Say It With Murder

by Edward S. Aarons

Book by Aarons, Edward S.

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1954

About the author

AKA Paul Ayres, Edward Ronns.

Edward Sidney Aarons (September 11, 1916 - June 16, 1975) was an American writer, author of more than 80 novels from 1936 until 1962. One of these was under the pseudonym "Paul Ayres" (Dead Heat), and 30 were written using the name "Edward Ronns". He also wrote numerous articles for detective magazines such as Detective Story Magazine and Scarab.

Aarons was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and earned a degree in Literature and History from Columbia University. He worked at various jobs to put himself through college, including jobs as a newspaper reporter and fisherman. In 1933, he won a short story contest as a student. In World War II he was in the United States Coast Guard, joining after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. He finished his duty in 1945, having obtained the rank of Chief Petty Officer.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edward Aarons’ 1954 thriller, Say It With Murder, published originally under the Edward Ronns pseudonym, is a prime example of how an author can use everything in his arsenal and still make it work so well that the novel is an unending thrill ride.

The central character here is piano player, Bill Carmody, who is playing at a motel out in Montauk well beneath his real talent level. Carmody is haunted by his years during the Korean War in a Chinese POW camp and his fellow soldiers who can’t forget how one of their own betrayed them, the husband of the motel’s owner. They aim to involve Carmody in their thirst for revenge and he just wants to let bygones be bygones. Carmody is also haunted by his old connection to a gangster and his unknowing part in a Murder still being held above him. This is particularly so when the gangster means to turn the motel into a gambling paradise.

But it doesn’t end there since one of the former soldiers, a hulkish Giant, is plying a dipsy runaway with marijuana and, without its calming influence, goes nuts.

All this before the corpses start piling up and, of course, Carmody looks like the fall guy for each and every killing.

As noted, there is a tremendous amount of things going on here, but Aarons deftly keeps the story going full steam ahead until it’s ultimate conclusion.

[Paul Cornelius · Rating 3 out of 5]

For Aarons, Say It with Murder is an average effort. Good plotting as usual constantly advances the story. But the hook around which the novel works--three Korean War veterans turning up to get revenge against a fellow POW they feel betrayed them to the Communists--is sort of flat. In fact, it sort of wanders off the edge of things, when Aarons takes his hero, Bill Carmody, and plugs him into an effort to turn a New England coastal resort village into a gambling den. There are a couple of murders and then things climax during a seagoing escape. By the way, the ending is quite good. Sometimes, Aarons has a difficulty on that score, making things seem less significant than they should be. Here, it's no problem. Good ending that also ties up all the loose ends.