Sat 28 Jan 2023
This actually is a small tiny fraction of my To Be Read pile. I brought this stack up from the basement late last night, almost entirely at random.
The question is, which of these should I read next? Any recommendations? Any I should stay far away from?
Here’s hoping you can read both the authors and the titles:
January 28th, 2023 at 3:20 pm
I vote you go straight to the Brett Halliday.
January 28th, 2023 at 3:26 pm
A good choice, especially since it’s one by Davis Dresser himself, not one of the others whom he allowed to keep the series going. They’re good but not always as good as Dresser’s own.
January 28th, 2023 at 4:41 pm
The one closest to my heart (and the only one of these I own a copy of) is the 1975 AHMM best of, as “edited by AH” (I’d still like to know who edited these best-of AHMM volumes for Dell; it would make sense if they were edited by the various HITCHCOCK’S editors, as opposed to the Random House AH PRESENTS: books edited by Robert Arthur till his death, and Harold Q. Masur till AH’s death and the end of the RH series. But I’ve received Nays and Dunnos exclusively, more the latter.)
Here’s the FictionMags Index citation for this antho:
Murderers’ Row “ed. Alfred Hitchcock” (Dell, May 1975, 6036, 95¢, 205pp, pb)
7 · Introduction · Alfred Hitchcock · in (r)
11 · Nice Guy · Richard Deming · nv Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine November 1969
34 · The Bridge in Briganza · Frank Sisk · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine February 1968
40 · Thicker Than Water · Henry Slesar · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine November 1961
56 · The Artificial Liar · William Brittain · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine April 1972
72 · For Money Received · Fletcher Flora · nv Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine October 1964
108 · The Complete Secretary · Theodore Mathieson · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine February 1972
118 · The Hypothetical Arsonist · Rog Phillips · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine December 1965
133 · Who Will Miss Arthur? · Ed Lacy · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine October 1967
142 · Arbiter of Uncertainties · Edward D. Hoch · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine September 1969
156 · Slow Motion Murder · Richard H. Hardwick · nv Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine July 1965
178 · Never Marry a Witch · C. B. Gilford · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine February 1966
189 · The Second Thief · David A. Heller · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine December 1971
194 · The Nice Young Man · Richard O. Lewis · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine January 1973
202 · A Message from Aunt Lucy · Arthur Porges · ss Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine January 1967
http://www.philsp.com/homeville/fmi/e00/e00449.htm#A23
I recall Gilford’s being a horror story, which apparently led to the Dell reprint in the ’80s calling the whole contents horror, sorta. King and such, y’know.
January 28th, 2023 at 5:14 pm
Todd, as far who actually edited the Hitchcock book, add another “dunno” to the list from me. I thought if anyone knew, it might be you. The list of authors in it is completely representative of the ones who took up most of the pages of AHMM at the time. If you loved the magazine back then, you’d really love the book too.
As far as my reading it now, I’ll probably dip into sometime, but maybe not soon, packing and choosing.
January 28th, 2023 at 4:53 pm
I’d go Halliday, Gardner, or Mahannah. Don’t I recall some sort of plagiarism scandal about Dimitri Gat’s books? I’ve never read any of them.
January 28th, 2023 at 5:09 pm
You’re right about Dmitri Gat, James. I found a link online to an article that begins:
“…a complex plagiarism dispute has erupted in New York, pitting best-selling writer John D. MacDonald, creator of the Travis McGee series, and his publisher Fawcett against Avon Books and its author Dimitri Gat, who is accused of using large parts of a 1975 McGee mystery to write his latest novel, “Nevsky’s Demon,” published in May.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1983/07/15/finding-the-real-mcgee/ab22c499-965f-4a84-aca4-3c8d70c3f910/
I’ll pass on the one in this stack as well.
January 28th, 2023 at 5:20 pm
I liked the Lovejoy books by Jonathan Gash; the protagonist is an antiques “divvie”, i.e. he can tell if antique items are genuine by touching them. Also he knows how to make exceptionally good fake antiques. These are sort of in the supernaturally-tinged branch of the field like John Connolly. Many people do not like this sort of story. Me, I like most anything weird or original. which these did very well for me.
January 28th, 2023 at 5:28 pm
Even though Lovejoy is kind of a shady character, not entirely scrupulous, shall we say, anyone who’s collector — of anything, not just antiques — should enjoy the books he’s in. Speaking from experience.
There was also a long British TV show about Lovejoy. It starred Ian McShane, which made it all the better. AS good as it was, I’ve only watched two or three, sad to say.. That was before closed captioning, and understanding the dialogue was tough for me. I always thought I was missing something.
January 28th, 2023 at 7:20 pm
The one that looks the most interesting to me is THE CASE OF THE BAKER STREET IRREGULARS by Boucher.
January 28th, 2023 at 7:54 pm
I think we’ve always thought alike, Walker. This is the one that’s a ringer. It’s the only one in the stack that I’ve read before, and I recommend it heartily to anyone who’s a fan of Sherlockia mixed with wacky 1940s humor.
Not to mention “wartime conspiracy, Hollywood, murder-mystery, police-procedural, locked-room mystery, romance, lots & lots of dry humour & wit),” taken from an online review I found just now.
January 28th, 2023 at 7:54 pm
I’d go with the Lockridges. I love the Mr and Mrs North books, and Pam’s mixups in murder. Murdered Redhead is NOT a Norths book, but the married couple are very good writers.
January 28th, 2023 at 8:05 pm
No, this is a Nathan Shapiro book, and unless there for a short cameo, there are no Norths in it. As you say, though, the Lockridges were very good mystery writers, no matter who the series character happens to be.
The only problem with this one that I can see is that in these early tiny paperbacks, the print size has shrunk so badly over the years that I can no longer read them.
January 28th, 2023 at 8:32 pm
Gat liberally borrowed from one of MacDonald’s Travis McGee novels and lost in the legal and public courts. While he has written a few more books he was well on his way to a good career before this was published. Afterward no major publisher would touch him.
It is not only one of the more famous cases of plagiarism, but one of the most blatant even compared to James Hadley Chase who got nailed twice (for knocking off William Faulkner and later Raymond Chandler). His book was not just a little like MacDonald’s, it lifted whole sections. There was no question of homage or influence, Gat tried to pass off large sections of JDM’s novel as his own.
Chase was a good deal more subtle about it and it never really hurt his reputation even here in the States, though both the book and film of NO ORCHIDS FOR MISS BLANDISH weren’t touched by American markets for years after. Gat was ruined by this.
A good Halliday, two good Lovejoy entries, one of Francis biggest bestsellers and one of his best loved, good Gardner, a well done Shapiro entry (Heimrich might appear, but not the North’s, once Frances died Richard dropped them)… hard to know where to start. I don’t know Lamb, and Messman is uneven. Hitchcock anthologies usually contain a few good stories. Classic Boucher. The only Mahannah I’ve read was good.
January 28th, 2023 at 8:54 pm
If I decide to go with the Big Names, it’s going to be the Francis, the Mike Shayne book, or one of the Gardner’s. If i go with the unknowns, I might try the Messman, but you’re right, describing what I’ve read of him, the word “uneven” is an understatement. No one else has mentioned the Lamb book, and it could be worth trying.
It’s a private eye novel featuring a fellow named Zach Rolfe, and I have weakness for PI novels no matter how bad they might be. But Ballantine was a classy publisher, and Rolfe appeared in two other books, and I can’t imagine it will be Bad bad.
If I don’t report on it later, it means either (a) I changed my mind, or (b) need I say more.
January 28th, 2023 at 11:02 pm
The Boucher, for a lot of Sherlockian fun.
January 28th, 2023 at 11:07 pm
How right you are! And here’s my review of it, from 2016:
https://mysteryfile.com/blog/?p=41358
January 29th, 2023 at 1:25 am
Just for everybody’s info:
Otto Penzler just put out a grand-spanking new TPB of TCOT Baker Street Irregulars as part of his American Mystery Classics series, to go along with Rocket To The Morgue – for all the latecomers in the crowd.
Otto being Otto, I’m guessing that we may expect some more Boucher classics to get the same treatment in the near future (Hint Hint Hint …).
January 29th, 2023 at 11:16 am
Otto being Otto, anything he publishes as a Classic is a classic.
January 30th, 2023 at 1:43 am
I know that Ian McShane TV series. “Lovejoy” was very enjoyable. A treat. McShane, a short actor like Ian Holm, never lacks in verve or charisma. Also fetching is his secretary, “Miss Imrie”.
January 30th, 2023 at 9:06 pm
If I recall most episodes of LOVEJOY were adapted from the books, at least early on.
January 31st, 2023 at 10:55 am
Loved the Lovejoy series on PBS. The books are good, too. You can’t go wrong with Perry Mason or Mike Shayne. I suppose it depends on your mood…and the size of the print. I always opt for LARGE PRINT books when I can.
January 31st, 2023 at 2:47 pm
George
It’s really too bad how badly the size of the print in paperbacks from before 1965 or so has shrunk so badly over the years.
PS. Glad to see your blog is back on line!