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John J. Malone #14
Murder Mystery and Malone
Craig Rice (1908-1957), the pseudonym of Georgiana Craig Rice, was the author of an extraordinary series of screwball mysteries about John J. Malone, a bibulous, blonde-fancying lawyer, who claims never to have lost a case. In the twelve stories first collected in this book, Malone investigates a killing in an undertakers' parade, a psychiatrist's patient who dreams of murder, an unknown man killed in a rented sailor's suit, and a terrified memory expert. As a special bonus, two of the stories feature Rice's lesser known sleuth, Melville Fairr, a little grey man but a formidable detective. Rice's biographer, Jeffrey A. Marks, has chosen and written new prefaces to each story.
- GenresMysteryShort Stories
196 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1963
About the author
Craig Rice
102 books58 followersPseudonym for Georgiana Ann Randolph Craig aka Daphne Sanders and Michael Venning.
Known for her hard-boiled mystery plots combined with screwball comedy, Georgiana 'Craig' Rice was the author of twenty-three novels, six of them posthumous, numerous short stories, and some true crime pieces. In the 1940s she rivaled Agatha Christie in sales and was featured on the cover of Time Magazine in 1946. However, over the past sixty years she has fallen into relative obscurity.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Ri...
Known for her hard-boiled mystery plots combined with screwball comedy, Georgiana 'Craig' Rice was the author of twenty-three novels, six of them posthumous, numerous short stories, and some true crime pieces. In the 1940s she rivaled Agatha Christie in sales and was featured on the cover of Time Magazine in 1946. However, over the past sixty years she has fallen into relative obscurity.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Ri...
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 15, 2019
Some good mysteries.
September 28, 2021
Typos galore toward the end.
A well-plotted group of stories that transport the reader to the Chicago of the 1940s and '50s. Well-drawn major characters.
A well-plotted group of stories that transport the reader to the Chicago of the 1940s and '50s. Well-drawn major characters.
March 2, 2024
For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
April 2, 2016
Mixing murder-mystery with humour is a very difficult job, and that’s what Craig Rice used to accomplish with aplomb. She had, using the lawyer John J. Malone as the protagonist, created a world of violence & humour, fiasco & justice, disorder & law, and that world used to come alive especially in her short stories.
Thanks to Crippen & Landru, who have done a spectacular job in terms of reviving several lost gems in mystery genre, outdoes themselves in this volume, as we get to sample some of the finest and hitherto uncollected stories written by Rice.
Followed by a brief introduction by Jeffrey A. Marks, we have the following stories:
1. Wry Highball (features John J. Malone)
2. The Frightened Millionaire (features John J. Malone)
3. Shot in the Dark (features John J. Malone): my favourite story in this collection.
4. Say It With Flowers (features John J. Malone)
5. How Now, Ophelia (features Melville Fairr): written under the penname Michael Venning.
6. Death in the Moonlight (features Michael Fairr)
7. Beyond the Shadow of a Dream (features John J. Malone)
8. One More Clue (features John J. Malone)
9. They’re Trying to Kill Me (features John J. Malone)
10. No, Not Like Yesterday (features John J. Malone)
11. Hard Sell (features John J. Malone)
12. The Dead Undertaker (features John J. Malone)
Written between 1947 & 1960, these stories depict an author who gave hardboiled mystery genre a totally new shine, but about whom we now know next to nothing.
I don’t know how you might react, but I would commence a major search for Rice’s other published collections. Until that happens, I can recommend only this book to you, but it bears highest possible recommendation, let me assure you.
Thanks to Crippen & Landru, who have done a spectacular job in terms of reviving several lost gems in mystery genre, outdoes themselves in this volume, as we get to sample some of the finest and hitherto uncollected stories written by Rice.
Followed by a brief introduction by Jeffrey A. Marks, we have the following stories:
1. Wry Highball (features John J. Malone)
2. The Frightened Millionaire (features John J. Malone)
3. Shot in the Dark (features John J. Malone): my favourite story in this collection.
4. Say It With Flowers (features John J. Malone)
5. How Now, Ophelia (features Melville Fairr): written under the penname Michael Venning.
6. Death in the Moonlight (features Michael Fairr)
7. Beyond the Shadow of a Dream (features John J. Malone)
8. One More Clue (features John J. Malone)
9. They’re Trying to Kill Me (features John J. Malone)
10. No, Not Like Yesterday (features John J. Malone)
11. Hard Sell (features John J. Malone)
12. The Dead Undertaker (features John J. Malone)
Written between 1947 & 1960, these stories depict an author who gave hardboiled mystery genre a totally new shine, but about whom we now know next to nothing.
I don’t know how you might react, but I would commence a major search for Rice’s other published collections. Until that happens, I can recommend only this book to you, but it bears highest possible recommendation, let me assure you.
December 14, 2016
A book of short stories that are well written.
remainder-not-available
December 7, 2025Read so far:
Wry highball --3
The frightened millionaire --3
Shot in the dark --3
Say it with flowers --3
How now, Ophelia --2
Death in the moonlight --2
Beyond the shadow of a dream --2
One more clue --3
They're trying to kill me --2
No, not like yesterday --2
Hard sell --3
The dead undertaker (aka Murder marches on)--2
***
The last man alive--3
The little knife that wasn't there (aka Malone and the missing weapon)--2
The man who swallowed a horse (aka Dead Mr. Duck)--1
Mrs. Schultz is dead (N/A)
A quiet day in the county jail--2
Wry highball --3
The frightened millionaire --3
Shot in the dark --3
Say it with flowers --3
How now, Ophelia --2
Death in the moonlight --2
Beyond the shadow of a dream --2
One more clue --3
They're trying to kill me --2
No, not like yesterday --2
Hard sell --3
The dead undertaker (aka Murder marches on)--2
***
The last man alive--3
The little knife that wasn't there (aka Malone and the missing weapon)--2
The man who swallowed a horse (aka Dead Mr. Duck)--1
Mrs. Schultz is dead (N/A)
A quiet day in the county jail--2
October 23, 2012
Most of the stories in this enjoyable collection feature Rice's most famous detective, the boozy Chicago lawyer John J. Malone, who solves the crimes before he has to go to court to defend the eventual culprit. Two, however, feature a quiet, sympathetic private investigator named Melville Fairr. Even if you're a Rice fan, you may find some new stories in this book.
February 18, 2015
After reading this anthology, I am now a true fan of Craig Rice. I'd read one of her novels and found her writing to be sly and clever, but also a bit padded. Not so with the short stories. The lean writing and low key hilarity made me want to read another Craig Rice anthology and to also give another of her novels a try.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews