Sun 21 Aug 2016
Reviewed by William F. Deeck: CARTER DICKSON – He Wouldn’t Kill Patience.
Posted by Steve under Reviews[4] Comments
William F. Deeck
CARTER DICKSON – He Wouldn’t Kill Patience. William Morrow, hardcover, 1944. Paperback reprints include: Dell #370, mapback edition, 1950; Berkley X1339, 1966; IPL, 1988.
The Royal Albert Zoological Gardens is an unlikely place to find Sir Henry Merrivale. He loathes snakes, but he is at the zoo to observe how they are milked for their venom. When an angry magician breaks open two glass cages, unleashing a tropical American lizard, large size, and a Gila monster, not too small, H.M. becomes the creatures’ target.
That’s not the least of H.M.’s problems. He comes to dine with an old friend only w discover that the friend has died of coal gas inhalation within a locked room. Though he is convinced that it was murder, how can H.M. explain not only the locked room, but the fact that paper strips have been glued to all the openings from inside the room? Furthermore. H.M. isn’t through with the snakes, who play more than one role in the investigation.
First-class Dickson.
August 23rd, 2016 at 9:21 pm
I agree, first class Dickson and HM. The slapstick is funny and HM brilliant.
August 23rd, 2016 at 9:35 pm
I was talking to my brother tonight — he’s a big John Dickson Carr fan, and a locked room enthusiast in general — and when he reminded me about the solution (I’d forgotten), well, let’s just say that I don’t think it would have worked. Ingenious, yes, but workable? I don’t think so.
Nonetheless, given the opportunity, I’d gladly read this one again.
August 24th, 2016 at 6:06 pm
Curt Evans reviewed this novel for Mystery File back in 2010. He liked it alot also.
August 25th, 2016 at 9:52 am
Yes, he did, and here’s the link:
https://mysteryfile.com/blog/?p=2163