Charles via the Powell/Loy Thin Man movies. Later, I discovered the book. And then there was the short-lived TV show, "Mr & Mrs North" which I loved & mourned when it was cancelled. As a young adult, I overjoyed to discover the Lockridge books and read them all. This omnibus contains the 1st 3 in the Mr & Mrs North series. It has been many years since I read the books, so reading them again was like reconnecting with old friends; they have stood the test of time. And the history buff in me enjoys visiting an earlier time: these were written in 1940 & 1941, at a time when WWII had begun, but the US was not yet involved. The war is mentioned, but only in passing. What is interesting is to visit a time before cell phones, before the internet, before home computers, before microwaves, before (gasp) TV! I will be reading more of the books in this series (as budget allows), but this was a wonderful place to start.

[Victoria & David Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

"the couple was featured in a series of 26 Mr. and Mrs. North novels, a Broadway play, a motion picture and several radio and television series." Wikipedia

Although the plots are rather pedestrian, they nicely reflect the hard drinking chain smoking upper middleclass milieu of early 1940's New York city. The lead is a police lieutenant who becomes friends with the Norths who keep having parties which keep ending in multiple murders. It's interesting to see the authors' playing with just how ditsy to make Mrs North (think Gracie Allen, who actually played her in a movie). A pleasant though uneven read (these were the first 3 novels).

[Abbey · Rating 4 out of 5]

MURDER! MURDER!! MURDER!!!, Frances & Richard Lockridge
1956, subtitled: "A Mr. and Mrs. North Omnibus, containing THE NORTHS MEET MURDER, MURDER OUT OF TURN, A PINCH OF POISON". (The first three stories in the series).


THE NORTHS MEET MURDER, Frances/Richard Lockridge
1940, #1 Pam&Jerry North, Lt Bill Weigand NYC PD
Upper-middle-class New York City urban sophisticates (1940s style) find a dead man in a bathtub in an empty NY apartment; convoluted, almost doesn't play fair with cluing - some clues are terribly obscure - but beautifully paced and plotted, worthy of "classic" tag rather than just old/vintage; classic cosy police procedural four stars.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...


MURDER OUT OF TURN, Frances & Richard Lockridge
1941, #2 Mr & Mrs North, police Lt Weigand, NYC and rural NY state
A nice woman "with prospects" gets messily murdered at a holiday camp and then a nasty woman gets herself even more nastily killed; Weigand's busman's holiday leads to romance for him and a tightly plotted tale for the reader. Classic, very early police procedural style, four stars.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...


A PINCH OF POISON, Frances & Richard Lockridge
1941, #3 Mr. & Mrs. North, Police Lt. Weigand, New York City;
a rich-but-nice young woman who works as a volunteer social worker gets herself poisoned at a posh nightclub, and surprisingly a lot of people wanted her out of the way. Cosy genteel police procedural, four stars.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this a while ago at a library booksale because I thought the title was hilarious. Then I was trapped on a boat for three hours and resorted to actually reading it and you know what? It was great and I totally recommend it. It was funny and a mystery and also funny and not totally terrifying. Mainly I enjoyed it because it was funny and I didn't guess the ending, and cooking skillz were shown to be a useful thing to have. It wasn't the most amazing literature in the history of man, but it was a good time, and if you're looking for a good time, then look here. It's a blue book. On the spine is written "Murder! Murder!! Murder!!!" Come on.

[CW Hawes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a fan of cozies or police procedurals, for that matter. But what saved the day for the Norths and Lieutenant Weigand and Detective Mullins, are their well-drawn characters. Mrs North, especially, is a hoot. The mysteries, as such, are fairly average. Nothing outstanding. The romance in the second novel was a nice touch. All in all, the three mysteries in the collection are fun reads. So much so, I picked up the next two books in the series.

[Nell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light and fun. Believable characters, especially the thoughtful Weigand. I do wonder how they all stand up, let alone function--and drive!--with the number of cocktails they consume. I have my indolent days, but no surprise that Mrs. North is looking for some occupation; seems an empty life for an upper middle class urban wife of the 1940s.