When thinking about something to read from the '40s, I had
another glance at THE ANTHONY BOUCHER CHRONICLES II, which
reprints Boucher's reviews from 1942-1947. Boucher reviewed
just about every mystery published during that time, so it's
a great thing to have around when talking about the 1940s.
One of the early reviews (November 8, 1942) is of John
Spain's DIG ME A GRAVE: "Confidential agent William Rye
breaks up blackmail and murder in L. A. politics. Authentic
hard school -- as close to Hammett himself as anything in
many years." Well, who wouldn't want to read that one?
Luckily I had a copy lying around the house, so I dug it
out.
First of all, I should mention that Spain is really Cleve F.
Adams, who's been brought up here recently I believe. It's
possible that his novels a Spain got more praise than he got
for books under his own name.
Bill Rye works for a man named Callahan, a guy who's made a
fortune and who now has a lot of influence in California
politics up to and including the governor. His political
rivals would like to ruin him, and his family (a straying
wife, a weakling son) aren't doing much to help. Then a young
woman shows up and claims to be his illegitimate daughter.
Her abusive step-father appears. People start getting killed,
and it's up to Rye to keep Callahan out of jail, clear him of
a murder charge, and keep all the bad news from getting in
the papers. Things get pretty complicated before the final
unravelling, but it's fast, interesting, and well written all
the way. Maybe not quite as close to Hammett as Boucher
implies, but certainly
"authentic hard school." As such, it should be of interest to
nearly anyone on this list.
The sequel, DEATH IS LIKE THAT, was also reviewed in
Boucher's column (October 10, 1943): "The entire surviving
cast of DIG ME A GRAVE, starring cynical Bill Rye, tangles
with more L. A. politics and murder; the cast will be much
smaller next time. Better-than-average hard stuff, but more
routine than the unforgettable first Spain."
As luck would have it, I have a copy of this one, too, and I
plane to read it (as they say in fandom) Real Soon Now.
Bill Crider
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