Santosh Iyer's Reviews > Noose for a Lady

This is the first of the Simon Gale series first published in 1952. There are 3 books in the series, the second being Sorcerer’s House and the third The Snark Was A Boojum.
Simon Gale is a larger than life character, boisterous and opinionated like Henry Merrivale of Carr. He is a professional painter who dabbles in crime solving.
Margaret Hallam is tried and convicted for poisoning her husband John Hallam. All the evidences are against her. She is sentenced to death. Her step-daughter Jill is desperate to prove her innocence. She happens to meet Simon Gale in a restaurant and recounts the story. Simon Gale is convinced of Margaret’s innocence and decides to help her. He has to move fast since there are only seven days left for her execution.
Simon Gale along with his brother Martin go to the village where the Hallams live and start investigating with the assistance of Jill to track down the real murderer. Simon comes to learn that John Hallam was a sadist and a blackmailer, not for money but simply to torment his victims. He also learns that several people in the village have something to hide which came to the knowledge of Hallam and hence they all had a motive to kill him. These include Mrs Langdon-Humphrey and her niece Vanessa, Robert Upcott, a collector of china, Miss Ginch, working in the Vicarage, Major Fergusson, and Doctor Evershed.
Simon Gale is finally able to solve the case but not before another murder takes place.
This is a typical Agatha Christie type mystery with several suspects and the usual gathering of suspects towards the end followed by the denouement. The culprit is cleverly disguised and it came as a real surprise to me though the clues are there indicating the culprit.
I found the book engrossing and suspenseful. A well-written mystery with several twists and turns.. Highly recommended. My only complaint is the unnecessary melodrama at the end.