Sun 12 Oct 2025
Diary Review: WILLIAM IRISH – Dilemma of the Dead Lady.
Posted by Steve under Diary Reviews[8] Comments
WILLIAM IRISH – Dilemma of the Dead Lady. Graphic Book #20; paperback, 1950.
While nowhere the masterpieces that the back cover claims that these particular stories are, the work of Irish/Woolrich are always exciting. Looking back on them, the details don’t always fit, but the people are real, in almost real situations that are made to seem real, situations the world seems to be collapsing inward. Could it happen to you?
Overall rating: ***
“Dilemma of the Dead Lady.” A cheap crook with no conscience has to murder his girl friend before he can leave France and then has the body to deal with. Fate [that follows] says that he will die for a murder that could have been avoided, committed to cover up the first, which probably would not have been revealed. (3)
“The Lie.” The by-now classic story of a son taking the blame for a murder he believes his father has committed. The clues do not point to him, however, and [unfortunately] those pointing to his innocent father are never explained. (2)
“The Dog with the Wooden Leg.” A story of a man and his dog already has a lot going for it, but if he unknowingly is made the go-between in a narcotics racket, then you really have a story, The only flaw is the complicated business of their doing away with him once he is captured by the gang. (4)
“The Blue Ribbon.” The history of a fighter, from boyhood to championship, then the fall from glory to comeback. The fake supernatural ending destroys the mood. (3)
“Subway.” An exciting chase through a subway train, but occurring only at the expense of the guard’s intelligence. (2)
Rating: ***
October 12th, 2025 at 8:22 pm
Truth to tell, some of Woolrich-Irish’s stories were not that good, but when he hit the mark — oh wow! I eagerly read anything I can that from his pen; I would even happily devour his laundry list. I’m that much of a fan.
October 12th, 2025 at 9:30 pm
I surprised myself with this one, reading it now. I’ve been a Woolrich fan since I first read him, which would have been in the late 50s. How did I end up being so hard on this group pf tales? Are they all — or most of them — on the lower end of the scale? I wasn’t very happy with these, that’s for sure, given how much of a fan I was.
October 13th, 2025 at 3:20 am
Woolrich is a bit like a magician, you either buy into the illusion or not, and in truth some of his best stories don’t make all that much more sense than some of his lesser efforts, but his famous ‘line of suspense’ and magic seems to work better in them. That’s true of the novels and short fiction.
His prose tends to hues of purple, coincidence, loose ends, and illogic, but when he is really firing on all cylinders you don’t care. You don’t notice the tinsel, cheap paint, and flimsy construction when you are enjoying the hobby horse, only when the story lets you pause to think.
Like Poe who he resembles in some ways (including his tragic life) when the magic works it hides or at least blinds you to the flaws. When it doesn’t you spot the card up his sleeve.
At his best you volunteer gratefully to have the wool pulled over your eyes. I think of one of his longest, and what I consider best novels, NIGHT A THOUSAND EYES, a book where the reader is a willing participant in pulling the wool over their own eyes. If at any point in that book the reader looks too closely behind the curtain, asks too sharp a question, or just thinks a little too hard about it the whole thing collapses, but the reader does none of those things because the reader wants to be carried along to the finale when the curtain falls on the illusion.
It’s not that Woolrich is bad at the practical side of detective and mystery stories, he’s just not overly interested in who killed who in the library with the carving knife. He’s more interested in us dreading what might be in the cupboard.
October 13th, 2025 at 8:29 am
Woolrich was the 20th Century equivalent of Edgar Allen Poe, and his writing has as many faults and virtues as Poe’s did. I think David sums up both writers admirably.
October 13th, 2025 at 2:31 pm
Likewise. Thank you, David. I love comments that are longer than the original post.
And spot on, too!
PS. My friend Paul is going to lend me a copy of the book to read. I wonder what I will think of it this time. I will tell you when I can.
October 14th, 2025 at 8:34 pm
Ha! Found my copy. Stranger things have happened, but not many.
October 15th, 2025 at 3:21 pm
Agree the dog story is good.
Would rate Subway higher.
Maybe The Blue Ribbon too.
The others are forgettable.
October 15th, 2025 at 7:51 pm
Given that two readers of the same book never ever quite agree on its merits, Mike, I think we came put rather close.