Who Is the Next?

by Henry Kitchell Webster

The murder of their grandfather implicates Camilla and her estranged brother, Eric, in a desperate struggle for the family inheritance

Genres: Mystery

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1931

About the author

Henry Kitchell Webster was an American author who lived in Evanston, Illinois. He wrote novels and short stories on themes ranging from mystery to family drama to science fiction. He first achieved moderate recognition in 1899 when he co-wrote The Short Line War with fellow Illinois author Samuel Merwin, with whom he later collaborated to write one of his more famous works, Calumet "K".

Reviews

[Larry · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Who Is the Next" is a vintage mystery in that it was published in 1930. Jacques Barzun and Wendell Hertig Taylor gave it a positive rating in their "Cataloueg of Crime," which is still the best guide that I know to mysteries through the late 1980s. Pete Murray is a lawyer who deals with upper-crust clients. One of them, the rich and elderly (85) Eric Lindstrom has fidgeted with his will for years, even though he has but two relatives, his grandchildren. One of the grandchildren, Camilla, is a nineteen-year-old woman (to the amazement of Pete, her long-time guardian) on the verge of going to the university. She also owns an airplane, which she delights in flying, much to her grandfather's stern disapproval and her guardian's uneasy assent. (Pete and Camilla are very close, even though Pete is in his early forties and bound by his lawyer's moral code. Both are on the edge of discovering how much their relationship has changed, though Camlla is much quicker to grasp the new nature of things.)

The Lindstrom family has suffered from tragedy (Camilla and her brother's father killed his wife and committed suicide), from insanity (the elder Lindstrom's wife), and estrangement (Camilla's brother, the other Eric), but not from the absence of money. Pete is called to dinner at the Lindstrom's by means of an emotional phone call from Lindstrom's secretary. Things seem pretty unsettled at dinner, though nothing prepares Pete for Lindstrom's murder and that of the secretary. Enter Camilla and, later that day, the long-lost Eric, traveling by sleeping car on a train (how that dates things), a conveyance that plays a fair-sized role in the unraveling of several crimes. In addition to two deaths, $25,000 in cash (rather outdated treasury notes) has been taken from the safe, and both murders were carried out using a target pistol that Pete had given to Camilla. And then things get more complicated.

The mystery plot is pretty serviceable, even if some of it seems to be predictable. But Webster's skill is such that he introduces a couple of plot turns that make things complicated enough that it takes twenty minutes worth of discussion led by the local police chief to lay it all out later. That's a normal pattern for mysteries out of the classic age (1920s through the early 1950s: the big revelatory scene at the end. The main characters (Pete, Camilla) are charming, and some of the minor characters are interesting (the chauffeur's precocious daughter, who snoops on everybody, the young police chief, who isn't a fool, the brother, who is pretty slippery). The rest are serviceable (the secretary might have been interesting, being a hardened woman of the world). The aviation stuff is good, serving both the mystery (Camilla as aerial scout, etc.) and the romance (flying in the plane being a major test for Pete). So the book is worth 3 1/2 stars, unless you don't have a taste for mysteries out of the past. I read a lot of them, so this one fit in nicely with a lot of what I read. And anything recommended by Barzun and Taylor gets my attention. (My wife bought me a copy of the 2nd edition of "A Catalogue of Crime" in 1990, shelling out $60 for it (like $120 today), a sure measure of her love for me.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who Is the Next? (1931) by Henry Kitchell Webster is a country house mystery set on the outskirts of Chicago. Old Mr. Lindstrom who owns the lavish estate summons Prentiss ("Pete") Murray, his legal counsel and his granddaughter's guardian, to discuss "something very serious" (according to Miss Parsons, the secretary who relays the message). From things that Camilla, Lindstrom's granddaughter, has told him, Murray suspects that it means the old gentleman has succumbed to the wiles of said secretary and plans to marry her. It's also possible that her grandfather wants to change his will again--especially if he's found out that she bought that airplane that he was so opposed to.

But none of this is what's on Lindstrom's mind at all. He believes that Miss Parsons has been snooping in his desk's secret drawer. The only items of importance were a letter from his grandson saying he was finally coming home for a visit (or possibly to stay, he's not quite clear on that topic)....and the combination to the safe where Lindstrom keeps $25,000 in cash. Lindstrom wants to prosecute her for breaking into the desk--but Murray says there's no proof and the most Lindstrom can do is give her notice and change his combination.

The next morning, Lindstrom is found shot in the head and Miss Parsons is missing. So, naturally, the police suspect that she's responsible for the murder. But that theory goes to pieces when she is found shot as well and the $25,000 is missing from the safe. Soon, Camilla's brother Eric arrives, a mysterious man is seen wandering the grounds, and an old friend of Eric's also shows up. The chauffeur's young daughter has been keeping her eyes open and is full of information for Murray and the police--including an identification of the mysterious man. He looked just like Eric! If Eric hadn't been verified as a passenger on that train, he'd be a suspect as well. Camilla's flying skills and the journey of the sleeper train her brother arrived on both play an important role in solving the mystery.

This is a fairly well done mystery plot from the Golden Age. A bit predictable perhaps for those of us who read these things by shelf-fulls, but entertaining. The sub-plot of aviation and romance (between Camilla and Pete) is diverting without being distracting. The characters are decent--with the chauffeur's daughter Ruth stealing scenes whenever she appears.

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: two murders are committed at the Lindstrom estate in Chicago. Who inherits?

[Lisa Kucharski · Rating 4 out of 5]

First time to read a book by Henry Kitchell Webster (1875 to 1932.) He lived in Evanston, IL and many of his stories took place in the Chicagoland area. This was the last book he completed before he died. The following one was finished by another author. On to the story.

The story follows a middle aged man Pete Murray, who is a lawyer for a firm in the city. His ward is a young woman Camilla Lindstrom, the grand-daughter of Oscar Lindstrom. Murray’s law firm also handles Oscar Lindstrom’s legal issues including a will. If you wondering why Murray is Camilla’s ward- you will need to read the book.

Camilla is coming back to the estate to stay for a while, and Murray is invited to dinner. It is a strange dinner. Camilla came back because she was afraid this “woman” who had helped her grandmother before she died, was putting her sites on marrying her grandfather. Old Lindstrom is a curmudgeon as usual. To say the least, dinner is awkward, made more awkward when later- murder occurs.

This story feels like 1930’s film with various outfits and a cast familiar characters and the usual house help that faint and swoon at times. Does Mr. Murray become detective? No, but he and Camilla are just trying to figure out what is going on. The new police chief (who is college educated) is on the job. He is actually trying to figure out who did the murder but we only see him from time to time. This leaves it up to you to figure out what’s going on, and how things will either blow up or land safely. I’m confident the reader however will be on to the who did it pretty well, but the whole situation makes you want to see how it gets resolved.

Oh yes, and there is a love story in this too.

Smooth quick read. A great summer read actually.