Authors


   This profile appears also in Part 21 of the Addenda to the Revised Crime Fiction IV, by Allen J. Hubin. Some of the dates of the Australian editions of Afford’s book were revised and reported on in Part 5, then Fender Tucker (of Ramble House fame) came along and added the first US editions of most of the titles.

   So much new data to include, in other words, that it necessitated a complete revamp of his entry, and here it is.

AFFORD, MAX. Working name of Malcom R. Afford, 1906-1954. Born in Adelaide, noted playwright and radio producer with a biennial award given in his name to young Australian dramatists. Author of more than sixty radio and stage plays, with six crime novels and two books of plays included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV; see below. This now constitutes the author’s complete entry. Series character: Jeffery Blackburn (JB). Blackburn is a freelance sleuth who continually offers his services to Chief Inspector William Read on some very interesting cases.

      Blood on His Hands! John Long, UK, hc, 1936. (JB) Setting: Melbourne, Australia. Add US edition: Ramble House, pb, 2006. Also published as: An Ear for Murder, Johnson (Sydney, Australia), ca. 1947. Correction of tentative publication date of Australian edition. “A thriller with ‘impossible’ overtones, including a locked room murder.”

MAX AFFORD - Blood on His Hands

      The Dead Are Blind. John Long, UK, hc, 1937. (JB) Add US edition: Ramble House, pb, 2007. [A locked room murder takes place in a radio studo while a mystery play is being broadcast.]

      Death’s Mannikins. John Long, UK, hc, 1937. (JB) Also published as: The Dolls of Death, Johnson, Australia, 1947. Correction of publication date of Australian edition. Add US edition: Ramble House, pb, 2006. “ … about a country manor where every member of the family has a mannikin that looks like him. When one turns up, the person dies, horribly.”

MAX AFFORD - Death's Mannikins

       _The Dolls of Death. Sydney, Australia: Johnson, pb, 1947. Correction of publication date. Previously published as Death’s Mannikins (Long, 1937).

      _An Ear to Murder. Sydney, Australia: Johnson, pb, ca.1947. Correction of publication date. Previously published as Blood on His Hands! (Long, 1936).

      Fly by Night. John Long, UK, hc, 1942. (JB) Also published as: Owl of Darkness (Angus, 1942; Ramble House, 2006). Add the latter as the first US edition.

      Lady in Danger. Sydney, Australia: Mulga, pb, 1944. [This edition with Afford alone.] Later edition in collaboration with Alexander Kirkland and some variations in text: French, 1946. [3-act play]

      _Lady in Danger [with Alexander Kirkland]. French, pb, 1946. Revised from 1944 Mulga edition written by Afford alone.

      Mischief in the Air. Australia: University of Queensland Press, pb, 1974. Collection of plays. Add complete listing, below. Those criminous are indicated with an asterisk (*).
         Consulting Room
         *Lady in Danger
         Lazy in the Sun
         *Mischief in the Air
         William Light–The Founder

      _Owl of Darkness. Angus, Australia, hc, 1942. Previously published as Fly by Night (Long, 1942). Add US edition: Ramble House, pb, 2006. “A classic impossible crime novel about a villain dressed as an owl terrorizing a quaint village.” Shown is the cover of a Collins paperback reprint with a photograph of the author on the front.

MAX AFFORD - Owl of Darkness

      The Sheep and the Wolves. Sydney, Australia: Johnson, pb, 1947. (JB) Setting: Australia. Correction of publication date.

      Sinners in Paradise. Sydney, Australia: Johnson, pb, 1946. Setting: Australia. Correction of publication date.

   I decided to fill in some of the gaps in Part 9 last night, but time was limited, and I didn’t get very far. I discovered that one of the authors whose career I chose to look into, Charles Beardsley, wrote a list of titles as long as your forearm, but Al Hubin is correct, only two of them qualify for inclusion in Crime Fiction IV.

   Beau Riffenburgh, another of the authors covered in this posting, is one of those people whom you wonder about. How can they find so much time in the day to do all they do? Read on.

BATTYE, GLADYS STARKEY. 1915-1975. Add year of death. Pseudonym: Margaret Lynn, q.v.

BEARDSLEY, CHARLES (NOEL). 1914-1994. Date of death confirmed. Pseudonym: Jocelyn Radcliffe, q.v. Born in California; held many jobs around the world, including those of port representative in the Philippines and engineering reports writer in Khuzestan. He became a full-time writer in 1968. Under his own name, the author of many novels, most often as US paperback originals; two early thrillers are included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
            Baksheesh and Roses. Mayflower, UK, pb, 1968.
            A Raging Wind. Davies, UK, hc, 1961. Setting: Morocco.

Beardsley: Raging Wind

BEAUFORT, SIMON. Joint pseudonym of husband-and-wife writing team Elizabeth Cruwys, 1958- , and Beau Riffenburgh, 1955- , q.v. Add year of birth for the latter. Under this pen name, the authors of two historical mystery novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below. Add series character in each: Sir Geoffrey Mappestone, a Medieval knight whose first brush with murder occurs while on a Crusade. Since 2000 there have been at least three more titles in the series. Dr Beau Riffenburgh and Dr Elizabeth Cruwys have also been editor and assistant editor for Polar Record, an internationally refereed journal of polar research. Note: On her own, Elizabeth Cruwys also writes historical mysteries as Susanna Gregory.
      A Head for Poisoning. St. Martin’s, hc, 1999. Setting: England, 1101 AD.
      Murder in the Holy City. St. Martin’s, hc, 1998. Setting: Jerusalem, 1100 AD.

Beaufort: Murder in Holy City

LYNN, MARGARET. Pseudonym of Gladys Starkey Battye, 1915-1975, q.v. Add year of death. Under this pen name, the author of six novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. First published in the UK, all six were reprinted in the US, five in hardcover. When published in the US in paperback editions, the books were generally considered to be a gothic romantic suspense novels.

RADCLIFFE, JOCELYN. Pseudonym of Charles Beardsley, 1914-1994, q.v. Confirm date of death. Under the pen name, the author of one gothic romantic suspense novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Blackwood. Curtis, pb, 1974. Setting: California. “Blood ties turned into a stranglehold of horror in a place where a kiss could kill.”

Radcliffe: Blackwood

RIFFENBURGH, BEAU. 1955- . Add year of birth. Joint pseudonym with Elizabeth Elizabeth Cruwys, 1958- : Simon Beaufort, q.v. He is not only a mystery writer, but both a historian specializing in polar exploration and a noted expert on American football, with many publications to his credit.

   I decided to finish up the W’s in Part 9 this morning, which quickly required backtracking and filling in details for two prolific and popular but now relatively forgotten authors, Patricia Matthews and Alan Sewart, along with their various pen names. (Along with, of course, the rest of the W’s.)

BRISCO, PATTY. Pseudonym of Patricia (Anne Klein) Matthews, 1927-2006, q.v. Add death date. Under this pen name, the author of four gothic romantic suspense novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV, all in unstated collaboration with her husband, writer Clayton Matthews. One of these is shown below (Avon, pb, 1973).

Brisco: Crystal Window

MATTHEWS, PATRICIA (ANNE KLEIN) (née ERNST). 1927-2006. Add year of death. Pseudonyms: Patty Brisco, Laura Wylie, qq.v. Married Marvin Owen Brisco, 1946, divorced 1961; married writer Clayton Matthews, with whom she often collaborated, 1972. Best known for her historical romance novels, with titles such as Love’s Avenging Heart, beginning in the late 1970s; also a prolific writer of Gothic and romantic suspense novels, with over 15 included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV under her own name and two pen names. Series character Casey Farrel, at least in one book a female member of the Governor of Arizona’s task force on crime, appeared in four books, each in collaboration with Clayton Matthews. The cover image of one is shown below (London & New York: Severn House, 1994).

Matthews: Sound of Murde


NASH, PADDER
. Pseudonym of Alan Sewart, 1928-1998, q.v. Under this pen name, the author of eight detective novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. Published between 1982 and 1986 by Robert Hale in the UK, all eight feature Sgt. Boggis as the primary series character, but that each of them has the word “Grass” in the title indicates the stories are told through the eyes of a professional informer. One of these is shown below (Hale, 1982).

Padder Nash: Grass's Fancy

SEWART, ALAN. 1928-1998. Add year of death. At one time Chief Inspector of police in Bolton, Lancashire, UK. Pseudonyms: Padder Nash, Alan Stewart Well, qq.v. Under his own name, the author of 24 detective and thriller mysteries included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. Published only in the UK by Robert Hale between 1978 and 1986, the starring character in five of them is Sgt. Harry Chamberlayne, while Chief Superintendent Evans appears in another four. (Neither appears in the novel shown below, Hale, 1979.)

Sewart: Salome Syndrome

WELL, ALAN STEWART. Pseudonym of Alan Sewart, 1928-1998, q.v. Add year of death. Under this pen name, the author of four mystery novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV, all published in the UK by Robert Hale between 1980 and 1984.

WHITE, VALERIE. 1915-1975. Add both dates and the following biographical data: Born in South Africa; trained as a commercial artist; stage and television actress, mostly in England. Author of three mystery novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Case. Arthur Barker, UK, hc, 1954. SC: John Case.
      Case for Treachery. Arthur Barker, UK, hc, 1955. SC: John Case. “A nuclear thriller.”
      Lost Person. William Heinemann, UK, hc, 1957. Add SC: John Case. [The beautiful wife of one of the richest men in the world first disappeared from her hotel in Cannes in 1935.]

WILLIAMSON, GEOFFREY
. 1897- . Year of death not known. Author of one marginally crime-related novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      -The Lovable Outlaw. William Heinemann, UK, hc, 1930. Add setting: India.

WISE, ERNIE. 1925-1999. Add year of death. Born Ernest Wiseman, he changed his name when he went into show business at a young age. As a comedian, well known as part of the comedy duo, Morecombe and Wise, considered by Wikipedia as “an institution on British television.” With Eric Morecambe, co-author of one book included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Morecambe & Wise Special. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, UK, hc, 1977, hc. A humor miscellany, including a short Sherlockian parody: “The Whitechapel Murders: A Tale of Sheerluck Holmes and Dr. Wits-end.”

WYLIE, LAURA. Pseudonym of Patricia (Anne Klein) Matthews, 1927-2006, q.v. Add year of death. Under this pen name, the author of one novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Night Visitor. Pinnacle, pb, 1979. Reprinted as by Patricia Matthews, Severn House, 1988. Delete series character: Casey Farrrel does not appear, even though so stated in the CD version of CFIV.

   In the limited time I had today to spend working on Part 9 of the Addenda, I was in the W’s, but branched out from there as usual. No big names this time around, but they all wrote crime fiction, in one form or another.

MOREL, DIGHTON. Pseudonym of Kenneth Louis Warner, 1915-1990, q.v. Under this pen name, the author of one title in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV perhaps more science-fictional than crime related. See below.
      -Moonlight Red. Secker & Warburg, UK, hc, 1960. Add the dash. Ned Brooks provided the following description of the book, based on the author’s entry in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy, by Donald H. Tuck: “An apocalyptic disaster novel in which an epidemic drives everyone mad.”

PALMER, JOHN. Pseudonym of Edgar John Palmer Watts, 1904-1988, q.v. Add year of death. [Note: This is not the John Palmer who with Hilary St. George Saunders wrote under the joint pen name of Francis Beeding.] Under this byline Watts wrote four crime adventure novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below. Series characters Guy Plant and Freya Matthews (P/M) appeared together in two of them.
      Above and Below. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1967. Setting: Ship. (P/M)
      The Caves of Claro. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1964.
      Cretan Cipher. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1965. Setting: Crete.

Palmer- Cretan Cipher

      So Much for Gennaro. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1968. Setting: Ship. (P/M)

SELWYN. Pseudonym of Selwyn Victor Watson, 1912-1989, q.v. Add both dates. Under this pen name, the author of one mystery novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Operation Ballerina. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1953. A review in Punch begins: “The secret agent. The blonde. The gun. The coincidences. The brutality … ”

WANDER, KEITH W. 1941-2001. Add year of death. Born in Buffalo NY, lived after retirement north of Traverse City MI. Author of two works of Christian fiction, both mysteries included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. Add the one marked with an asterisk (*) below.
      Brothers for Life. Illinois: Crossway Books, pb, 1991. Add setting: Michigan (Leelanau County).
      (*) Last Resort. Illinois: Crossway Books, pb, 1990. Setting: Michigan (Leelanau County).

Wander- Last Resort.

WARNER, KENNETH LOUIS. 1915-1990. Correct spelling of middle name and add year of death. Pseudonym: Dighton Morel, q.v.

WATTS, EDGAR JOHN PALMER. 1904-1988. Add year of death. Pseudonym: John Palmer, q.v.

WATSON, SELWYN VICTOR. 1912-1989. Add both dates. Pseudonym: Selwyn, q.v.

   I continued to work in Part 9 this afternoon, still in the S’s but getting into the T’s. As you’ll quickly see, this entailed some backtracking to fill in the cross-referencing that developed.

BOUNDS, SYDNEY JAMES. 1920-2006. Add year of death. Pseudonyms: Max Storm, George Sydney, qq.v. Other pseudonyms: Maxwell Chance, V. L. Scott. Born in Brighton, England. An early science fiction fan and writer, he later branched out into other fields: crime novels, westerns, war stories and others. Much of his mystery fiction was written under house names; included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV are nine such novels, the bylines being Brett Diamond, Earl Ellison, Rick Madison, Rex Marlowe, Desmond Reid & Peter Saxon. One of these is shown below: White Mercenary [as by Peter Saxon], Amalgamated Press, UK, pb, 1962. SC: Sexton Blake. [Rewritten by W. Howard Baker.]

Peter Saxon: White Mercenary

KEY, L. J. Pseudonym of Daniel Tamkus, 1934- . Add confirmed year of birth. Under this pen name, the author of one marginal crime-horror novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      -The Spawn. Dell, pb, 1983. [The Royces – a special family, a privileged clan living in a closely guarded enclave, a paradise of wealth and tradition no stranger could penetrate. They thought themselves safe…]

STORM, MAX. Pseudonym of Sydney James Bounds, 1920-2006, q.v. Add year of death. Under this pen name, the author of one paperback original included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Murder Be My Mistress. Badger, UK, pb, 1959. Also published as: The Set-Up, as by J. K. Baxter (Badger, 1962).

SWIFT, FRANCINE MORRIS. 1938-2007. Add both dates. Described as a true Sherlockian, a long-time member of the Adventuresses of Sherlock Holmes (“Hatty Doran”); received her investiture in the Baker Street Irregulars in 1994. One short work is included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Hound’s Tale. London: Sherlock Holmes Society, pb, 18 pages, 1992. SC: Sherlock Holmes. [A chapbook offering a “decidedly canine view of the events on Dartmoor.”]

SWIFT, RACHELLE. Pseudonym of Jean Barbara Lumsden, 1916-1998. Add year of death. Under this pen name, author of a number of romance novels; two with mystery content are included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The House at Green Bay. Robert Hale, UK, hc, 1969. Setting: New Zealand.
      A Taunt from the Past. Robert Hale, UK, hc, 1970. Setting: Wellington, NZ.

SYDNEY, GEORGE. Pseudonym of Sydney James Bounds, 1920-2006, q.v. Under this pen name, the author of one Sexton Blake novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Countdown for Murder. Amalgamated Press, UK, pb, 1962. SC: Sexton Blake. Note: According to a website devoted to the character, the book was revised by W. Howard Baker & George Paul Mann.

George Sydney: Countdown for Murder

TACK, ALFRED. 1906-1993. Add year of death. Born and lived in London, England. Besides a number of non-fiction books on marketing and business management, Tack was the author of 16 mystery novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. Of these books, published between 1946 and 1975, only four have been reprinted in the US. A series character named John Harley appeared in four of his earliest mysteries, including his first, shown below (Herbert Jenkins, 1946). In this book Harley, formerly of the Royal Artillery, is a new salesman for a firm whose managing director has just been murdered.

Alfred Tack: Selling's Murder

TALBOT, HAYDEN. 1892- . Add year of birth; date of death unknown. Born in New York NY. Father of Betsy Talbot Blackwell, editor-in-chief of Mademoiselle between 1937 and 1971. A grandson, James Madison Blackwell IV, was on the staff of Newsweek from 1963 to 1985. Playwright and author of one work included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      It Is the Law. Allen & Unwin, UK, hc, 1923. Silent film: Fox, 1924 (scw: Curtis Benton; dir: J. Gordon Edwards). A play by Elmer Rice was earlier based on Talbot’s original story (1922). (The link leads to a full synopsis and review.)

TAMKUS, DANIEL. 1934- . Add confirmed year of birth. Pseudonym: L. J. Key, q.v. Under his own name, author of story or screenwriter for two Hollywood films.

   You realize, of course, that this includes only a small portion of the Smiths whose entries can be found in Allen J. Hubin’s Crime Fiction IV. These came from Part 9 of the online Addenda to the Revised CFIV.

   The first of these is, so far as I can tell without having actually having read one, a prime candidate for inclusion in Kevin Burton Smith’s online compendium of fictional private eyes, to be found at thrillingdetective.com:

SMITH, CYNTHIA (S.). 1934- . Add confirmed year of birth & middle initial; delete previous reference to CA. Author of books on marriage and business, plus a five book series of adventures of Emma Rhodes, “private resolver” who traveled around the world solving problems of the rich and famous for a $20,000 fee. Results were guaranteed within two weeks or the fee was returned.
      Impolite Society. Berkley, pb, 1997. Setting: Portugal.

Cynthia Smith: Impolite Society

      Misleading Ladies. Berkley, pb, 1997. Setting: England.
      Noblesse Oblige. Berkley, pb, 1997. Setting: Brussels.
      Royals and Rogues. Berkley, pb, 1998. Setting: Russia.

Cynthia Smith: Royals and Rogues

      Silver and Guilt. Berkley, pb, 1998. Setting: London.

SMITH, MARY-ANN TIRONE
. 1944- . Ref: CA. Born in Hartford CT; married Jere Smith. Author of several novels, including one literary thriller included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      An American Killing. Headline, UK, hc, 1998. Henry Holt, US, hc, 1998. Setting: Washington DC, Rhode Island. [True-crime writer Denise Burke’s research into a new book may be involved with the death of a US Congressman.] Note: FBI agent Penelope “Poppy” Rice, a minor character in this book, reappeared as the primary detective in Love Her Madly (Holt, 2002) and at least one other subsequent book.

Smith: American Killing

SMITH, MICHAEL MARSHALL. 1965- . Ref: CA. Author of science fiction and thriller novels and short stories. Lives in London; his first three novels are included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV.
      One of Us. Collins, UK, hc, 1998. Bantam, US, hc, 1998. Setting: Los Angeles, 2017. Publishers Weekly: “Smith’s ear for the nuances of classic hard-boiled narrative is surpassed only by his skill at exceeding expectations for the conventional mystery/suspense tale.”
      Only Forward. Collins, UK, pb, 1994. Bantam, US, pb, 2000. “Futuristic work that features Stark, a tough loner who is hired to find and retrieve a kidnapping victim in his home metropolis.”

Smith: Only Forward

      Spares. Collins, UK, hc, 1996. Bantam, US, hc, 1997. Setting: Virginia, future. [A former cop named Jack Randall frees several clones being held prisoner for their body parts.]

SMITH, NAOMI GLADISH.
1935- . Add confirmed year of birth. Born in England to American parents, now lives in Illinois and Florida. Currently the author of Christian fiction; her first book was a gothic romance, a mystery novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Buried Remembrance. Ace, pb, 1976. “She fled the pain-filled memories of love, but Death would not let her forget …”

SMITH, NEVILLE (ROY?). 1940-1998? Add tentative middle name and year of death. British actor and TV screenwriter with one film to his credit; also the author of the novelized version. See below.
      Gumshoe. Fontana, UK, pb, 1971. Ballantine, US, pb, 1972. Setting: Liverpool. Novelization of film: Columbia, 1971 (scw: Neville Smith; dir: Stephen Frears). Leading character: amateur PI Eddie Ginley (Albert Finney). A Time magazine review of the film is available online.

Neville Smith: Gumshoe

SMITH, WYNNE. 1953- . Add year of birth. Author of a regency romance novel sufficiently criminous to be included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Rushmoreland Rubies. Pageant, pb, 1988. Setting: England, 1800s. Published as Regency Romantic Intrigue Series, Book 1. [Lady seeking the rubies disguises herself as a housemaid in the home of the man who inherited them after the mysterious deaths of two heirs.]

   After spending the afternoon scraping a quarter inch of ice off my driveway, I decided that less strenuous activity was the order of the remainder of the day. More from Part 9 follows, mostly in the S’s.

RYTON, ROYCE (THOMAS CARLISLE). 1924- . Add both middle names. Noted playwright with one criminous drama included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Unvarnished Truth. London: French, pb, 1978. [3-act play, a comedy-farce: A row between a married couple leaves the woman dead.]

SANCTON, THOMAS [SR.]. 1915- . Add as a new author entry. Born in the Panama Canal Zone. Managing editor of The New Republic in 1943; wrote extensively on race and the South while with the magazine and later as Washington editor of The Nation. Currently at work in New Orleans on a memoir of his early involvement in civil rights movement. Father of Thomas A. Sancton, jazz clarinetist & former Paris bureau chief for Time magazine.
      -Count Roller Skates. Doubleday, 1956. Setting: New Orleans. Reprinted as The Magnificent Rascal, Crest, pb, 1958. From a Time magazine review: “… camera-eye reporting on jazz joints, brothels and the irrecoverable sights and sounds of New Orleans before World War I.”

Sancton: Count Roller Skates

      _The Magnificent Rascal. See: Count Roller Skates (Doubleday, 1956).

SANDERS, ELSIE H(ELEN?). 1919?-1994? Tentatively add middle name and both dates. Author of one novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Kenya Nights. Grayson & Grayson, UK, hc, 1944. Setting: Kenya. “… novel of romance, jealousy, attacks by leopards & mad natives …”

SARMIENTO, DOROTHY
. 1908-1995. Add both dates. Author of one mystery novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below:
      Roles and Relations. Chapman & Hall, UK, hc, 1956. Setting: England. “… a murder story set in a country house where a group of psychiatrists are meeting.”

SAVI, E(THEL) W(INIFRED) née BRYNING. 1865-1954. [Slightly revised biography.] Mother of Gerald B. Savi, q.v. Born in Calcutta; privately educated. Married John Savi in 1884 and lived in rural India until 1896. Settled in England, 1909, when she began to write. One of her many romantic novels is marginally criminous and is included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      -The Devil Drives. Putnam, UK, hc, 1921. Putnam, US, hc, 1922. Setting: India.

SAVI, GERALD B(ARTON). Son of novelist E(thel) W(inifred) Savi, q.v. Spent ten years in an official capacity in Burma and author of a number of novels set there; many are criminous, at least marginally. Five are included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV, including the first cited below; add the one indicated with an asterisk (*).
      -Alive or Dead. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1938. Add setting: Burma.

Savi: Alive or Dead

      (*) The White Pig. Hodder & Stoughton, UK, hc, 1937. Setting: Burma. “… a thriller concerned with government officials in Naga country and the Burmese jungles.”

   Continuing in Part 9 this evening, but shifting slightly downward in the alphabet to the R’s. I imagine that the name of the first entry will produce a number of hits to this blog, but he is not he, and in fact was a she. The other authors produced a nice balance between those about whom much information was obtainable, and those about whom essentially nothing was found. Help if you can.

REEVE, CHRISTOPHER. Pseudonym of Dorothy Anna Maria Webb, 1900?-1985?, q.v. Add full name of author and tentative dates. She wrote seven mystery novels between 1929 to 1948 under this pen name, five of them eventually published in the US. All are included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. The jacket for one of them is shown below (Morrow, US, 1930). A review of The Ginger Cat, touted on the cover, was reviewed in The Harvard Crimson, November 9, 1929.

Christopher Reeve: The Toasted Blonde

REYNOLDS, FATHER BRAD (RICHARD), S. J. 1948- . Add middle name and year of birth. A Jesuit priest presently living in Portland OR. Lived at one time in Alaska; has written over 300 articles published in National Geographic, America, Alaska and American Scholar etc. In addition, the author of four mystery novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below. Series character in each: Father Mark Townsend, S. J., also a Jesuit priest.
      Cruel Sanctuary. Avon, pb, 1999. Setting: Washington state.
      Deadly Harvest. Avon, pb, 1999. Setting: Washington state.
      A Ritual Death. Avon, pb, 1997. Setting: Washington state.

Reynolds: A Ritual Death

      The Story Knife. Avon, pb, 1996. Setting: Alaska.

RICE, ROBERT. 1926-2000? Add tentative year of death. Author of one novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Mongrel Sabbath. Excalibur Press, UK, pb, 1995.

RICH, NICHOLAS.
1916?-1984? Add tentative dates. Author of three espionage thrillers included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below. Series character in each: Adam Hood.
      The Blane Document. Robert Hale, UK, hc, 1972. Setting: Australia.
      The Seajet Spies. Robert Hale, UK, hc, 1973. Setting: Australia.
      Spy Now, Pay Later. Robert Hale, UK, hc, 1972.

RICHARDS, C(ECIL) J(OHN). 1894?-1989? Add tentative dates. Author of one short story collection included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      No Buses Running. Warren, UK, hc, 1956. Story collection, some criminous. Setting: Burma.

RICHARDSON, GEOFFREY.
1929-2003. Add year of death. His ‘second career’ was as an author of books about Richard III and the War of the Roses; one of these novels is included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Deceivers. Baildon Books, UK, hc, 1997. Setting: London, 1480s. [A radical solution for the puzzle of who killed the Princes in the Tower.]

Richardson: The Deceivers

RICHARDSON, H(ENRY) M(ARRIOTT). 1876-1936. Add confirmed year of birth plus year of death. Born in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent; educated in private schools; journalist, editor, leader writer, drama critic, playwright; a founder of the International Federation of Journalists. Author of several plays and two crime novels included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      The Rock of Justice. Hutchinson, UK, hc, 1928.
      The Temple Murder. Hutchinson, UK, hc, 1926.

WEBB, DOROTHY ANNA MARIA. 1900?-1985? Add full name and tentative dates. Pseudonym: Christopher Reeve, q.v. Born in Leicestershire; editor and reader for various publishers; living in South Kensington in the 1930s.

   I might be able to make a reasonable guess as to who the cover artist is, but since there’s no indication and I’m not sure, I’ve decided not to make myself look foolish. Philip Race was the pen name of E. M. Parsons; he wrote three crime fiction novels under this name, the other two for Gold Medal; and one as Parsons, that one for Avon.

PHILIP RACE Johnny Come Deadly

HILLMAN 179. Paperback original, 1960.

      From the back cover:

JOHNNY ON THE SPOT

   Johnny was just a crap game hustler, but when he blew into town they pegged him wrong. The cops said, “Killer,” and slugged him simple. “Lover,” the rich gal said, and got him even worse mixed up. Next came the ex-striptease queen with the heart of gold or pewter, and the Happiness Boys from the Syndicate…

   All Johnny had going for him was fast pair of legs, a faster set of wits, and just maybe, the one female around who could be counted on to win it or lose it for keeps. A fickle broad named Lady Luck.

   I think we had more snow yesterday afternoon and evening than we did all last winter. It was well over a foot of the white stuff. After cleaning up the last bit of it from the driveway this morning, I returned to Part 9 of the Addenda and worked in the P section. Don Pendleton is obviously the best known author of this particular grouping, but the others seem to have been interesting people too.

PATTINSON, JAMES. 1915- . Prolific British author of approximately 100 mystery thrillers included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV, plus five published after 2000, including one scheduled for 2008. One of his earlier novels (Hale, 1968) is shown immediately below:

James Pattinson

      Cordley’s Castle. Robert Hale, UK, hc, 1974. Add setting: Arizona.

PAVILLARD, STANLEY SEPTIMUS. 1913-1997. Add year of death. Born in the Canary Islands; founder and director of the British American Clinics Las Palmas, 1956-89. Captured by the Japanese in Singapore early in World War II; wrote of his experiences in Bamboo Doctor. After developing partial blindness in later life, dictated a novel also related to his captivity, a book included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Enemy No. 19. Edinburgh, Scotland: The Pentland Press, hc, 1997. Setting: Far East. “One is apt to forget there was also a Holocaust in the Far East as well as Europe.”

Enemy No. 19

PAYNE, EVELYN. 1907-1977? Author of one mystery novel included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV. See below.
      Held Open for Death. Arcadia House, hc, 1958. Add setting: El Paso TX. Leading character: fledgling real estate agent Tillie Latimer. [For a review of this book, see the previous post.]

Evelyn Payne

PEARSON, JOHN. 1930- . Lives in London; author of two novelsl [FOOTNOTE] included in the (Revised) Crime Fiction IV, plus one fictional “biography.” See below. This now constitutes the author’s completely revised CFIV entry:
      Delete: Dragon’s Play. [Stoddart, Canada, hc, 1987.] The book does not appear to exist.
      Add: Gone To Timbuctoo. Collins, UK, hc, 1962. Setting: Africa.
      James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007. Sidgwick & Jackson, UK, hc, 1973. Wm. Morrow, US, hc, 1973. SC: James Bond.

John Pearson: James Bond

      The Kindness of Dr. Avicenna. Macmillan, UK, hc, 1982. Holt Rinehart & Winston, US, hc, 1982. Setting: Rome. [A Prince gets kidnapping insurance through Lloyd’s and soon disappears from his palazzo in Rome.]

John Pearson - Avicenna

PENDLETON, DON(ALD EUGENE). 1927-1995. As the creator of Mack Bolan, or “The Executioner” series, generally perceived as the father of the modern action-adventure novel. The first Bolan book was in 1969; after 1980 other authors took over the writing, but the books still appeared under Pendleton’s name.
      Death Squad. Vivid Comics, 1996. Graphic novel, with scripting by Pendleton’s widow, Linda Pendleton, 1942- , q.v. Art by Sandi Florea. [Note: Death Squad is the second “Executioner” novel; the first, War Against the Mafia, appeared earlier in a serialized comic book format: Parts One, Two and Three were adapted and scripted by Don Pendleton & Linda Pendleton, with art by Sandu Florea: Innovation Comics, 1993. Part Four did not appear after the publisher went out of business.]

Don Pendleton: Executioner comic book

PENDLETON, LINDA. 1942- . Add as a new author entry. See: Don(ald Eugene) Pendleton, 1927-1995.


[FOOTNOTE] 12-28-07. See Hank Reineke’s comment. This has prompted a complete overhauling of John Pearson’s entry. See this later post for more details.

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