INIGO JONES – The Albatross Murders.   The Mystery Novel of the Month #33; digest-sized paperback reprint, 1941. Hardcover first edition: Mystery House, 1941.

   Inigo Jones, a pseudonym, wrote two mystery novels under that name: this one and The Clue of the Hungry Corpse (1939). The latter has nothing to recommend It, but The Albatross Murders I found quite enjoyable.

   Somewhere in the Northeast, in a city that would have been a stop on the Underground Railroad, some young thespians are putting on a play.

   On opening night, an actor who is to be shot as part of the script is shot In reality, and the player shooting him — as part of the play or for real, deliberately or because someone gave him a loaded pistol by mistake or with malice aforethought — exits the stage and keeps on going out of the theater. An oddity in the killing is there is no bullet in the dead man and no exit wound.

   Besides the gaggle of actors and actresses, the deceased’s sister, who loathed him and is not very pleasant besides, was at the opening night and might have committed the, murder, if only it could be figured out how the killing was accomplished if the actor who was supposed to have shot him as part of the play didn’t do it and what became of the bullet. And what does the history of the area have to do with the murder? Nothing? Everything?

   Sebastian Booth, State Police Inspector, solves the case and explains how the murder was done satisfactorily — even though it’s as Rube Goldbergish a method as I have encountered in some time — in about twenty-four. hours, but meanwhile three more people have died.

   Booth is a delightful detective with a great deal of personality. He knows his mind and speaks it. In a case with many theater people, Booth says: “I’d as soon have a Gila monster around the house as an actress. Or an actor, either. I’ll be glad when this case is broken. I long for the company of a simple-hearted thief or an honest hatchet murderer.”

   It is Booth’s presence that makes The Albatross Murders a mystery worth reading.

Editorial Comment:   Longtime readers of this blog may remember that I reviewed this book several years ago. Check out my comments here. (All in all, I agree with Bill. This is not surprising, as Bill was seldom wrong.)

    Not only that, but I followed up the review with a post entitled The Compleat INIGO JONES, wherein I included every piece of information I could come up with about the author, which unfortunately did not include his (or her) real name.

    Have I learned anything about Inigo Jones since then? Alas, the answer is no.