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Hilda Adams #2
Locked Doors
Odin’s Library Classics is dedicated to bringing the world the best of humankind’s literature from throughout the ages. Carefully selected, each work is unabridged from classic works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or drama.
42 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1914
About the author
Mary Roberts Rinehart
575 books437 followersMysteries of the well-known American writer Mary Roberts Rinehart include
The Circular Staircase
(1908) and
The Door
(1930).
People often called this prolific author the American version of Agatha Christie. She is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it," though the exact phrase doesn't appear in her works, and she invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing.
Rinehart wrote hundreds of short stories, poems, travelogues, and special articles. Many of her books and plays were adapted for movies, such as The Bat (1926), The Bat Whispers (1930), and The Bat (1959). Critics most appreciated her murder mysteries.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Ro...
People often called this prolific author the American version of Agatha Christie. She is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it," though the exact phrase doesn't appear in her works, and she invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing.
Rinehart wrote hundreds of short stories, poems, travelogues, and special articles. Many of her books and plays were adapted for movies, such as The Bat (1926), The Bat Whispers (1930), and The Bat (1959). Critics most appreciated her murder mysteries.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Ro...
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
March 14, 2025
“Help was always close, I felt. And yet, as I stood inside my door in my rubber-soled shoes, with my ulster over my uniform and a revolver and my skeleton keys in my pockets, my heart was going very fast. The stupid story of the ghost came back and made me shudder, and the next instant, I was remembering Mrs. Reed the night before, staring down into the lower hall with fixed glassy eyes.”
Published in 1914, Mary Roberts Rinehart’s Locked Doors is the second of her Nurse Hilda Adams stories. Rinehart was a wonderful storyteller from the very beginning, and while a minor turn of phrase here or there might place it in its time period, it’s so well done that it also might have been written yesterday, by someone setting an old-fashioned story of mystery during the period.
Strange things have been going on in the Reed house; so strange that after only a few days, a nurse quits, and makes her escape, frightened beyond all common sense. Her letter is what brings Mr. Patton to Hilda Adams, seeking her help once again, as with the Buckled Bag mystery. A nurse, you see, can get close and intimate with a family, and learn more than any copper could from the outside. And Patton is sure that something very strange is going on at the Reed house.
The servants have been let go, doors are locked at night, and everyone in the family is tense and wary. Even the two young boys Hilda is brought in to care for are distraught; their little dog has gone missing, yet they seem to hear it whining at night. And there is a basement, and poison on the roof which nearly leads to tragedy, but worse, a hideous disembodied head coming up the stairs at night to roam about the locked doors.
Is there something supernatural going on, or is the mystery earthly, and more sinister? What has happened to Mademoiselle? Luckily for the intrepid Nurse Adams, whom Patton shows signs of caring more about than would be prudent to admit, a copper is keeping an eye outside the house for trouble. But a lot can happen at night in the dark.
“It was an ominous door. I wanted to run away from it, and I wanted also desperately to stand and look at it and imagine what might lie beyond. Here again, was the strange spicy odor that I had noticed in the back staircase.”
Locked Doors isn’t really scary, but more old-fashioned fun. Rinehart blends just the right amount of atmosphere, suspense and mystery to make this short novella a delightful read. The Blackbird Books edition I have is small in both size and length, at 86 pages. It’s very nicely put together, with a cover that is, however, perhaps more indicative of the ‘30s and ’40s than the actual time period depicted.
All in all, Locked Doors is highly recommended for those who enjoy old-fashioned tales of mystery, especially those raising the possibility of a supernatural solution.
Published in 1914, Mary Roberts Rinehart’s Locked Doors is the second of her Nurse Hilda Adams stories. Rinehart was a wonderful storyteller from the very beginning, and while a minor turn of phrase here or there might place it in its time period, it’s so well done that it also might have been written yesterday, by someone setting an old-fashioned story of mystery during the period.
Strange things have been going on in the Reed house; so strange that after only a few days, a nurse quits, and makes her escape, frightened beyond all common sense. Her letter is what brings Mr. Patton to Hilda Adams, seeking her help once again, as with the Buckled Bag mystery. A nurse, you see, can get close and intimate with a family, and learn more than any copper could from the outside. And Patton is sure that something very strange is going on at the Reed house.
The servants have been let go, doors are locked at night, and everyone in the family is tense and wary. Even the two young boys Hilda is brought in to care for are distraught; their little dog has gone missing, yet they seem to hear it whining at night. And there is a basement, and poison on the roof which nearly leads to tragedy, but worse, a hideous disembodied head coming up the stairs at night to roam about the locked doors.
Is there something supernatural going on, or is the mystery earthly, and more sinister? What has happened to Mademoiselle? Luckily for the intrepid Nurse Adams, whom Patton shows signs of caring more about than would be prudent to admit, a copper is keeping an eye outside the house for trouble. But a lot can happen at night in the dark.
“It was an ominous door. I wanted to run away from it, and I wanted also desperately to stand and look at it and imagine what might lie beyond. Here again, was the strange spicy odor that I had noticed in the back staircase.”
Locked Doors isn’t really scary, but more old-fashioned fun. Rinehart blends just the right amount of atmosphere, suspense and mystery to make this short novella a delightful read. The Blackbird Books edition I have is small in both size and length, at 86 pages. It’s very nicely put together, with a cover that is, however, perhaps more indicative of the ‘30s and ’40s than the actual time period depicted.
All in all, Locked Doors is highly recommended for those who enjoy old-fashioned tales of mystery, especially those raising the possibility of a supernatural solution.
June 25, 2019
COUNTDOWN: Mid-20th Century North American Crime
BOOK/Novella 174 (of 250)
Mary Roberts Rinehart was "for decades, one of the most successful and beloved mystery writers in America" says Penzler in a fantastic "American Female Detectives"* collection.
HOOK - 2 stars:
>>> "You promised," I reminded Mr. Patton, "to play with cards on the table."
"My dear young lady," he replied, "I have no cards. I suspect a game, that's all."
"Then-do you need me?"
..."I want you to take another case..."<<< opens this work.
I like that Hilda Adams' first line here is confrontational: she isn't going to put up with Mr. Patton hiding anything from her. But we know little of the crime for a page or so.
PACE - 3: Rinehart correctly chooses a novella-length work for this subject.
PLOT - 4: This starts as a standard gothic: a nurse is being sent to a house where something odd is going on. Is there a madwoman in the attic? Yes! But Rinehart throws that trope out the window early. Are there supernatural elements? It seems so, given a headless slimy black thing crawls over Hilda's feet at one point. Then Rinehart throws a few more expected elements away and and takes an original turn: I'll say no more but award Rinehart a 4th star for originality of plot.
CAST - 2: We learn little about Hilda, nor about the occupants of the house. We don't even get to meet the family's pet dog as it dies an early death...
ATMOSPHERE - 3: Nurse Adams goes prepared with her secret 'box': "It contained skeleton keys, a small black revolver of which I was in deadly fear [me too], a pair of handcuffs [well, Hilda!], a pocket flashlight, and my badge from the chief of police." This gal is prepared! The house? "It is a small, exclusive community, the Beauregard neighborhood; a dozen or more solid citizens built their homes there in the early [18]70's, occupying large lots, the houses flush with the streets and with gardens behind. Six on one street, six on another, back to back with the gardens in the center..." I like that Rinehart doesn't take us to a house in the middle of nowhere. There really isn't anything about the house that would cause alarm...except there are no carpets or rugs and lots of those titular locked doors. SOMETHING must be kept from running loose, but why do the occupants lock their bedroom doors at night, and lock the 2 children and Nurse Adams inside a nursery?
SUMMARY - 2.8. The odd turn of the plot and the solution definitely make this a worthwhile read. *This is the 16th Penzler collection, as listed on the "Also Edited by Otto Penzler" page and I'm thinking I might as well start a collection. These are truly excellent collections, beautifully researched with all kinds of interesting bits of information found nowhere else. Penzler has added immensely to my world of reading and literature.
BOOK/Novella 174 (of 250)
Mary Roberts Rinehart was "for decades, one of the most successful and beloved mystery writers in America" says Penzler in a fantastic "American Female Detectives"* collection.
HOOK - 2 stars:
>>> "You promised," I reminded Mr. Patton, "to play with cards on the table."
"My dear young lady," he replied, "I have no cards. I suspect a game, that's all."
"Then-do you need me?"
..."I want you to take another case..."<<< opens this work.
I like that Hilda Adams' first line here is confrontational: she isn't going to put up with Mr. Patton hiding anything from her. But we know little of the crime for a page or so.
PACE - 3: Rinehart correctly chooses a novella-length work for this subject.
PLOT - 4: This starts as a standard gothic: a nurse is being sent to a house where something odd is going on. Is there a madwoman in the attic? Yes! But Rinehart throws that trope out the window early. Are there supernatural elements? It seems so, given a headless slimy black thing crawls over Hilda's feet at one point. Then Rinehart throws a few more expected elements away and and takes an original turn: I'll say no more but award Rinehart a 4th star for originality of plot.
CAST - 2: We learn little about Hilda, nor about the occupants of the house. We don't even get to meet the family's pet dog as it dies an early death...
ATMOSPHERE - 3: Nurse Adams goes prepared with her secret 'box': "It contained skeleton keys, a small black revolver of which I was in deadly fear [me too], a pair of handcuffs [well, Hilda!], a pocket flashlight, and my badge from the chief of police." This gal is prepared! The house? "It is a small, exclusive community, the Beauregard neighborhood; a dozen or more solid citizens built their homes there in the early [18]70's, occupying large lots, the houses flush with the streets and with gardens behind. Six on one street, six on another, back to back with the gardens in the center..." I like that Rinehart doesn't take us to a house in the middle of nowhere. There really isn't anything about the house that would cause alarm...except there are no carpets or rugs and lots of those titular locked doors. SOMETHING must be kept from running loose, but why do the occupants lock their bedroom doors at night, and lock the 2 children and Nurse Adams inside a nursery?
SUMMARY - 2.8. The odd turn of the plot and the solution definitely make this a worthwhile read. *This is the 16th Penzler collection, as listed on the "Also Edited by Otto Penzler" page and I'm thinking I might as well start a collection. These are truly excellent collections, beautifully researched with all kinds of interesting bits of information found nowhere else. Penzler has added immensely to my world of reading and literature.
September 24, 2018
3.85 stars - rated pg
This is the second story in the Nurse Hilda Adams mysteries (the first is The Buckled Bag) and although they do not need to be read in order, I enjoyed seeing the changing dynamic and mild hint of growing affection between the nurse detective and the police detective. This story was creepier than the first but still not creepy enough to hurt my very tender heart, it’s good for those who like mysteries with no murder or “murder-lite”. I thoroughly enjoyed this short book even though there were a few things that didn’t quite fit and the author threw in a few eye-rolling moments where the normally sensible Nurse Adams became a quivering, silly mess. I’m a fairly novice mystery reader and yet I presumed to think I had figured out part of the mystery. Well … I was sort of in the ballpark … but not really! The mystery "reveal" was unique to anything I’ve ever read. I’m looking forward to reading the third installment, Miss Pinkerton.
This is the second story in the Nurse Hilda Adams mysteries (the first is The Buckled Bag) and although they do not need to be read in order, I enjoyed seeing the changing dynamic and mild hint of growing affection between the nurse detective and the police detective. This story was creepier than the first but still not creepy enough to hurt my very tender heart, it’s good for those who like mysteries with no murder or “murder-lite”. I thoroughly enjoyed this short book even though there were a few things that didn’t quite fit and the author threw in a few eye-rolling moments where the normally sensible Nurse Adams became a quivering, silly mess. I’m a fairly novice mystery reader and yet I presumed to think I had figured out part of the mystery. Well … I was sort of in the ballpark … but not really! The mystery "reveal" was unique to anything I’ve ever read. I’m looking forward to reading the third installment, Miss Pinkerton.
November 23, 2019
Woo hoo. I love getting lost in a doorstopper, but it takes a skilled writer to squeeze the right emotions out in a shorter work. Roberts Rinehart got mad skills. And a truly modern feel. Hard to believe this was first published more than 100 years ago.
We get a quick and dirty set up: Miss Adams is a trained nurse who investgates for the cops from the inside. She packs her gun and a suitcase and is on the scene in a big family home trying to find out what the family is hiding, what happened to the nanny, and what freaked out the last nurse so badly.
I am delighted to say I never predicted that solution. Happily there are plenty of stories available in the public domain. Collect them all.
Personal copy from Gutenberg
We get a quick and dirty set up: Miss Adams is a trained nurse who investgates for the cops from the inside. She packs her gun and a suitcase and is on the scene in a big family home trying to find out what the family is hiding, what happened to the nanny, and what freaked out the last nurse so badly.
I am delighted to say I never predicted that solution. Happily there are plenty of stories available in the public domain. Collect them all.
Personal copy from Gutenberg
October 31, 2017
Terrific, spunky heroine. The cover depicted here is over-the-top hilarious, but the book itself was quite engaging.
January 29, 2024
3 stars. An entertaining short mystery about a nurse who is actually an undercover policeofficer. It was reminded of Hitchcock movies whilst reading.
September 13, 2019
It sounds absurd to say "I wish she'd written more" about Mary Roberts Rinehart who was one of the most prolific writers of all time. But I DO. Specifically, I wish she'd written more books and stories about her wonderful character Miss Hilda Adams, RN. She wrote only three stories and one book about the nurse-detective known to the police as "Miss Pinkerton." The earliest one I've never been able to find. I have this one as a Kindle version, the book in a VERY old hard-back copy, and once read the last story in a library book.
Mrs. Rinehart was a "trained nurse" (always specified at that time to avoid confusion with a children's nurse) who married a young doctor and retired to a life of children and domestic duties and writing mysteries. She doesn't often mention doctors and nurses in her books, but when she does, it's impossible to mistake the very personal tone.
Miss Hilda Adams hails from a time when families who could afford it could hire an RN to nurse the patient in the comfort of his/own home. Those were the days! But Miss Adams has another string to her bow. Detective Patton of the local police department sends her out on assignments where he needs information that can't be uncovered by the regular police.
As Miss Adams points out, a nurse occupies a privileged position in the home and can snoop around and find things hidden from the police. She claims to always get her man, except for that one time when the cook burned the toast and the delay gave the criminal time to escape justice through committing suicide. Can't win 'em all, can you?
Mary Roberts Rinehart was an unashamed feminist and proponent of women's rights in day when even voting was denied to the "fairer sex." Miss Adams is an able voice for her staunchly independent creator. "If there is anything that takes the very soul out of a woman, it is to be kept from doing a thing she has set her heart on, because some man thinks it dangerous. If she has any spirit, that rouses it."
So when Detective Patton tries to talk her out of taking a job at a mysterious house where the servants have been dismissed and the previous nurse has fled in terror and complained to the police, she's even more determined to accept the challenge. She wins, of course, as always. Poor Mr. Patton is torn between his need to get an insider into this house of mystery and his affection for the young nurse. It's a pattern that will persist throughout their relationship.
In this case, it's an appealing young couple and their two adorable sons who are in danger. At risk to herself, Miss Adams discovers the secret and restores order. It's far-fetched today, but wouldn't have been at the time it appeared in 1906.
If you like Rinehart's books, this one is worth your time.
Mrs. Rinehart was a "trained nurse" (always specified at that time to avoid confusion with a children's nurse) who married a young doctor and retired to a life of children and domestic duties and writing mysteries. She doesn't often mention doctors and nurses in her books, but when she does, it's impossible to mistake the very personal tone.
Miss Hilda Adams hails from a time when families who could afford it could hire an RN to nurse the patient in the comfort of his/own home. Those were the days! But Miss Adams has another string to her bow. Detective Patton of the local police department sends her out on assignments where he needs information that can't be uncovered by the regular police.
As Miss Adams points out, a nurse occupies a privileged position in the home and can snoop around and find things hidden from the police. She claims to always get her man, except for that one time when the cook burned the toast and the delay gave the criminal time to escape justice through committing suicide. Can't win 'em all, can you?
Mary Roberts Rinehart was an unashamed feminist and proponent of women's rights in day when even voting was denied to the "fairer sex." Miss Adams is an able voice for her staunchly independent creator. "If there is anything that takes the very soul out of a woman, it is to be kept from doing a thing she has set her heart on, because some man thinks it dangerous. If she has any spirit, that rouses it."
So when Detective Patton tries to talk her out of taking a job at a mysterious house where the servants have been dismissed and the previous nurse has fled in terror and complained to the police, she's even more determined to accept the challenge. She wins, of course, as always. Poor Mr. Patton is torn between his need to get an insider into this house of mystery and his affection for the young nurse. It's a pattern that will persist throughout their relationship.
In this case, it's an appealing young couple and their two adorable sons who are in danger. At risk to herself, Miss Adams discovers the secret and restores order. It's far-fetched today, but wouldn't have been at the time it appeared in 1906.
If you like Rinehart's books, this one is worth your time.
February 24, 2026
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Fans of Rinehart's nurse-detective Hilda Adams will not be disappointed in this mystery, filled with Gothic tension and suspense.
Working undercover for Inspector Patton on cases where the police cannot get close, she is presented with an odd assignment. The Reed household has lost their nurse after she went to pieces in just four days, refusing to return. The staff have all been dismissed, and there are rumours the governess disappeared, but never left.
There is no need for a doctor—it is only the two young boys who need attending. She finds the distressed couple in a gloomy townhouse, empty of furniture, all the rugs torn up, which shares an inner courtyard where ghostly shadows have been seen lurking in the night. She observes the strange behavior of the parents who sleep in a cot at the top of the stairs. The cries of the missing dog can still be heard, the goldfish have been poisoned, the phone lines cut, and most strange: all doors in the house are kept locked—including the bedrooms from the outside. Escaping to search the house in the night, she is frightened by seeing a disembodied head and hearing strange voices in the attic: "I die! Tomorrow I die!"
Something is terribly wrong —and then she finds the basement door unlocked.
This has terrific tension and a mystifying plot. Hard to believe it was written in 1914. Nurse Hilda Adams previously appeared in the story The Buckled Bag (1914), and returned in the ever-popular Miss Pinkerton (1932), The Haunted Lady (1942), and The Episode of the Wandering Knife (1950). Called the American Agatha Christie, Rinehart's earliest titles remain her most popular: The Circular Staircase (1908), The Man in Lower Ten (1909), and The Bat (1926). Her title The Door (1930) is credited with producing the phrase "The Butler did it!"
This and her other exciting classics can be found free online, or available as ebooks.
for over 1000 book reviews in all genres
Fans of Rinehart's nurse-detective Hilda Adams will not be disappointed in this mystery, filled with Gothic tension and suspense.
Working undercover for Inspector Patton on cases where the police cannot get close, she is presented with an odd assignment. The Reed household has lost their nurse after she went to pieces in just four days, refusing to return. The staff have all been dismissed, and there are rumours the governess disappeared, but never left.
There is no need for a doctor—it is only the two young boys who need attending. She finds the distressed couple in a gloomy townhouse, empty of furniture, all the rugs torn up, which shares an inner courtyard where ghostly shadows have been seen lurking in the night. She observes the strange behavior of the parents who sleep in a cot at the top of the stairs. The cries of the missing dog can still be heard, the goldfish have been poisoned, the phone lines cut, and most strange: all doors in the house are kept locked—including the bedrooms from the outside. Escaping to search the house in the night, she is frightened by seeing a disembodied head and hearing strange voices in the attic: "I die! Tomorrow I die!"
Something is terribly wrong —and then she finds the basement door unlocked.
This has terrific tension and a mystifying plot. Hard to believe it was written in 1914. Nurse Hilda Adams previously appeared in the story The Buckled Bag (1914), and returned in the ever-popular Miss Pinkerton (1932), The Haunted Lady (1942), and The Episode of the Wandering Knife (1950). Called the American Agatha Christie, Rinehart's earliest titles remain her most popular: The Circular Staircase (1908), The Man in Lower Ten (1909), and The Bat (1926). Her title The Door (1930) is credited with producing the phrase "The Butler did it!"
This and her other exciting classics can be found free online, or available as ebooks.
January 22, 2025
Edited to add, I just realised this story is now over a hundred years old!!
I thought I’d begin my Mary Robert’s Rinehart experience with this book, only because it was inexpensive on kindle. I was quickly captivated by the protagonist and drawn into the uneasiness and horror of the family who she was ‘helping’ if you don’t want big END OF STORY spoilers Stop Reading NOW……
So, after all of the paranormal seeming happenings and the scare over the children’s brush with medical cabinet contents and poison, and the doubts put in your head about a missing dog and governess, the real events -rats infected with bubonic plague -are just as horrifying as if it had been a demonic possession and murder. Infected rats on the loose - scary stuff!
Really enjoyed this story and I will be continuing my Rinehart education, hopefully on a regular basis.
I thought I’d begin my Mary Robert’s Rinehart experience with this book, only because it was inexpensive on kindle. I was quickly captivated by the protagonist and drawn into the uneasiness and horror of the family who she was ‘helping’ if you don’t want big END OF STORY spoilers Stop Reading NOW……
So, after all of the paranormal seeming happenings and the scare over the children’s brush with medical cabinet contents and poison, and the doubts put in your head about a missing dog and governess, the real events -rats infected with bubonic plague -are just as horrifying as if it had been a demonic possession and murder. Infected rats on the loose - scary stuff!
Really enjoyed this story and I will be continuing my Rinehart education, hopefully on a regular basis.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 18, 2026
A short story, told from the perspective of a young woman who is a trained nurse as well as doing police work now and then. Her 'handler' (I suppose that's what he'd be called), Mr Patton, comes to her with a strange request: a young couple in a large mansion need a nurse to look after their young sons for a few days. There is something odd about the house, she is told: there was a previous nurse, too, who ran away from the place, all the while calling for the police.
The protagonist goes to the house, and discovers that it is very odd. The children are locked in to the nursery, the parents keep a constant vigil on the stairs leading into the basement, and are obviously terrified of - what?
Atmospheric, chilling, and overall, a very good detective story. I couldn't figure out what was happening, even though (as in any really good mystery story) the clues were all there.
The protagonist goes to the house, and discovers that it is very odd. The children are locked in to the nursery, the parents keep a constant vigil on the stairs leading into the basement, and are obviously terrified of - what?
Atmospheric, chilling, and overall, a very good detective story. I couldn't figure out what was happening, even though (as in any really good mystery story) the clues were all there.
May 21, 2021
Miss Adams is nurse and private investigator. She helps solve mysteries for a Mr. Patton. When he needs to see what is going on in a mysterious house, Adams volunteers to go in, in a perfectly acceptable profession. So she lands on Beauregard Square in a house where there'r strange goings on as reported by previous nurses in the house. The Reeds have two small boys. They have no hired helped, having fired them or dismissed them previously. When Miss Adams is locked in her room at night, she rebels and undoes the lock. She searches the house trying to figure out what is wrong. She finally comes to the heart of the matter.
March 24, 2019
Locked Doors is a bizarre, Gothic [shrieking violins, slightly muted], tale. Rinehart's books have female protagonists who, while they may dither and faint, get the job done. No doubt research wasn't as easy as pushing a button back in 1914, but there were libraries....
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August 26, 2021Quintessential Rinehart. Loved it!
Mary Roberts Rinehart is a master at creating suspense and she hasn’t failed to do so here. I read the entire book in one sitting and hated to see it end. Of course, the final solution never occurred to me, even with clues galore.
Mary Roberts Rinehart is a master at creating suspense and she hasn’t failed to do so here. I read the entire book in one sitting and hated to see it end. Of course, the final solution never occurred to me, even with clues galore.
April 27, 2023
This was a very good short story. The writing is smart and made the story suspenseful. It had a very surprising and different ending. I really like Hilda Adams and Mr. Patton. They make a really good team.
January 16, 2019
This is the first MRR book I really didn't like. I really did not like nurse Hilda, I thought she was not a likable person. I didn't much like the whole story.
October 4, 2020
Very spooky, unexplainably. The denouement was a bit of a letdown for me.
October 9, 2021
Hilda Adams is called into a house to figure out what is going on. Former workers have reported locked doors and strange goings on.
Pretty good classic mystery.
Pretty good classic mystery.
October 18, 2021
They don't call her the American version of Agatha Christie for nothing. Another great read.
May 1, 2022
I think I would have enjoyed this more as a novel than as a short story/novella. It felt just a little rushed to me.
May 23, 2022
Not a terribly inspiring introduction to this author's body of work.
May 11, 2023
Second Hilda Adams short story; very clever.
December 6, 2023
Did not see this ending coming!
July 2, 2024
Wonderfully written and a great mystery. The problem is some major curse words (J**** C***** and G** D***). It was disappointing.
January 6, 2026
Came across this in an anthology. Moved along nicely with some fine suspense but the end was a great disappointment.
Part of The Big Boy of Female Detectives
December 1, 2017
For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
May 14, 2023
"Locked Doors" is the second appearance of Hilda Adams (aka "Miss Pinkerton"). This short story is a mystery without a murder, but with a strong touch of horror, with children in peril.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews