Books › The case of the dangerous dowager
The case of the dangerous dowager
First published 1937 · 584 pages
A fast-paced, sharp-witted legal mystery where a formidable matriarch and a clever lawyer team up to outsmart crooked gamblers and the law itself.
What it feels like
Reading this classic mystery feels like stepping into a smoky, high-stakes room where every conversation is a calculated chess move. The narrative moves at a brisk, hard-driving pace, propelled by sharp wits and the constant threat of legal ruin. It immerses the reader in a gritty, suspenseful atmosphere where crooked proprietors and cunning adversaries lurk around every corner. The prose is direct and action-oriented, focusing on the clever maneuvering required to stay one step ahead of the law. It explores the lengths one will go to protect family, wrapped in the thrilling tension of a murder investigation. This book will delight fans of vintage detective fiction who crave clever legal tricks, formidable characters, and a thoroughly suspenseful ride.
- Mood
- gritty
- tense
- shadowy
- high-stakes
- Tone
- wry
- pragmatic
- clever
- suspenseful
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- legal maneuvering · family loyalty · high-stakes gambling · outsmarting the system
- The writing
- Direct, sharp, and focused on dialogue and action, reflecting the hard-driving nature of its characters.
- The arc
- Moves from a tense, high-stakes family crisis into a suspenseful, fast-paced battle of wits against the law.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love classic, fast-paced legal mysteries with sharp-witted protagonists and formidable matriarchs.
Content notes
- gambling
- murder
- divorce and custody threats
About the book
Perry Mason is retained by cigar-smoking, free-thinking, and hard-driving Matilda Benson to get IOUs totaling $7000 is gambling debts that her granddaughter Sylvia owes to two hardballs, crooked proprietors of The Horn of Plenty, who are willing to sell them to the highest bidder- which might end up being Sylvia’s cunning husband, who will stop at nothing prove Sylvia is an unfit mother, and should not be trusted with her daughters trust fund when they divorce. Matilda Benson hires Perry to get these IOU's by any means necessary, and after a successful tête-à-tête with the gambling hall’s two owners, he meets them on their turf but stumbles onto a body instead. He uses every legal trick in the book to keep Matilda, Sylvia, and himself out of trouble with the law!
Description from Open Library.
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