The Corpse on the Hearth

 The Corpse on the Hearth (1946) by Harry Lang

Ultra-conservative, ultra-rich Elijah Mellor does something highly unusual. He orders his half-brother and family lawyer, Peter to hold a reading of his will four years before his death. Five thousand dollars to his handyman, Benjamin Benson; twenty-five thousand dollars to his estate manager Arthur Dulane; the house and everything in it to his son Absalom Mellor; and the remainder of his wealth to be divided evenly between his son and his niece Absala...all to be doled out provided the heirs remain good girls and boys. Because Elijah will change his will if any of them stray from the straight and narrow.

And now...four years later...they all have wandered off the righteous path. Benjamin drinks too much and Elijah is pretty straight-laced about drunkenness. Arthur has been diddling the books and keeping a mistress in a conveniently empty apartment in one of the Mellor properties. Absala married a foreign prince without her uncle's approval, but managed to smooth that over. But now they've been caught adding an extra zero to one of the old man's checks. And Absalom has followed his cousin's lead and just married an actress (and Elijah despises actresses). Each of them have good reason to make sure Elijah doesn't have a chance to change his will, but which one shot him while he kneeled in front of his hearth? Tod Frick ("Feisty Frick" as he's known), an unconventional detective attached to the D.A.'s office is hot on the case. All of the circumstantial evidence points in one direction, but Frick isn't taking anything for granted.

This one had a lot of elements going for it on the surface. I liked the initial set-up--calling the heirs together before Mr. Moneybags kicks the bucket. But I didn't feel like enough was made of that. The discovery of the body was interesting as well, but then the few clues found on the spot didn't really lead anywhere substantial. Feisty Frick is a nifty little detective. He spots those few clues like nobody's business and follows them up like a boss. And I enjoyed his relationship with Jim Hanssen, the D.A. But none of the elements really came together into a well-rounded, coherent whole. It was just missing that certain something that makes a mystery story come alive and grab the attention. I couldn't wait to finish the story--not because I was so eager to see what happened next, but because I just want to finish the story. Oh...and that final bit of motive that the culprit reveals? I saw that motive for murder coming the minute Lang mentioned it. Even though Frick apparently forgot all about it...because it seemed to be a huge surprise to everyone.

This is reportedly Harry Lang's only mystery novel...it's easy to see why. I can't imagine this was a huge seller.  ★★

First line: The tall, gaunt man in the frock coat rose from the chair behind his desk and faced the four in the room.

Last line: "Hell, sweetheart, I don't even drink on duty!"

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Deaths = 6 (five shot; one gassed)