ESG_reviews

Photo and Biography (Main Page) Novel Reviews Websites Critical Reviews Other Works --- =Novel Reviews =


 __**The Case of the Crimson Kiss**__ Perry Mason, now a household brand, is perhaps the most famous fictional detective ever created. This notoriety stands to reason, as his stories were thrilling tales of courtroom drama. All of his Perry Mason stories followed the same basic formula: having the plot established by the crime occurring at the beginning of the piece, then leading up to Mason’s arrival and subsequent analysis of the act, followed finally by the climactic courtroom scene and Mason’s cross examination and dramatic summation. In “The Case of the Crimson Kiss”, Fay Allison and her roommate Anita are found to unconscious by Fay's visiting aunt, Louise Marlow. In her desperation, she calls her attorney… you guessed it… Perry Mason! Inside the girls' apartment Mason and his assistant Della discover a key that leads them to an apartment upstairs, room 702. Ultimately, this clue leads to the discovery of the body of Carver Clement. Face down and near a spilled tumbler of scotch and soda, someone has left a crimson kiss on the murdered Carver's forehead and planted evidence that implicates Fay as his murderer. Follow Mason as he searches for clues, vigilantly looking for the solutions to questions which will prove his client’s innocence in this enthralling tale! - __**The Kid Clips a Coupon**__ In this other work by Gardner (not all of his stories featured Mason) “The Kid Clips a Coupon”, the murder of rich and miserly widow Mrs. Morelay, spurs investigation by the police force. A bum-like burglar named Dan Higgins is suspected as her murderer, based upon a drop of homemade jam he dripped on himself as he feasted in the victim’s kitchen. However, as Dan Seller, one of the men in the group at a club discussing the case with Inspector Phil Brame of the police department, points out that Higgins was not the only man at the house during the time in question; Morelay’s manager, Walter Stagg was there as well, responsible for relaying the message of Morelay’s death to her niece, Tess Copley. It is then that Brame invokes the identity of a local vigilante that he calls a “Robin Hood” of sorts. After Brame vows to take down this mysterious nuisance, the story paints for the reader a very different picture of him, the “Patent Leather Kid”. Filled with surprising twists and a sprinkled with a good measure of hard-boiled elements and words, “The Kid Clips a Coupon” is an enjoyable read from this best selling and beloved author. But don’t look for the sophistication and wit of Gardner’s Perry Mason novels here; they’re alike only by their author.