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Mr. & Mrs. North #14
Murder In A Hurry
Gerald and Pamela North investigate the murder of J.K. Halder, an eccentric millionaire who preferred the company of animals to that of people
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1950
39 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Frances Lockridge
94 books48 followersFrances Louise (Davis) Lockridge wrote popular mysteries and children's books with husband Richard Lockridge. They also published under the shared pseudonym Francis Richards.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
January 12, 2022
Eccentric!
Lieutenant Weigand and the Norths are investigating the death of an eccentric. Eccentric, because he’s a loony with thirty million dollars.
Naturally, his money makes him a target for murder. The suspects are all close to home, but who did it?
Do the Norths know? Will Pam North solve this one before the Lieutenant? She has her nose in the mystery, as usual. Will it pay off?
Lieutenant Weigand and the Norths are investigating the death of an eccentric. Eccentric, because he’s a loony with thirty million dollars.
Naturally, his money makes him a target for murder. The suspects are all close to home, but who did it?
Do the Norths know? Will Pam North solve this one before the Lieutenant? She has her nose in the mystery, as usual. Will it pay off?
September 30, 2025
J.K. Halder, a serious curmudgeon, owns a run-down pet shop in post-war Greenwich Village. That is, until he’s poisoned and stuffed into one of the shop’s animal pens. Commercial artist Liza O’Brien only knows the man as her new boyfriend’s father, but after finding the corpse, Liza discovers that Halder was a multi-millionaire misanthrope with a dysfunctional family he loathed. It turns out he abruptly left a family dinner he himself had arranged, and was killed in the wee hours that night. Who murdered a man poised to change his will? Sound cliché? Not in the deft hands of authors Frances and Richard Lockridge!
Pam and Jerry North become involved early in this very fine 14th novel in this stellar series — although Sergeant Mullins insists that every case they assist with becomes “screwy.” Mullins has no objections this time, he admits, as “…it’s already a screwy [case]. As soon as I saw the set-up, I says to myself, it’s a screwy one, so —” may as well invite the Norths! As always, the Lockridges sprinkle this murder mystery with lots of humor and clever badinage along with a great plot, characters and twists. You can’t go wrong with this sleuthing couple, or any Lockridge novel, for that matter.
Pam and Jerry North become involved early in this very fine 14th novel in this stellar series — although Sergeant Mullins insists that every case they assist with becomes “screwy.” Mullins has no objections this time, he admits, as “…it’s already a screwy [case]. As soon as I saw the set-up, I says to myself, it’s a screwy one, so —” may as well invite the Norths! As always, the Lockridges sprinkle this murder mystery with lots of humor and clever badinage along with a great plot, characters and twists. You can’t go wrong with this sleuthing couple, or any Lockridge novel, for that matter.
June 23, 2020
Liza O'Brien is hired by Jerry North to draw illustrations of cats for a soon-to-be published book. She begins with the Norths' three Siamese cats and plans to use a black, longhair kitten from a pet store she knows. She makes arrangements with the owner, J. K. Halder, to come one afternoon, but when she arrives the shop is closed. A gentleman from the neighborhood who is a friend of Halder's lets her in with a key and the two of them make a terrible discovery...Mr. Halder has died and his body has been stuffed into a dog cage. The older gentleman seems to take it hard and Liza goes in search of brandy or something to help him. When she returns, the man is gone. Liza winds up rushing away from the scene too--urged to do so by her boyfriend whom she has called for help and who just happens to be Halder's son. She accidentally leaves her sketchbook behind.
Halder is a famous eccentric millionaire who, after marrying twice and having three children, sold his money-making business to buy the little pet shop, left his home to the family with a suitable allowance to keep them in style, and takes up residence in the back of the shop. He said he preferred the company of animals to people and devoted his life to caring for strays and sick animals. He's had little contact with anyone since then, so who could have wished the old man dead?
Lieutenant Bill Weigand and Sergeant Mullins are called upon to investigate and as soon as he sees the old man crammed into the dog cage, Mullins knows it's going to be a screwy one--which of course means the Norths must be in it somewhere. Weigand proves him right when he glances through the sketchbook left on a chair and recognizes some familiar feline faces. Soon the Norths are in it and Pam will follow the clues from man's best friend to what she thinks is the answer. Weigand meanwhile is looking at the age-old questions: who benefits and how? Is it the younger wife who has found a "friend" more her age and might want freedom without divorce? Is it the friend who wants his lady to inherit? Or perhaps one of the children wanted a rush on their inheritance? Because one thing is certain--somebody was in a hurry to get Halder out of the way.
Small spoiler ahead--though if you are like me you'll pay attention to the wrong moment and the spoiler won't spoil the plot for you at all. Nonetheless...proceed at your own reading risk.
This is another fun entry in the Lockridge's light mystery series. As per usual, there are lots of cats but this one is made more interesting with the introduction of a young Scottie who helps Pam and Bill discover the catalyst which sets murder in motion. I absolutely knew the dog was important, but I paid attention to the wrong thing and managed to suspect the wrong person. But I was in good company, so did Pam (for different reasons).
I read most of the North books back when I first returned to mysteries (early 1990s) and our local library still had quite a number of them on the shelves. I've since spent my time trying to collect all of the Lockridge books and I have enjoyed rereading them. Fortunately, my memory is much more sieve-like than it used to be so I can reread and still be fooled by red herrings. The thing I enjoy most about these books, though, is how comfortable they are. They're perfect for when I want something light and fun and not too complicated.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. thanks.
Halder is a famous eccentric millionaire who, after marrying twice and having three children, sold his money-making business to buy the little pet shop, left his home to the family with a suitable allowance to keep them in style, and takes up residence in the back of the shop. He said he preferred the company of animals to people and devoted his life to caring for strays and sick animals. He's had little contact with anyone since then, so who could have wished the old man dead?
Lieutenant Bill Weigand and Sergeant Mullins are called upon to investigate and as soon as he sees the old man crammed into the dog cage, Mullins knows it's going to be a screwy one--which of course means the Norths must be in it somewhere. Weigand proves him right when he glances through the sketchbook left on a chair and recognizes some familiar feline faces. Soon the Norths are in it and Pam will follow the clues from man's best friend to what she thinks is the answer. Weigand meanwhile is looking at the age-old questions: who benefits and how? Is it the younger wife who has found a "friend" more her age and might want freedom without divorce? Is it the friend who wants his lady to inherit? Or perhaps one of the children wanted a rush on their inheritance? Because one thing is certain--somebody was in a hurry to get Halder out of the way.
Small spoiler ahead--though if you are like me you'll pay attention to the wrong moment and the spoiler won't spoil the plot for you at all. Nonetheless...proceed at your own reading risk.
This is another fun entry in the Lockridge's light mystery series. As per usual, there are lots of cats but this one is made more interesting with the introduction of a young Scottie who helps Pam and Bill discover the catalyst which sets murder in motion. I absolutely knew the dog was important, but I paid attention to the wrong thing and managed to suspect the wrong person. But I was in good company, so did Pam (for different reasons).
I read most of the North books back when I first returned to mysteries (early 1990s) and our local library still had quite a number of them on the shelves. I've since spent my time trying to collect all of the Lockridge books and I have enjoyed rereading them. Fortunately, my memory is much more sieve-like than it used to be so I can reread and still be fooled by red herrings. The thing I enjoy most about these books, though, is how comfortable they are. They're perfect for when I want something light and fun and not too complicated.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. thanks.
January 13, 2016
Rather confusing book in all. The cast of characters was quite large, and the minor characters were not well delineated. But 2 stars just for having a Scottie in the book!
May 8, 2018
An eccentric millionaire lives in his pet store. Mr. Halder loves animals more than he loves people. Even though he is married with children, he'd rather live alone surrounded by his beloved animals.
A young woman comes by the store to sketch the animals, the door is locked but an elderly man who lives near and knows the owner has a key and lets her in. What they see is hair raising. The animals have not been watered or fed and inside the pen of a sick boxer puppy is the body of Mr. Halder.
This was an intriguing who-done-it and would have been quite successful as a story if the author did not murder it with a constant flow of ellipses and unfinished sentences. It was like playing the old children's game "Red Light, Green Light" only with more red lights than green.
If an editor had given the author a good spanking and then made her clean up her grammar, the story would have been great.
A young woman comes by the store to sketch the animals, the door is locked but an elderly man who lives near and knows the owner has a key and lets her in. What they see is hair raising. The animals have not been watered or fed and inside the pen of a sick boxer puppy is the body of Mr. Halder.
This was an intriguing who-done-it and would have been quite successful as a story if the author did not murder it with a constant flow of ellipses and unfinished sentences. It was like playing the old children's game "Red Light, Green Light" only with more red lights than green.
If an editor had given the author a good spanking and then made her clean up her grammar, the story would have been great.
December 24, 2022
The crazy person murdered makes it easier to believe
I don’t want to spoil the solution but the extra bit of info about he victim, which only Bill knew, was unfair. The first several books it really seemed like Pam helped solve the mystery. The later books it seems like Bill just likes having the North’s around. And they had three rounds of drinks while Bill was explaining what happened, it not a three drink amount of time. Those people guzzle booze. Was it just like that?
I don’t want to spoil the solution but the extra bit of info about he victim, which only Bill knew, was unfair. The first several books it really seemed like Pam helped solve the mystery. The later books it seems like Bill just likes having the North’s around. And they had three rounds of drinks while Bill was explaining what happened, it not a three drink amount of time. Those people guzzle booze. Was it just like that?
April 20, 2012
It's been a long time since I read any of the Pam and Jerry North mysteries by the Lockridges, and it was wonderful getting reacquainted with them. To me, Pam and Jerry seem like another version of Nick and Nora Charles, as portrayed by William Powell and Myrna Loy in the Thin Man movies, and I often found myself picturing them as those actors. Cocktails keep flowing, and they have three Siamese cats named Martini, Gin, and Sherry. This story was great, with an appealing heroine, family intrigue, and a man murdered in his pet store. Unfortunately, these books are not readily available these days, but perhaps someday they will come back into favor and more people will be able to enjoy them.
Read
June 18, 2024#14 in the 1930's Greenwich Village amateur detectives Mr. & Mrs North mystery series.
Eccentric and reclusive, retired millionaire J.K. Halder moved out of his New York City home to live in a small Greenwich Village pet store preferring to be with animals than people when he is found dead by young artist Liza O'Brian who goes there to to use Halder's cats as models. Liza's boyfriend happens to be one of Halder's sons.
Liza's is being considered to illustrate a book on cats by Jerry North, thus bringing in Jerry and wife Pamela to the mystery being worked on by NYPD's Lt. Bill Weigand who also happens to be a friend of the Norths. Liza's life is threaten because the killer is convinced she knows who they are.
Weigand is the main investigator bringing in most of the information while Pam helps to move things along with her comments, etc, which are often hard to understand causing husband and detective to pass before the light dawns. They are a sort of Nick and Nora Charles with Pam playing the more important role along with the usual drinking and smoking.
Eccentric and reclusive, retired millionaire J.K. Halder moved out of his New York City home to live in a small Greenwich Village pet store preferring to be with animals than people when he is found dead by young artist Liza O'Brian who goes there to to use Halder's cats as models. Liza's boyfriend happens to be one of Halder's sons.
Liza's is being considered to illustrate a book on cats by Jerry North, thus bringing in Jerry and wife Pamela to the mystery being worked on by NYPD's Lt. Bill Weigand who also happens to be a friend of the Norths. Liza's life is threaten because the killer is convinced she knows who they are.
Weigand is the main investigator bringing in most of the information while Pam helps to move things along with her comments, etc, which are often hard to understand causing husband and detective to pass before the light dawns. They are a sort of Nick and Nora Charles with Pam playing the more important role along with the usual drinking and smoking.
February 20, 2018
Pet store owner JK Halder is found dead, stuffed into one of his cages. Turns out, not only was he poisoned, but he was an eccentric millionaire who liked animals more than people ... and he was about to change his will. But why was he changing his will? Who would benefit? Who would lose? Pam and Jerry are brought in when sketches of their cats are recognized ... and Pam wants to help the young artist, whose young man is one of the heirs ... and the young artist recognizes that her young man does have a violent streak in him. (Her acceptance of this is more than a little odd to modern readers)
Lots of animals in this one, some theater, and who-dun-it keeps you guessing until the end. Fun and fairly light.
Lots of animals in this one, some theater, and who-dun-it keeps you guessing until the end. Fun and fairly light.
December 1, 2019
I am a great fan of this "vintage mystery" series and particularly enjoy the domestic scenes in the North's Manhattan apartment. And their interaction with their Siamese cats.
This book was among my favorites in the series because of the character of very quirky millionaire who was murdered. He was far from an obscure corpse and his career and family dynamic added interest to this book for me.
This series is perfect for a chilly winter afternoon when you don't feel like doing much, thinking too hard, or working at anything. I just let all the perfectly mixed martinis (that Mr. North is always serving) wash over me and enjoyed the fun of Mr. and Mrs. North encountering yet another murder in their midst.
This book was among my favorites in the series because of the character of very quirky millionaire who was murdered. He was far from an obscure corpse and his career and family dynamic added interest to this book for me.
This series is perfect for a chilly winter afternoon when you don't feel like doing much, thinking too hard, or working at anything. I just let all the perfectly mixed martinis (that Mr. North is always serving) wash over me and enjoyed the fun of Mr. and Mrs. North encountering yet another murder in their midst.
February 7, 2020
Mr. North hires a young woman to draw sketches of his beloved three cats for an upcoming book to be published by his company. Then her sketch pad is found in a pet store with a dead man’s body in a dog cage! Detective Weigand recognizes the cats in the drawings and connects Mr. and Mrs. North to the death scene. The dead man is a millionaire, but he prefers to stay in the back of his small pet store in Greenwich Village. He never seems to sell any pets, but just takes care of the sick and needy animals. Why would anyone want to kill him? And why did the young woman leave the pet store after finding the body? Maybe the Norths know...
December 5, 2023
Twisted family relations
A young artist Lisa is drawn into danger when her boyfriend's father, a rich but eccentric elderly man, is murdered. The North's try their best to protect her but the killer is convinced she knows who they are. Lisa even considers her boyfriend to be a possibility and this creates even more tension. With the efforts of Lt. Bill Weigand and his loyal police officers the killer is finally captured. This book concentrates more on the people and less on the places in New York City which appear in many of their other mysteries.
A young artist Lisa is drawn into danger when her boyfriend's father, a rich but eccentric elderly man, is murdered. The North's try their best to protect her but the killer is convinced she knows who they are. Lisa even considers her boyfriend to be a possibility and this creates even more tension. With the efforts of Lt. Bill Weigand and his loyal police officers the killer is finally captured. This book concentrates more on the people and less on the places in New York City which appear in many of their other mysteries.
August 19, 2023
The back cover blurb led me to think this was a novel about a mystery solving couple and their cats. Honestly, you could have written out the couple (Mr. and Mrs. Bland really) by slightly tweaking only one point on how the main female character learned of a cat she wanted to sketch and this would have been almost the same exact novel. If another of the series comes my way, I'll read it, but I'm not going to search for them.
Find it. Buy it. Read it. If you feel like it.
Find it. Buy it. Read it. If you feel like it.
April 7, 2020
Picked this up at a Little Free Library because I liked the pet component in the description. Turned out to be far better than I expected. Likable and intelligent characters, murderer was not immediately guessable, engaging prose. Yup, well done, quarantine walk.
January 19, 2018
re-reading series
December 1, 2019
Early Bird Black Friday Deal | Oddly paced, the book was nearly over before I felt like much had happened. Clues laid more heavily and obviously than usual for the series.
December 30, 2021
Interesting mystery. In the vein of the Hammet, Nick and Nora characters.
Read
November 26, 2022I guessed the real motive before Pam!
April 19, 2023
This was a good one! I did not guess the end.
November 23, 2021
Another cozy mystery. I didn't guess who dun it; but enjoyed the story anyway. My favorite part is when the cats are getting sketched, since I love kitties. Reommended.
September 17, 2019
"The more I see of people, the better I like my dog."
All of us have heard this old saying and most of us would agree with it, at least some of the time. Loving animals is much less complicated than dealing with people. But Jasper Halder's disgust with the human race extended to believing that no one should have children. That's carrying things a bit far, isn't it?
West Kepp Street in Manhattan is narrow, run-down, and obscure. It's hard to find and even harder to navigate. And when it comes to investigating a homicide there, it's murder. It's an odd place for a pet shop, but then J.K. Halder was an odd man. He lived in the back room of his shabby store, which today would be called an "animal rescue" facility. There are a few salable pets, but there's also a very young litter of motherless kittens who need frequent feeding and a very sick puppy that the owner is tenderly nursing. Halder seems reclusive and friendless, but on the night of May 23, three people visited him and the second and third visitor found him dead.
Lt. Bill Weigand of the NYPD quickly discovers that Halder has another life with a family and a large fortune at stake. By his first wife, he has a son and daughter, now middle aged. "Junior" is the traditional rich man's son - ineffective and married to a much-younger gold digger wife. Barbara Halder Whiteside is a pompous socialite. She's married to a retired Colonel who tries without much success to keep her from angering people. WWII has been over for four years and the Colonel has nothing else to do.
Halder's second wife Mary is beautiful and appealing, the kind of woman men want to protect. Her young son Brian seems determined to protect her, even at the expense of his fiancee Liza. And Mary's latest "gentleman friend" is bit-part actor Sherman Pine, who's equally determined to protect Mary. Mary, to no one's surprise, is tougher than either of them in her serene, feminine way.
And where do the Norths come in? Liza O'Brien is an artist who's sketching the North's cats for illustrations in a book soon to be published by Jerry North's firm. When she discovers a body, she leaves her sketch pad behind and Bill Weigand recognizes Martini, Sherry, and Gin. Once Pam North finds that her young friend is involved in a murder, she's off and running, as usual.
It's all about timing. Everyone in the family will inherit under the old man's will, but why was the murderer in such a hurry? And who saw something that might threaten the murderer's safety? Liza O'Brien was at the murder scene, as was Jasper Halder's chess partner, Felix Sneddiger. One of them DID see something and went to investigate. Bad idea.
And then another person starts poking around, which arouses the murderer's fears of discovery. In the middle of the investigation, everyone involved goes to see Sherman Pine in a stagy English play. When someone topples unconscious onto the stage, the resulting chaos is hilarious. These authors were New Yorkers who loved the theater and knew all about life behind the curtain.
This is a good book in a good series. The Norths are witty and fun. Lt. Weigand is sharply professional, but confident enough to play his hunches. The Halding family are well-drawn and the authors do a fine job of showing a group of very diverse people all under the strain of being dependent on the whims of an enigmatic man. The conclusion is surprising, but logical. I enjoyed it.
All of us have heard this old saying and most of us would agree with it, at least some of the time. Loving animals is much less complicated than dealing with people. But Jasper Halder's disgust with the human race extended to believing that no one should have children. That's carrying things a bit far, isn't it?
West Kepp Street in Manhattan is narrow, run-down, and obscure. It's hard to find and even harder to navigate. And when it comes to investigating a homicide there, it's murder. It's an odd place for a pet shop, but then J.K. Halder was an odd man. He lived in the back room of his shabby store, which today would be called an "animal rescue" facility. There are a few salable pets, but there's also a very young litter of motherless kittens who need frequent feeding and a very sick puppy that the owner is tenderly nursing. Halder seems reclusive and friendless, but on the night of May 23, three people visited him and the second and third visitor found him dead.
Lt. Bill Weigand of the NYPD quickly discovers that Halder has another life with a family and a large fortune at stake. By his first wife, he has a son and daughter, now middle aged. "Junior" is the traditional rich man's son - ineffective and married to a much-younger gold digger wife. Barbara Halder Whiteside is a pompous socialite. She's married to a retired Colonel who tries without much success to keep her from angering people. WWII has been over for four years and the Colonel has nothing else to do.
Halder's second wife Mary is beautiful and appealing, the kind of woman men want to protect. Her young son Brian seems determined to protect her, even at the expense of his fiancee Liza. And Mary's latest "gentleman friend" is bit-part actor Sherman Pine, who's equally determined to protect Mary. Mary, to no one's surprise, is tougher than either of them in her serene, feminine way.
And where do the Norths come in? Liza O'Brien is an artist who's sketching the North's cats for illustrations in a book soon to be published by Jerry North's firm. When she discovers a body, she leaves her sketch pad behind and Bill Weigand recognizes Martini, Sherry, and Gin. Once Pam North finds that her young friend is involved in a murder, she's off and running, as usual.
It's all about timing. Everyone in the family will inherit under the old man's will, but why was the murderer in such a hurry? And who saw something that might threaten the murderer's safety? Liza O'Brien was at the murder scene, as was Jasper Halder's chess partner, Felix Sneddiger. One of them DID see something and went to investigate. Bad idea.
And then another person starts poking around, which arouses the murderer's fears of discovery. In the middle of the investigation, everyone involved goes to see Sherman Pine in a stagy English play. When someone topples unconscious onto the stage, the resulting chaos is hilarious. These authors were New Yorkers who loved the theater and knew all about life behind the curtain.
This is a good book in a good series. The Norths are witty and fun. Lt. Weigand is sharply professional, but confident enough to play his hunches. The Halding family are well-drawn and the authors do a fine job of showing a group of very diverse people all under the strain of being dependent on the whims of an enigmatic man. The conclusion is surprising, but logical. I enjoyed it.
May 29, 2012
I really enjoy mysteries from the "Golden Age" of the 20s - 40s and originally found the Pam and Jerry North stories when I was a member of the Mystery Book Club some years ago. I stumbled across this one (it was part of the set dressing for a play I was in) and gulped through it. The writing is light and urbane and if you ever stumble across this book, I'd recommend it.
February 5, 2017
I loved this one! I really couldn't narrow the suspect list down to any particular person although the clues were there. The ending was a surprise; a kind of "oh, yeah" surprise. I should have seen it sooner, but got sidetracked in too many directions. Good writing, great plotting, and cats and dogs and cocktails.
August 13, 2012
This is #15 in the Mr.& Mrs. North mystery series! Enjoyable murder mystery in the style of Nick & Nora from Hammett Dashiel...
March 31, 2011
fast-paced, good plotting, lots of animals moral: never kick a dog
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews