Sat 6 Dec 2008
Archived Review – BILL S. BALLINGER: Not I, Said the Vixen; Joaquin Hawks.
Posted by Steve under Bibliographies, Lists & Checklists , Characters , Crime Fiction IV , Reviews[8] Comments
BILL S. BALLINGER – Not I, Said the Vixen
Gold Medal k1529; paperback original, 1965.
Ballinger had a long career as a mystery writer as well as working for television and the movies, but for some strange reason, this is the first book of his I’ve read. So, whether this one is any way typical or non-typical of his fiction, I couldn’t tell you.
His one-time protagonist in this largely courtroom affair is Cyrus March, perhaps the best defense attorney in the country. But unlike Perry Mason, say, March also has a drinking problem. And somewhat unlike Perry Mason, his client admits to pulling the trigger in the fatal shooting of a wealthy female socialite.
Like so many of Perry Mason’s clients, Cyrus March’s is a beautiful woman, perhaps even narcissistic, and her story is that the victim was an unknown intruder in her apartment. March’s problems with the bottle began with the death of his wife, and unlike Perry Mason, he soon declares his love for person he’s defending.
The dialogue is sometimes stilted, and the action often stagy, but every once in a while Ballinger mixes in a brilliant turn of phrase that makes you remember why you’d rather be reading instead of watching the tube. He also alternates chapters between first and third person, an unusual format that doesn’t quite click, even though you know why he’s using it.
Lesbianism is a key ingredient of what makes the courtroom drama go — it’s seemingly kept at arm’s length at first, but the nuances become less and less subtle as the story works its way out.
Rather a minor effort overall, but if you ever find a copy to read, I think it’ll keep you interested all the way through. It did me, and sometimes that’s all you need.
[UPDATE] 12-05-08. Out of curiosity, I checked again to see if Cyrus March showed up in any of Ballinger’s other mystery fiction, but I’ve found nothing to suggest that he did. Ballinger did have a series character named Joaquin Hawks, who was in five paperback originals put out by Signet in the two year period 1965-66.
As a Native American detective, tribal affiliation unknown, Hawks is mentioned in my list of N.A. sleuths on the primary M*F website, but I’ve not read any of his adventures. Another website says that he “is a case officer in the Central Intelligence Agency. His normal beat is Southeast Asia.”
If you follow that last link, you’ll find a lot more information about him. For the record, here’s a list of all five of the Joaquin Hawks books, expanded from the Revised Crime Fiction IV, by Allen J. Hubin:
HAWKS, JOAQUIN:
The Spy in the Jungle (n.) Signet D2674, pbo, May 1965 [Viet Nam]
The Chinese Mask (n.) Signet D2715, pbo, June 1965 [China]
The Spy in Bangkok (n.) Signet D2820, pbo, Dec 1965 [Thailand]
The Spy at Angkor Wat (n.) Signet D2899, pbo, May 1966 [Cambodia]
The Spy in the Java Sea (n.) Signet D2981, pbo, Sept 1966 [Far East]
December 6th, 2008 at 6:26 am
“So, whether this one is any way typical or non-typical of his fiction, I couldn’t tell you.”
I haven’t read this one, as it apparently never crossed the Atlantic, but if you are seeking for something typical of Ballinger at his best it’s better check his tours-de-forces of the fifties: Portrait in Smoke, The Tooth and the Nail, The Wife of the Red-Haired Man and the Edgar-nominated (and personal favorite) The Longest Second.
December 6th, 2008 at 8:04 am
I’m a nut for P.I. stories, so Ballinger’s first two novels that featured Chicago P.I. Barr Breed are at the top of the list for me. And I agree with Xavier on his work in the 50s. I remember “Rafferty” and “The Tooth and the Nail” as being quite good. I found the “Joaquin Hawks” novels as being a little too “goofy” for me. It seems many good authors moved over to these spy series stories in the 60s, after the success of the James Bond films. I prefer his mystery novels over these.
A damn good author….
December 6th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Xavier and August
Thanks for recommending some of Ballinger’s other work. For the one book that’s still the only one of his that I’ve read, I probably chose his most obscure one!
He’s a lot more known for the books you mention, Xavier, so I’m sure anyone would be much better off picking one of those to read, rather than VIXEN.
I also doubt that the Joaquin Hawks books are representative of his writing ability, August, but for some reason the covers have made them awfully tempting.
And I’m sorry I missed the Barr Breed books in my comments about Ballinger after the review. Here’s what Kevin Burton Smith says about him on his Thrilling Detective website https://www.thrillingdetective.com/eyes/breed.html :
“Ballinger wrote a pair of novels about Chicago P.I. BARR BREED who had a staff of three operatives. The first book [The Body In The Bed] has Breed tracking down Caroline MacKormick’s killer in a plot clearly derivative of the Maltese Falcon.
“The second novel, The Body Beautiful, has Breed hot on the trail of those responsible for the knifing of his girlfriend, Coffee Stearns, during one of her performances as a showgirl.”
More books to go on my To Be Read pile!
— Steve
December 6th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
August West wrote:
“It seems many good authors moved over to these spy series stories in the 60s, after the success of the James Bond films.”
This accounts in part for the generally dire state of American mystery fiction in the Sixties.
On the other hand, those authors had to make a living out of their work, and we can hardly blame them for turning to what was most lucrative then.
December 6th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
In terms of what hard-boiled and PI writers had to do, I think you’re right, Xavier. Many of them had to switch to pumping out mostly second-rate James Bond stuff in one form or another.
But authors who’d been writing detective novels in the Golden Age sense all along, none of them made the switch, did they? Authors like Christie, Carr, Queen, Stout and the Lockridges, they kept on doing what they were doing.
(Well, EQ did put out some non-GAD stuff in the form of paperback originals actually written by other authors.)
Other the other hand, the work of the authors I just mentioned (Christie et al.), how much of it falls into the best of what they did and what they’re most known for?
Xavier, if I may ask a question, why did you single out “American mystery writers”? Didn’t the same things happen to authors in the UK and elsewhere?
— Steve
December 6th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
The Spy Craze of course was not an uniquely American thing: it originated in the UK where it did some damage, and France too had its share of pseudo-bondiana. In America, however, the phenomenon coincided with a significant tanking of the mystery genre to which it contributed by luring good authors like Ballinger or McGerr out of the business. I may write something on the subject once I get over my writer’s block.
Regarding the GADers still active during that period, it’s safe to say most of them were slightly past their prime and thus had better keep on the old work. Bar for the unexpected flash of greatness (“The Pale Horse” for Christie, “The Doorbell Rang” for Stout or “Witch of the Low Tide” for Carr) their best work was behind them. Only EQ can be said to have been “fresh”, if uneven, for most of the decade (and ghost-writing certainly helped a lot)
Christie did some forays in spy fiction, however, though it might be more apt to say that she returned to it – but it’s better not to dwell on that side of her career.
December 6th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Thanks for the tips, guys!
Ballinger is completely new to me.
I’ll have to check him out.
January 23rd, 2009 at 5:49 pm
There seems to be some misunderstanding about Joaquin Hawkes, first of all, he isn’t a detective, but a spy, a full blood Nez Perce and descendent of Chief Joseph (“I will fight no more forever.”). The conceipt of the books is that Hawkes native American looks combined with his brains and skills at languages allow him to operate in Russia, China, and the Far East in general as a local. At least one of the books has him undercover in a Russian circus with a less than stable bear playing a role. The books are short, tongue-in-cheek and generally quick reads.
Ballinger was a notable suspense novelist and his books Portrait in Smoke and The Man With Red Hair recieved critical praise. He was one of those underrecognized pros who had a good career but never a spectacular one. Toward the end of his career he had some success with a mafia novel called The Corsican and I think it’s sequel. He was always a good writer though never a major one.