Seven Keys to Baldpate

 Seven Keys to Baldpate (1913) by Earl Derr Biggers

William Magee is a well-known pulp writer who wants to prove to his critics that he can write a serious novel. Of course, to write a serious novel one must barricade oneself away--away from friends and family, away from parties and plays, away from anything that might distract the "great author" from deep thoughts and serious plots. While brainstorming places to go for such intense authorial endeavors, his friend Hal Bentley finally suggest Baldpate Inn, owned by his father, It's a summer resort that stands empty in mid-winter. There will be no staff and no guests to interrupt a man playing with fictional realities. 

So off Magee goes to Baldpate--no running water, no heat (save for the fireplace in his room), and no food (save for canned goods and the occasional meal sent up by the caretaker's wife)--for a period of quiet contemplation. Or at least that's what he expects. He's barely gotten settled in his room, when the first of a parade of visitors arrives--each with what they believe to be the only key to the inn. There's the first man who hides a package in the lobby safe and who makes a phone call to someone called Andy. There's a pretty girl and her mother. And the crooked mayor of a nearby city with his hired strong man in tow. And a professor of Comparative Literature who may not be what he seems. And a professional hermit. And a dark figure who wrestles with the mayor and his sidekick. And a second mysterious pretty girl. And they all want the package in the safe--even if they all won't say so. Magee finds himself with a dilemma when both of the pretty girls ask for his help in getting the package. But his loyalties are with the first one--a young woman who stole his heart as soon as he saw her crying at the railway station. But will he be aiding the cause of justice or helping a lovely thief? Only time will tell.

This was an extraordinarily fun outing from the author of the Charlie Chan mystery series. With everyone popping in and out of the inn, with the addition of a hermit who becomes the chef for the group at Baldpate, with Magee as the befuddled hero, the plot reads as though Biggers planned for the story to be filmed. And...it was...six times from 1917 (silent) to 1947. I sampled two of the movies and they, too, were fun but came with slightly different endings from the book and each other. And I'm not sure which ending I like best. The book is straight forward. There's a crime and a solution and our hero wins out in the end. The films are less so. In the first, Magee is writing his book to fulfill a bet. Everybody that shows up and everything that happens is just part of a plot by the man with whom Magee has made the bet to prevent Magee from winning. In the second, everything that happens at the house is really just the plot of the story Magee is writing. When we reach the end none of it "really" happened, except on the page. The lead-up to those twists is very good in each film and the endings are both a surprise and satisfying all in one.

The book is just one wild ride full of humor and outrageous shenanigans. If you're looking for an intricate, well-clued puzzle, then this isn't it. But if you're looking for a good time and a fun read, then this just might fit the bill. ★★★★

First line: A young woman was crying bitterly in the waiting-room of the railway station at Upper Asquewan Falls, New York.

Last line: "Why. darling," he explained gently, "this is it."
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Deaths = one shot