Erle Stanley Gardner Boeken

Comprising:The Human Zero by Erle Stanley Gardner;The Man Who Ploughed The Sea by Arthur C. Clarke;The Proxy Head by Robert Bloch;Hands Across Space by Chad Oliver;Itself! by A.E. van Vogt;The Imaginary by Isaac Asimov;The Cosmic Relief by Eric Frank Russell;I, Rocket by Ray Bradbury.

When notorious playboy Arthur Cushing is murdered, Belle Adrian suspects that her daughter, Carlotta, is the killer, and Carlotta suspects her mother of the crime. Original.

The death of his wife leaves Banning Clarke, a former successful prospector turned mining magnate, the prey of a host of human predators, including his calculating mother-in-law, and it is up to Perry Mason to keep things on the up and up. Reprint.

SILENCE IS MURDER Perry Mason's beautiful new client isn't giving anything away, not even her name, and he suspects that what she does choose to reveal is mostly lies. Certainly the bag full of cash she carries isn't shopping money. All the mystery woman asks is that Mason make himself available for a few days in case she needs him--for what purpose, she remains silent as the grave. In fact, his headstrong client, who identifies herself only as "36-24-36," is headed for disaster--not only into a blackmailer's clutches but into a lethal trap from which not even Perry Mason's brilliant courtroom sorcery may be able to extricate her. Alive, anyway . . . THE ORIGINAL COURTROOM NOVELS

Engaged to a dynamic young go-getter on his way up the corporate ladder, secretary Mildred Crest was riding high. Until her prince charming embezzled company funds and skipped town, leaving Mildred with nothing but a ring on her finger and egg on her face. Now all she wants is to start life over again and when a fateful drive leads to the death of a lone hitchhiker, Mildred gets that chance. But this is not the sweet escape she thought it would be when the life she’s adopted takes an even darker turn for the worse.… Oh the agony of deceit.…

Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, this collection features Lester Leith, an urbane Robin Hood who cleverly steals from the wealthy to assist the less fortunate, all while keeping a portion for himself. The stories showcase Gardner's wit and humor, which were often absent in his later works. With only a few of these tales previously anthologized, this volume significantly expands the collection, marking it as the fourth installment in Crippen & Landru's Lost Classics series dedicated to Gardner's pulp characters.

Night nurse Nellie Conway hires California lawyer Perry Mason for $1. She claims Nathan Bain wants to poison his second wife of two years, Elizabeth, paralyzed after accident he engineered. He fires Nellie for fluorescent powder on her fingers from outside of jewelry box, then pays her to go to New Orleans with letters for his lover Charlotte.

Perry Mason takes on the case of a woman whose millionaire husband is blackmailed by her former husband, who has turned up alive years after his plane crash. Someone murders the schemer, putting Mason on a collision course with a cold-blooded killer.

Horace Warren pays five hundred dollars to have Perry Mason attend a buffet dinner to observe his guests. He also wants Mason to investigate a fingerprint and suspects his wife is being blackmailed. Mrs Warren's mysterious past may hold the clues

Aware of her husband's dalliance with an alluring business associate involved with him in an important real estate deal, Sybil Harlan asks Perry Mason to help her sour the deal and win back her errant spouse

Novels by Doyle, Maugham, Charteris, MacDonald, Gardner, Woolrick, and Fleming deal with spies and secret agents in World Wars I and II and the cold war

Acclaimed through three editions for its uniquely informative and entertaining style, this fourth edition of Stanley Green's World of Musical Comedy updates and enlarges the theatrical scope to include such recent shows as A Chorus Line, Barnum, They're Playing Our Song, and Annie. In a format that provides biographies of all the leading figures in the musical's development, Stanley Green manages to convey the spirit of the Broadway stage, its musical make-believe, and yet remain objective about the creative swings in its history and the careers of its individual creators. Everyone is here: Victor Herbert, Sigmund Romberg, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, Rodgers and Hart, the Gershwins, Cole Porter, Harold Arlen, Frank Loesser, Lerner and Loewe, Stephen Sondheim, Cy Coleman, Marvin Hamlisch, and many others--not in a quick run-through but in vivid detail accompanied by pertinent interviews and photographs.This latest edition contains an expanded appendix that lists the casts, credits, songs, and recordings of every Broadway musical written by these illustrious and industrious composers and librettists. As always in a Stanley Green book, the research is exhaustive and impeccable, the presentation enjoyable, the judgments fair. From America's foremost theater historian, here is another edition of a classic theater chronicle.

Perry Mason investigates a case of blackmail with a side of loaded dice

Harlow Bissenger Bancroft is head of a corporate empire and happily married. None of his lawyers can help him however when a blackmailer threatens his family’s future. After he calls upon Perry Mason for help, the blackmailer is found dead.

The story of how a man can commit a brutal murder, confess, and get away with it! The killer was guilty without a shred of doubt. The police had him behind bars. The district attorney had plenty of evidence. But - no court in the state could convict him! The Bigger They Come features that fast-moving, skull-cracking team: Bertha Cool, a two-hundred pound "lady" who uses the language of a longshoreman. And Donald Lam, a pint-sized process server who would have been in the morgue long ago except that he can think faster than the next man ...or woman.

While Perry Mason is enjoying a moonlit canoe ride, he admires a naked bathing beauty. Little does he know he'll soon be rescuing her- and that next day he'll have to clear her of a jewlery-theft charge. But then she's suddenly charged again- this time with murder. It takes all of Perry's wiles, Della's insights, and Paul Drake's deft detecting to solve The Case of the Negligent Nymph. Erle Stanley Gardner is the king of American mystery fiction. A criminal lawyer, he filled his mystery masterpieces with intricate, fascinating, ever-twisting plots. Challenging, clever, and full of surprises, these are whodunits in the best tradition.

Originally published: New York: William Morrow & Company, 1953.

Seven intriguing mysteries featuring the talents of the inimitable Perry Mason include The Foot-Loose Doll, The Glamorous Ghost, The Long-Legged Models, The Lucky Loser, The Screaming Woman, The Terrified Typist, and The Waylaid Wolf.

A mysterious young woman, Dorrie Ambler, wishes to prove her identity to Perry Mason. She wants him to witness her appendectomy scar, claiming she has a double. The double turns out to be Minerva Minden, madcap heiress of Montrose. Mason has his work cut out for him when his investigation leads him to a dead man in an apartment building.

An old, moth-eaten mink coat leads indomitable sleuth Perry Mason on his fifty-seventh mystery

Katherine Ellis, concerned about an aunt's mysterious behavior and other bizarre happenings, consults Perry Mason

After a thieving woman is accused of murder, it’s up to Perry Mason to prove her innocent Sleuthing attorney Perry Mason can’t resist a good mystery, so when he sees an older woman being accused of shoplifting during a department store outing with his assistant, Della Street, he doesn’t hesitate to intervene. Armed with an assumption of innocence and the legal acumen to silence her accuser, Mason leaps to the woman’s defense—until her niece appears, acknowledging her aunt’s guilt, and pays for the stolen items. Soon thereafter, Aunt Sarah is accused of stealing a valuable set of diamonds, and her niece, Virginia, enlists Mason’s aid. The man who left the jewels in Sarah’s care insists that she didn’t take them, but when he turns up dead, she’s left with nobody to vouch for her. Nobody, that is, but Perry Mason—expert in the art of defending the innocent. The thirteenth novel in the bestselling Perry Mason series, The Case of the Shoplifter’s Shoe is an exemplary episode for the character, featuring the complex plots, snappy dialogue, and break-neck pacing that make the novels perennial favorites of mystery fans everywhere. Includes discussion guide questions for use in book clubs.

Compared to a juicy murder trial, a case of feuding neighbors isn't exactly Perry Mason's cup of tea. But Arthur Cartright insists that Mason is the only one who can muzzle the howling police dog that's driving Cartright crazy.Perry doesn't realize just how crazy until he meets his client's neighbor, Clinton Foley. Foley says emphatically that Cartright is barking up the wrong tree with his canine complaint -- and swears that the man is dangerously insane to boot.Mason's not the type to cop out on a client -- but when Cartright draws up a will that leaves everything to this neighbor's wife, even Perry had to wonder if the man had slipped from anger to madness. That's why he pays a personal visit or two to Clinton Foley's house, where he eventually finds a missing wife, a dead dog, and a corpse!

Featuring the iconic private eyes Donald Lam and Bertha Cool, this lost classic of detective fiction showcases the masterful storytelling of Erle Stanley Gardner, renowned for creating Perry Mason. The narrative promises intriguing twists and engaging characters, reflecting Gardner's status as a best-selling American author. With a nod to cinematic history, Lam's character has even been portrayed by Frank Sinatra, adding a layer of cultural significance to this captivating tale.

The voice on the phone was young and silky. The woman it belonged to touched something soft in Perry Mason's cool, legalistic mind. The offer she made was too intriguing to pass up. But what began as a request for a simple courtroom visit turned into an intrigue of baffling complexity -- as well as one of the most cleverly rigged frame-ups of Perry's career. Its a case of a family blessed with millions and, riddled with scandal, a case of accidental manslaughter that explodes into a charge of airtight murder, a case of a corpse dying not once, but twice. To save his client, Perry will have to break all the rules-and more than one law.

Her husband was stealing her money, while accusing her of a plot to poison him -- or so claims the frightened young Mrs. Myrna Davenport. She wants Perry Mason to find the incriminating note her husband left for the authorities accusing her of murder -- especially now that Davenport is dying. Perry finds the envelope, but it's filled with blank paper. Then Davenport does die, or so everyone thinks until his alleged corpse climbs out a window and drives away -- straight into a prepared open grave in another county. With Davenport finally dead, Perry could become a possible accessory to murder. And though the victim died twice, Perry gets only one clear shot at saving his client -- and himself.

THE NAKED AND THE VERY DEAD The blonde wandering nude at the Remuda Golf Club tells Perry Mason a strange story: While she peacefully sun-bathed near the course, someone made off with her Cadillac, her trailer, and all her belongings--including her precious diary. The woman blames the police, who suspect her of having stashed away nearly half a million dollars allegedly stolen by her father, who is now in prison. She swears that both she and her father are innocent. So who is bankrolling her leisurely lifestyle? Why is she so desperate to find her diary? And who, if not Mason's beautiful client, would murder a key witness? In a virtuoso courtroom performance, Mason exposes the staggering truth. THE ORIGINAL COURTROOM NOVELS From the Paperback edition.

From Perry Mason-creator Erle Stanley Gardner comes a lost classic of detective fiction featuring private eyes Donald Lam (once played by Frank Sinatra!) and Bertha Cool.

"In his will, Peter Laxter guaranteed his faithful caretaker a job and a place to live for life. But Laxter's grandson Sam says the deal doesn't include the caretaker's cat. When Perry Mason takes the case, he finds there's much more at stake than an old man's cat -- a million dollars to be exact. And as he investigates, he finds a web of greed and treachery among the heirs. But which one actually pulled off the almost perfect crime?"--bn.com.

One-eyed man sees the future and the face of a murder that bears his mark.

It all begins with the fan-dancer's "costume" — what there is of it. When Perry Mason stumbles upon the barely there accessories of an exotic performer, he sets out to do a good turn by returning the lost glad rags. But the attorney's discreet good deed brings more than one delectable dancer — and more than a little trouble — waltzing into his office.Two dazzling dead ringers each claim to be the same famed fan-dancer. And hot on their heels are a zealous ex-husband and a jealous would-be boyfriend. But the missing property all four are after isn't feathered finery — it's a full-grown horse! And when one of the men gets brutally murdered, Mason finds he may be dancing dangerously close to a killer....

Death And Taxes... And Murder?The affairs of her husband -- financial and otherwise -- are what concern Steffanie Malden. The young and stunning bride of a prominent physician killed in a private plane crash, the widow Malden stands to inherit more than just a sizable estate. Unfortunately, she's also the unwilling heir to an IRS investigation. It appears that the deceased was squirreling away a king's ransom in undeclared cash -- with the able assistance of his head nurse and secret paramour, Gladys Foss.Mrs. Malden wants Mason to flush out Miss Foss and recover the AWOL income -- without trouble from the taxman. But when she's suddenly charged with engineering her husband's death, the matter turns from the monetary to the murderous. Stuck in the middle, Mason must match wits with both sides of the law, to find out just who got the doctor slaughtered....The Perry Mason NovelsCriminal lawyer and all-time #1 mystery author Erle Stanley Gardner wrote close to 150 novels that have sold 300 million copies worldwide. Today, the great Gardner tradition continues with many of his classics back in print, as well as brand-new additions to the ever-popular series starring the incomparable Perry Mason.

The bait is half of a $10,000 bill, delivered to Perry Mason by a man who promises the second half of the note should his companion, a silent masked woman, ever require the lawyer's services. When a dead body is discovered soon after, Mason feels the hook--but how can one prove the innocence of a person whose identity is unknown?

DEAD MEN TELL TALESThough some think they saw a ghost, it was a real, live woman in the (mostly exposed) flesh flitting through Sierra Vista Park. Eleanor Corbin has a taste for trouble -- and a talent for getting out of it using the most outrageous means to cover her tracks. Now her scandalized half-sister, Olga, fears Eleanor may be using lascivious antics to camouflage more larcenous acts.Enter Perry Mason -- retained by Olga to keep the press at bay while pressing Eleanor for the sordid details of her latest escapade. The glamorous "ghost" claims she can't recall anything except eloping with a smooth-talking gambler...and a terrifying car crash. But a hidden cache of precious gems has another story to tell. And so does a murdered corpse that speaks louder than words....

Jerry Conway fights dishonest ex-employee Gifford Farrell for his Texas oil company. "Call me Rosalind" offers him a proxy list, but at the hotel a beauty clad in underwear and a face mud pack frames Jerry with a freshly fired gun. On the hotel bed, lawyer Perry Mason and PI Paul Drake find a woman shot dead by the same gun. Who does Giff's ex-wife cheer for?

Successful florist Mildreth Faulkner finds that the flower business is no bed of roses when her arch-competitor, Harry Peavis, secretly buys stock in her small, family-owned corporation. While Peavis proposes a partnership, Mildreth suspects he's really plotting a power play. So to keep the scurrilous shareholder from muscling her out, she seeks Perry Mason's expertise. But even the legendary legal eagle may be stymied when Mildreth's company is plundered by her ne'er-do-well brother-in-law to pay off a gambling debt. The money trail leads to a nightclub hostess and her crooked boss. And when one is poisoned, and the other murdered, the trail of evidence leads right back to Mildreth. Mason knows the feisty florist is no shrinking violet...but does she have the pluck to be a cold-blooded killer?

"'There isn't any normal routine when you're dealing with redheads,' said Perry Mason, and, as always, he was right. When Evelyn Bagby insists she's been framed for murder, Mason believes her -- even though she possesses the weapon and the victim's diamond necklace. And because he believes in the redhead, Perry Mason and sidekicks Della Street and Paul Drake wind up in one of the most complicated trials of their careers -- a trial with a shattering courtroom climax..." -- Back cover.

If you're young, attractive, and female, resist the advances of Loring Lamont at your peril. The spoiled son of a rich and powerful father, Lamont is a wolf who goes after one pretty lamb too many. For stenographer Arlene Ferris has vowed not to let him get away with his cruel come-ons, though she never had murder in mind. Perry Mason's cardinal rule - always trust your client - finds its sorest test when all the evidence says the unfortunate Miss Ferris brandished the fatal knife. Now he may have to step over the line of the law to prove his trust was justified.

Finding large discrepancies in her company's accounts, Susan Fisher comes to Perry Mason with her suspicions

Widow Jane Keller is owner of an island in the middle of a river near Los Angeles. She is selling the island to millionaire Parker Benton, to build his new home. The island had an oil lease against it, which had apparently expired for non-payment. Promoter Scott Shelby tries to pay the back lease payments to reinstate the lease, but there is a legal question whether he can do so. Parker Benton would prefer to buy the island free and clear, so invites all the parties - including Perry Mason, representing Jane - for a cruise on his yacht to sit down and try to come to a friendly agreement. Due to fog, the yacht anchors for the night. A commotion is heard, and a MAN OVERBOARD alarm is raised. A shot had been heard at the same time, and Scott's wife Marion Shelby is found holding a gun. Scott is missing and assumed the one overboard. A search fails to find his body. Mason is suspicious he staged the incident and is now running off with his girlfriend, real estate agent Ellen Cushing - leaving his wife suspected of his "murder". - RM

Perry Mason seeks the link between a poisoned kitten, a murdered man, and a mysterious voice from the past Helen Kendal's woes begin when she receives a phone call from her vanished uncle Franklin, long presumed dead, who urges her to make contact with criminal defense attorney Perry Mason; soon after, she finds herself the main suspect in the murder of an unfamiliar man. Her kitten has just survived a poisoning attempt, as has her aunt Matilda, the woman who always maintained that Franklin was alive in spite of his disappearance.Lucky that Helen took her uncle's advice and contacted Perry Mason—he immediately takes her as a client. But while it’s clear that all the occurrences are connected, and that their connection will prove her innocence, the links in the case are too obscure to be recognized even by the attorney’s brilliantly deductive mind. Risking disbarment for his unorthodox methods, he endeavors to outwit the police and solve the puzzle himself, enlisting the help of his secretary Della Street, his private eye Paul Drake, and the unlikely but invaluable aid of a careless but very clever kitten in the process.Reprinted for the first time in over twenty years, The Case of the Careless Kitten is one of the most highly praised cases in the iconic Perry Mason series, which need not be read in any particular order.

When Matilda Benson solicits the help of Perry Mason, her request seems simple enough: cruise to a gambling ship moored just beyond the twelve-mile limit and buy back the IOUs signed by Miss Benson's niece. But after Mason reaches the floating casino, he discovers problems aplenty -- most notably the ship's owner with a bullet hole through his head. Strangely enough, Matilda and her niece are also on board that night . . . when someone tosses a gun over the railing. Does Perry Mason's client have something to hide?

Perry Mason lives on -- in the perennially popular courtroom classics that put legal thrillers on the map. Case closed!

1st Pan 1971 edition 1st printing paperback, vg++ to fine In stock shipped from our UK warehouse

Featuring private eyes Donald Lam and Bertha Cool, this lost classic of detective fiction showcases the signature style of Erle Stanley Gardner, renowned for creating Perry Mason. The story promises intriguing mysteries and sharp wit, reflecting Gardner's mastery of the genre. Donald Lam, a character previously portrayed by Frank Sinatra, adds a unique flair to the narrative, making this novel a notable addition to the detective fiction landscape.

The only witness who can vouch for the authenticity of Lauretta Trent's will is suspected in her murder.

Finding an unwelcome guest in the person of the ex-wife of his dream house's contractor, who claims that the property is one-half hers, Morley Eden calls upon Perry Mason to resolve a turbulent dispute that is linked to murder.

A terrified young woman rushed into Perry Mason's office. He thought she was the new typist, sat her down and gave her some work. But suddenly she disappeared, leaving behind her a huge lump of chewing-gum — stuck underneath her desk. And inside the chewing-gum were … diamonds. Then the cops burst in and all hell was let loose. Apparently a young woman had broken into the gem-importing company next door, and got clean away. Mason kept his mouth shut, for he was determined to discover for himself… Who WAS the terrified typist?

When the evidence on the murder of an embezzler points to the victim's wife, her father makes a point of calling in Perry Mason for help. It's up to the legendary legal eagle to unravel the case's most baffling mystery--a buried clock at the scene of the crime. But as time runs short, the ticking of the clock sounds more and more like the rattling of family skeletons that everyone wants silenced. Reissue.

A spanking-new tin can, secretly placed among the rows of Mrs. Florence Gentrie's preserves, contains not a speck of food -- but it does carry one very damning clue to a murder that took place right next door. Such an unsavory discovery in such an unlikely place can't help but pique the curiosity of a dedicated mystery hunter like Perry Mason. But the real mystery about this murder is who -- and where -- is the victim? Upstairs neighbor Elston A. Karr heard the telltale sounds of foul play, but his foul temperament (and his own dark secrets) make him most uncooperative. It takes a second murder to clear up the mystery of the missing body -- and to make Perry Mason the next prime candidate to disappear.... The Original Courtroom Novels Criminal lawyer and all-time #1 mystery author Erle Stanley Gardner wrote close to 150 novels that have sold 300 million copies worldwide. Today, the great Gardner tradition continues with many of his classics back in print, as well as brand-new additions to the ever-popular series starring the incomparable Perry Mason.

Platinum blonde Veronica Dale is arrested for vagrancy despite having a hotel reservation made by Addison, the head of a department store, who is now facing blackmail. Perry Mason finds himself entangled in a web of deception, leading to a murder case that presents one of his most challenging trial scenes. The author, Erle Stanley Gardner (1889-1970), is renowned for his intricate and twisting plots in American mystery fiction. A civil rights lawyer, he penned 146 books, with 85 featuring the iconic Perry Mason, who inspired numerous television adaptations. Gardner achieved remarkable sales, often selling 26,000 copies daily at his peak in the mid-1960s, surpassing even Agatha Christie and Barbara Cartland combined. Born in Massachusetts, Gardner briefly attended Law School in Indiana but left due to distractions. He moved to California, becoming a self-taught attorney before shifting to sales. He returned to law in 1921 but found his true passion in writing, setting an ambitious goal of 66,000 words per week. His prolific output included works under various pseudonyms and non-fiction, exploring early Mexican exploitation in California. In later life, Gardner co-founded 'The Court of Last Resort' to investigate miscarriages of justice. He aspired to create a hero who fights not through ruthlessness but with strategic patience, delivering a decisive blow when the moment is right.

Wealthy Amelia Corning, owner of the Corning mine interests, might be an old lady in a wheelchair but she doesn’t miss a trick. Secretary Susan Fisher has to call in Perry Mason when she finds her boss’s seven-year-old son holding a shoebox stuffed with hundred-dollar bills. Then Miss Corning’s life is at risk.