Monday, October 29, 2018

The Homicidal Virgin by Brett Halliday

A desperate want ad draws Mike Shayne into a tangled murder plot

Robert McGinnis Cover
Lost Innocence
It started with a post in the classifieds. A woman calls for a red-blooded American, a soldier-of-fortune type willing to do anything if the price is right...even commit murder. This catches the eye of Tim Rourke, hotshot reporter, who passes it on to Mike Shayne, the legendary Miami detective. Rourke believes the ad was placed by a lonely housewife hoping to pay someone to knock off her husband, and he thinks the story could be front-page news. He just needs someone willing to answer the call.....and Shayne has the reddest blood in Miami.
 

Shayne responds to the ad, and finds the situation far stranger than anything he and Rourke could have dreamed up. His new employer is sweet, young, and scared for her life. Plus, there’s $50,000 at stake—and a life on the line.


Printing History
 Davis Dresser (1904-1977)

Dell Publishing Company

D437
1961 

3698
November 1967
May 1972 

Sunday, October 14, 2018

Mayhem In B Flat by Elliot Paul

A Sizzling, Rip-Roaring Murder Mystery 




Set in Paris of the 1930s, thriller featuring Homer Evans involving him, his friend Miriam, and a stolen Guarnerius violin

Vacationing in Normandy, suave sleuth Homer Evans and his stylish, pistol-packing friend Miriam Leonard catch sight of a familiar member of the notorious gang, the St. Julian Rollers. As Homer and Miriam depart for Paris, that gang member called the Singe is also at the Rouen train station and covertly signals to their compartment as the train pulls from the station.

Printing History
Written by Elliot Paul (1891-1958)

Random House Edition: May 1940
World Edition: 1st Printing April 1943 2nd May 1943
Bantam Edition: November 1950


Friday, October 12, 2018

Hell To Eternity by Edward S Aarons

The powerful story of the slum bred kid whose raw courage in the caves 
of Saipan will live forever as one of the glories of the U.S. Marine Corps

Cover by Barye Phillips
In love and war..... 
These were the quiet hours, the last uneasy clam before the storm of battle. These were the final hours, when a man could forget his fear and a woman her inhibitions.
Printing History
Written by Edward S Aarons (1916-1975)

Fawcett Gold Medal
#1023, k1455
August 1960

Wednesday, October 10, 2018

The Housekeeper's Daughter by Donald Henderson Clarke

She was curvy and careless
And lived down the hall
 

He Wanted To Earn A College Degree
But She Wanted Passionate Love!
Although Hilda's noteworthy curves helped decide Robert Randall that where she stayed was where he wanted to be, his main thought was to use his spare time writing a paper for a college degree. So he rented the home of the Reverend Mr Maxon, where the housekeeper and her luscious daughter, Hilda, lived also. The Reverend went on vacation, Robert ,moved in, and Hilda promptly fell in love with him. Robert settled down to work on his writing, of course. Hilda settled down to business too, working on Robert. Because of Hilda, several of Robert's friends, and an assignment he got to report on the murder of a nude lady in New Jersey, Robert did not accomplish much towards earning his degree. But what he and the others did accomplish in the outraged Reverend's house will keep a chuckle in one's throat and a glint in one's eye through the end!

Printing History
Written by Donald Henderson Clarke (1887-1958)

Printing History
The Vanguard Press, Inc
September 1938

Avon Publishing Co, Inc
Avon Books
#336
1951

#503
1953

The Film
1939
Directed and Produced by Hal Roach

Starring
Joan Bennett
Adolphe Menjou
John Hubbard

 

Monday, October 8, 2018

The Black Door by Cleve F Adams

A Hard-Boiled Detective Novel
The third time he saw her she was dead, which set his head spinning. And it didn't stop until he'd run head-on into the Mob, a nympho, and a girl who had more tricks than the original Eve. 


Hard To Handle
Getting the goods on Myrna Spain was the kind of job to handle with asbestos gloves. The first time big Jim Flagg saw her she was dressed in brief shorts and the tightest sweater in Los Angeles. She made a play for him but Jim was not buying. The last time Flagg saw Myrna she was dead. That set the big wheel spinning, and it did not stop until he had run head on into Pete the Greek's mob and a girl named Eve who had more tricks than the one who led Adam straight to Hell!

Printing History
Cleve Franklin Adams (1895-1949)

E. P. Dutton 
November 1941

Popular Library
1426 
1st Printing May 1952
2nd Printing November 1952
3rd Printing December 1952 (Canada)
4th Printing June 1953

Friday, October 5, 2018

La Rubia (The Blonde) by Carter Brown

La Rubia


Spanish title of The Blonde

Printing History
Written by Alan G Yates (1923-1985)

Caimen Collection
Editorial Diana (Mexico)
#146
1st Edition October 1960
2nd Edition July 1961
3rd Edition December 1963