Murder in March Madness Day #31

Welcome to the last of the Murder in March Madness event This is the event where I will highlight a title with the word "murder", or a variant, in it. To cap off this event will be the very first Cater Brown "Lovely Mystery" The Lady Is Murder from 1951. Thanks to everyone for visiting.

The Lady Is Murder (1951)

Written by Alan G Yates (1922-1985)

 

Publishing History

Transport Publishing Company
for and on behalf of Horwitz Publications, Inc
1951, August 1954

w/Madame, You're Morgue Bound and Cyanide Sweetie

First Collectors Series No 5
1955

Title changes to The Lady Is A Killer in 1958

w/Murder By Miss Take 

Second Collectors Series Vol 1 No 18

Murder In March Madness Day 30

Welcome back to Murder In March Madness. We are currently almost finished with the event where I feature a title with the word "murder" in it or a variant. We have two days left with Day #30. Today's title is Ada Madison's The Square Root Of Murder from 2011.

The Square Root Of Murder (2011)

Written by Camille Minichino 

Dr. Sophie Knowles teaches math at Henley College in Massachusetts, but when a colleague turns up dead, it's up to her to find the killer before someone else gets subtracted.

Dr. Sophie Knowles is a forty something math professor teaching summer session at a small Cape Cod women's college. Her close-knit academic community is suffering through a sweltering summer heat wave when, out of the blue, a much-despised chemistry professor is poisoned in his lab. Wanting to help the graduate student who's been fingered as the killer, Dr. Knowles begins her amateur investigation. Along the way, she learns about the darker side of academia. The ensemble cast includes the requisite wacky best friend (who owns a bead shop) and the action boyfriend (an emergency medical responder).

Printing History

Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated

Berkley Books

July 2011

ISBN 425 24219

Wheeling Publishing

February 2012

ISBN 978 1410443939

Murder In March Madness Day 29

Welcome back to Murder In March Madness. We are fast approaching the end of this event where I highlight a title with the word "murder" or variant in it. There are just three days remaining. Today's title is the 1934 title The Murder Of My Aunt by Richard Hull

The Murder Of My Aunt (1934)

Written by Robert Henry Sampson (1896-973)

Edward is a poor young man who has something in store for his only relative, his wealthy aunt.

The murder seems to be plotted before the reader's eyes. The pompous, loutish pseudo-aesthetic nephew seems to be succeeding. The reader is in on it all. The suspense becomes intense.

 

Printing History

 Minton, Balch & Company 

1935

Langtail Press Limited

2011 

Murder In March Madness Day 28

Welcome back to Murder In March Madness. We are nearing the end of this event where I highlight a title with the word "murder" or a variant in it. We are currently up to day 28 with a few days left. Today's title is Honeymoon With Murder by Carolyn Hart from 1988.

Honeymoon with Murder (1988)
Written by Carolyn G Hart (1936- )

 

Mystery bookstore owner Annie Laurance's investigative nature puts her marriage to detective Max Darling on ice, when a chilling murder occurs after their wedding ceremony.

 

 The murder of sleazy/disreputable Jesse Penrick interrupts Annie and Max Darling's honeymoon when Annie's friend, desperate for assistance, phones her. The friend's subsequent disappearance galvanizes the island of Broward's Rock precipitates the involvement of a gaggle of sleuths

Printing History

copyright 1988

Murder In March Madness Day #27

Welcome to Murder In March Madness. Where I highlight a title with the word "murder" or a variant in it. Currently we are in the home stretch with just four days remaining. Today's title is The Third Murderer by Carroll John Daly, from 1931.

The Third Murderer (1931)

Carroll John Daly (1889-198)

The Devil is unchained!

This simple messages sends Race Williams into his most complex and exciting case of his career. The Gorgon crime family is ruling the streets and courts of New York and Race's unknown client is orchestrating the showdown which will hopefully bring the Gorgons down. As the message unleashes a whirlwind of activity, the hidden, dark secrets of two families are uncovered. 

1931 Farrar & Rinehart Edition

1932 Hutchinson Edition

Murder In March Madness Day 26

Welcome to Murder In March Madness. Where I highlight a title with the word "murder" or a variant in it. Currently we are in the home stretch with just five days remaining. Today's title is The Murder Room by P. D. James.

The Murder Room (2003)

Written by Phyllis Dorothy James (1920- )

P. D. James's detective, Commander Adam Dalgliesh, returns to find himself in a terrifying story of passion and mystery, and in love.

Commander Adam Dalgliesh is already acquainted with the Dupayne, a museum dedicated to the interwar years, with a room celebrating the most notorious murders of that time when he is called to investigate the killing of one of the family trustees. He soon discovers that the victim was seeking to close the museum against the wishes of the fellow trustees and the Dupayne's devoted staff. It seams everyone has something to gain from the crime. When it becomes clear that the murderer has been inspired by the real-life crimes from the murder room and is preparing to kill again. Dalgliesh knows that to solve this case he has to get into the mind of a ruthless killer

Printing History

Alfred A. Knopf

November 2003

ISBN 978-1400041411

Murder In March Madness Day 25.

Welcome to Murder In March Madness. Currently we are in the home stretch with just six days remaining. Today's title is the Carter Brown's Murder by Miss Demeanor from 1956.

Murder By Miss Demeanor (1956)

aka Murder By Miss Take (1958)

Written by Alan G Yates (1922-1985) 

Horwitz Numbered Series #12
1956

Horwitz Collector's Series
Volume 1 Number 18
1958

Gallimard
Paris
1976

Murder In March Madness Day 24

We are moving ever so closer to the end of the Murder in March Madness event. Today is the 24 the day of the event. Today's title is the 1997 film Murder At 1600.

Murder At 1600 (1997)

In a restroom in the White House, a janitor finds White House secretary Carla Town dead. Metropolitan Police homicide Detective Harlan Regis is put on the case. At the White House, Regis is introduced to U.S. Secret Service Director Nick Spikings, U.S. National Security Advisor Alvin Jordan and Secret Service agent Nina Chance. Spikings assigns Chance, a former Olympic gold-class sharpshooter, to keep an eye on Regis. Regis and Chance discover that Carla had an appointment in New York City and a flight from New York to the Virgin Islands, with no intention of returning to the U.S. The coroner then tells the detective and the agent that whoever had sex with Carla on the night of the murder used a condom, meaning that no DNA was left. The White House janitor was apparently unaccounted for on the night of the murder and had once attempted to make a pass at Carla He is arrested and questioned, but his testimony and a clearly set-up piece of evidence lead Regis to suspect that the Secret Service may be involved. That night, Regis finds his apartment burglarized; the culprit escapes, and in a subsequent search, a hidden bug is found.

Cast

Directed by Dwight H Little

Wesley Snipes as Detective Harlan Regis
Diane Lane as Agent Nina Chance
Daniel Benzali as Agent Nick Spikings
Dennis Miller as Detective Stengel
Alan Alda as National Security Adviser Alvin Jordan
Ronny Cox as President of the United States Jack Neil
Diane Baker as First Lady Kitty Neil
Tate Donovan as Kyle Neil
Harris Yulin as General Clark Tully
Tom Wright as Agent Cooper

Trivia

Based on the novel Murder in the White House (1980) by Margaret Truman

Murder In March Madness Day 23

We are coming close to the end of Murder In March Madness. Today is the 23rd day of the the event where I highlight a title, either book or movie, with the word "murder" or a variant in it. Today's title is the classic American noir film Murder, My Sweet from 1944.

Murder My Sweet (1944)

Written by Raymond Chandler

Detective Philip Marlowe is hired by Moose Malloy to locate his old girlfriend Velma, whom he lost track of while serving time in prison. As he follows his leads, Marlowe encounters lies, larceny, perjury, theft, and a beautiful femme fatale.

Directed by Edward Dmytryk

Cast

Dick Powell as Philip Marlowe
Claire Trevor as Helen Grayle/Velma Valento
Anne Shirley as Ann Grayle
Otto Kruger as Jules Amthor
Mike Mazurki as Moose Malloy
Miles Mander as Mr. Grayle

Trivia
This film was based on Raymond Chandler's 1940 novel Farewell, My Lovely

Murder In March Madness Day #22

We are coming close to the end of Murder In March Madness. Today is the 22nd day of the the event where I highlight a title, either book or movie, with the word "murder" or a variant in it. Today's tile is the classic Agathe Christie mystery The Murder of Roger Ackroyd published in June 1926.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)

 Written by Agathe Christie (1890-1976)

The book is set in the fictional village of King's Abbott in England. It is narrated by Dr James Sheppard, who becomes Poirot's assistant. The story begins with the death of Mrs. Ferrars, a wealthy widow who is rumoured to have murdered her husband. Her death is initially believed to be an accident until Roger Ackroyd, a widower who had been expected to marry Mrs. Ferrars, reveals that she admitted to killing her husband and then committed suicide. Shortly after this he is found murdered.

Printing History

William Collins, Sons

June 1926, March 1927, February 1925, March 1932, 

1939, 1964, 1967

Dodd Meade and Company 

June 1926, 1967

Pocket Books

1939

Penguin Books

1948

Fontana Books

1957

Ulvercroft 

1972

HarperCollins 

September 2006

Murder In March Madness Day 21

We are rolling along in the Murder In March Madness event. We are now up to day twenty one where where I will highlight a book title with the word "murder' in the title or a variant. Today's title is The Aseptic Murders by Carter Brown from 1972.

The Aseptic Murders (1972)

Written by Alan G Yates (1922-1985)   

Robert McGinnis Cover

Two nude bodies add up to double trouble for Lt Al Wheeler,
as he sets off an explosive formula of kiss and kill!

Mad scientists and laboratory lust.

A chemical equation scribbled on a crumpled piece of paper, and two nude bodies sprawled across a motel bed. Those were the clues that led Al Wheeler to the hush-hush research lab where a cozy crew of oversexed scientist were doing some very off-beat experimenting. One of the whitecoats, it was obvious, had found a brand new formula for murder. And Al, much to his dismay, was next in line to test it!

Germany & Austria

Russia

Printing History

Horwitz Publications

Numbered Series #164 1972

ISBN 7255 0192 8

Printed in Hong Kong

Double Edition Series #3A 1978

w/Night Wheeler

New American Library

Signet Books 

T4961 April 1972

E8521 January 1979 

w/Night Wheeler

AE1701 1981

w/Night Wheeler

Murder In March Madness Day 20

Today marks the two thirds point in the Murder In March Madness. We are now up to day twenty in this even where I will highlight a book title with the word "murder' in the title or a variant. Today's title is Murder In The Wind by John D. McDonald from 1956.

Murder In The Wind (1956)

Written by John D McDonald (1916-1986)

A group of people are isolated in a house by a hurricane. 

A murder and the suspicions which follow tears the group apart.

With the waters rising and the winds whipping through the sky, a hurricane of terrifying intensity is looming over Florida. Along a state highway, a handful of foolhardy souls trying to outrun the storm are forced to seek shelter in an abandoned house after discovering that a nearby bridge is out of commission. Thrown together by nothing more than chance, this disparate bunch of misfits and wanderers includes an undercover agent seeking revenge for a personal tragedy, a burgeoning criminal in over his head, a beautiful young widow trying to start over, and a businessman whose life’s work is crumbling before his eyes. Their refuge from the awesome power of nature becomes a sort of grand and grisly hotel—especially once the invisible hand of flying death descends.

Printing History

Dell Publishing Company

A113, B167

1956, 1960

Fawcett Gold Medal

12997, 13602

1982, 1985 

Random House

E-Book

2013

Murder in March Madness Day 19

Today is the nineteenth day of Murder In March Madness. Up until now we have be focusing on a book title with the word "murder' in the title or a variant.  Well today is a another very special day in which we will feature not one but two . But not a book title, but rather a movie title. Presenting two Micky Spillane made for TV movies with Stacy Keach: Murder Me, Murder You and More than Murder.

Murder Me, Murder You (1983)

Directed by Gary Nelson

Cast

Stacy Keach

Tonya Roberts

Delta Burke

Don Stroud

Tom Atkins

Mike Hammer is called before a Grand Jury by the only girl he ever proposed to, Chris Jameson. She wants him to protect her as she is to testify in a case against the Vance Helicopter Company for selling secrets to countries on the banned list. Chris also tells Hammer that he has a daughter, Michelle. When Chris is murder in the Grand Jury room Hammer is determined to find her killers and his daughter. There is a twist when Jack Vance tries to hire Hammer, and another one when he finds out his daughter appears to have been a porn star. However, his daughter has disappeared. There are more twists and turns before Hammer brings the case to a conclusion.

 More Than Murder (1984)

Directed by Gary Nelson

Cast

Stacy Keach

Lindsay Bloom

Kent williams

Don Stroud

Lynn-Holly Johnson

Mike Hammer is asked to be a bodyguard for a high-rolling poker player, a job which he refuses. The game is robbed by two masked gunmen. The men parachute down to the ground but are stopped by Hammer's friend Captain Pat Chambers. However, he is shot in the back by a third gunman and put in hospital seriously wounded. Pat was tipped off about a drug deal but his informant is then killed. When drugs are found in Pat's car, it is part of a plan to frame him. Hammer is determined to clear him, find the shooters and the drug dealers as the bodies pile up.

Murder in March Madness Day #18

Today we are on the other side of the hump heading towards a nice finish with Murder In March Madness. Today is day number eighteen which brings up the title Murder In The Harem Club/Key Club by Carter Brown, published in 1962. 

Murder In The Harem Club/Key Club (1962)

Written by Alan G Yates (1922-1985)  

Extravagant Parties

Gorgeous Slave Girls &

 With extravagant parties beyond his wildest dream and gorgeous 'slave girls' prepared to carry out his every wish, Rick Holman should have been only too pleased to spend a thousand and one nights in the atmosphere of the Harem Club. But the set-up was shattered by a vicious gangster, the death of the girl no one would discuss, and the gun in Rick's hand.

 

Girls were Carter Stanton's stock and trade. He was the publisher of Sultan Magazine, a monthly extravaganza devoted to a spectacular display of the female form. He was the propietor of The Harem, a select key club that specialized in hostesses to suit very man's fancy. Girls were Stanton's beck and call. Life for him was one wild and wonderful party until the killer tried to crash the party.

Robert McGinnis Cover

Printing History

Horwtiz Publications Inc

Numbered Series #100 1962

International Edition Series #37 1963

New American Library

Signet Books

S2140 June 1962

D3704  1968

Bonus
 Some Worldly Covers

Russia n/d

Finland 1966

Netherlands 1964

Russia 2008

Brazil 1965

Germany & Switzerland 1963

Murder In March Madness Day 17

Today we are on the other side of the hump so to peak with Murder In March Madness. Day number seventeen brings up with the title The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie, published in1964.

The A.B.C. Murders (1936)

Written by Agatha Christie (1890-1976)

Alice Ascher, a shopkeeper in Andover, is bludgeoned to death at her place of work. Next to die is Miss Bernard in Bexhill, then Mr. Clarke in Churston. More disturbing than the alphabetic sequence of the killings or the ABC Railway guide that the killer leaves at the crime scenes are the taunting notes warning Hercule Poirot before each murder.

 

Printing History

Collins Crime Club January 1936, Hardcover

Dodd Mead and Company February 1936 Hardcover

Pocket Books 1941 Paperback

Penguin Books 1948 Paperback

Pan Books, 1958 Paperback 

Fontana Books 1962 Paperback

Pan Books, 1979 Paperback

Collins Crime Club 1980 Hardcover

Ulverscroft 1980 Hardback

HarperCollins September 2006 Hardcover
 

Murder In March Madness Day 16

Today we are on the hump of Murder In March Madness with day number sixteen. up.  All through the month of March I will highlight a different mystery with the word "Murder" or a variant in the title.Today's title is Murder Most Fowl by Bill Crider

Murder Most Fowl (1984)

Written by Bill Crider (1941- )

Blacklin County Texas, Sheriff Dan Rhodes investigates a crime wave of emu-rustling and a murder that may be related to the theft of the valuable birds.

Down home Texas policeman Dan Rhodes finds a corpse in a bullet-riddled portable toilet floating down river. The congregation assembled on the riverbank for a baptism is disturbed; the three young drunks discovered shooting at the toilet claim not to have known anyone was inside. The victim, a former hardware-store owner who had recently chained himself to the local Wal-Mart to protest the discount store's competitive edge, has an illegal cockfighting tool in his pocket. Then the dead man's widow is killed. The inhabitants of town, including Dan's shiftless deputies who are most interested in watching TV soaps and Oprah, have lots of generally bad advice for their sheriff, who has two murders to solve, two emus to find and a secret cockfighting ring to break up-all on a diet of health food prescribed by his concerned lady friend. 

Printing History

St Martins Press

ISBN 312 11387

September 1994

Murder In March Madness Day 15

Today we are up to day number fifteen in the Murder in March Madness event. All through the month of March I will highlight a different mystery with the word "Murder" or a variant in the title. Today's title is It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder by Jeff Markowitz, published November 2009.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder (2009)

Written by Jeff Markowitz

Cassie O’Malley is back in a Christmas mystery that will keep you laughing and guessing until the final showdown. At odds with her new boss, tabloid reporter Cassie O’Malley finds herself covering the shopping mall at Christmas. Cassie wants nothing to do with the assignment. Then Big Mack turns up dead in the men’s room, his throat slit. Sensing an opportunity for fifteen minutes of fame, mall security guard Oliver Berryhill spins a heroic tale of his confrontation in the men’s room with the loan shark. The police are skeptical, but Big Mack’s son, the even bigger Little Mack is determined to avenge his father’s murder. Barely a week later, a second body turns up in the employee break room and Cassie finds herself covering a double homicide. In a race against time, Cassie must solve the double murder before a third victim is killed in the wildly funny mystery It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Murder. 

Printing History

Five Star
2009

Crossroads Press
August 2011

Murder in March Madness Day #14

Today we are up to day fourteen in the Murder in March Madness event. All through the month of March I will highlight a different mystery with the word "Murder" or a variant in the title. Today is a special day in which I will highlight two titles: Murder Sweet Murder And Murder Is A Broad  by Carter Brown, first published in 1952 and 1953.

Murder Sweet Murder
Written by Alan G Yates (1922-1985) 

Printing History

Novelette Series

as Carter Brown "Lovely" Mystery

1953

First Collectors' Series #2

w/Ssh-She's A Killer & Meet Miss Mayhem

1954

Murder is A Broad
Written by Alan G Yates (1922-1985)

Printing History

Novelette Series

as Carter Brown "Lovely" Mystery

1953

First Collectors' Series #8

w/Dimples Died De-Luxe & Kidnapper Wears Curves

1955

Murder In March Madness Day #13

Today we are up to lucky day number thirteen in the Murder in March Madness event. All through the month of March I will highlight a different mystery with the word "Murder" or a variant in the title. Today's title is Well-Schooled In Murder by Elizabeth George, published in 1990.

Well-Schooled in Murder (1990)

Written by Elizabeth George (1949- )

When thirteen-year-old Matthew Whately goes missing from Bredgar Chambers, a prestigious public school in the heart of West Sussex, Inspector Thomas Lynley receives a call for help from the lad's housemaster, who also happens to be an old school chum. Thus, the inspector, his partner, Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, and forensic scientist Simon Allcourt-St. James find themselves once again outside their jurisdiction and deeply involved in the search for a child. And then, tragically, for a child killer. Questioning prefects, teachers, and pupils closest to the dead boy, Lynley and Havers sense that something extraordinarily evil is going on behind Bredgar Chambers's cloistered walls. But as they begin to unlock the secrets of this closed society, the investigation into Matthew's death leads them perilously close to their own emotional wounds. And blinds them to the signs of another murder in the making.... 

  

Printing History

Hardback and Paperback

Bantam Press

ISBN 593 01973 

October 1990

Murder In March Madness Day 12

Welcome to Murder In March Madness. I will highlight one title with the word Murder, or a variant,  in it each day all during the month of March. We are almost to the halfway oint with day number 12.  I will highlight the Erle Stanley Gardner title The Case Of The Murderer's Bride and Other Stories. This title was originally published in 1969.

The Case of the Murderer's Bride and Other Stories

Written by Erle Stanley Gardner (1889-1970)

Various short stories and novelettes

 
Corporal Cortland and Dr. Dixon in The Case of the Murderer's Bride. 
 Lester Leith versus Sergeant Ackley in The Candy Kid.
Jayson Burr and Gabby Hilman in Death Rides a Boxcar. 
Peggy Castle and Uncle Benedict in The Jeweled Butterfly.

 Printing History
copyright 1969

Davis Publications, Incorporated,
September 1977

 

Murder In March Madness Day #11

Welcome to Murder In March Madness. I will highlight one title with the word Murder, or a variant,  in it each day all during the month of March. Today is day number 11 of this event and I will highlight the Carter Brown title Murder Is a Package Deal from 1964.

Murder Is A Package Deal (1964)

Written by Allan G Yates (1922-1985)

A Hollywood screen siren hires Rick Holman to scare off an almost ex husband who's out to make a killing in the blackmail business.

Robert McGinnis Cover

 Fabrielle Frye was engaged to a millionaire and about to make a comeback as a big time star. Then the man she married four years before, the husband who had disappeared after two nights of a hectic honeymoon, turned up with an offer. Divorce, for a a million dollars.

  

 

Printing History

Horwitz Publications, Inc

Numbered Series #120 (1964)

International Edition Series  #73 (1971)

ISBN 7255 0152

New American Library

Signet Books

G2530 September 1964

T5532 1973

Bonus
Various covers throughout the world

 Finland 1966

Germany and Switzerland 1965

Japan 1965

Denmark 1977