tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post3396855785888777773..comments2024-03-18T11:01:42.459-05:00Comments on Pretty Sinister Books: FFB: The Desert Moon Mystery - Kay Cleaver StrahanJ F Norrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-61669144908430331672016-01-05T15:25:51.567-06:002016-01-05T15:25:51.567-06:00I discovered Strahan and October House in the late...I discovered Strahan and October House in the late 90s. I spent 10 years combing for her books and information. Every few years I would put her name into a search engine and see what came up (not much at all). SO excited to read your post! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09998152065432903735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-57149686242197748952013-02-16T07:45:13.764-06:002013-02-16T07:45:13.764-06:00You'd get a tidy sum from the ones you've ...You'd get a tidy sum from the ones you've tempted me with alone! :-)Bev Hankinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01127476456755776574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-47327775912231157312013-02-02T18:14:52.734-06:002013-02-02T18:14:52.734-06:00The Southwestern ranch setting, rich descriptive w...The Southwestern ranch setting, rich descriptive writing and the fact that it's a Golden Age mystery all make this one sound quite tempting. Bang up review, John! Special thanks for sharing the info re: the book's availability in affordable copies online.Jeff Flugelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06127134815672151999noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-73842524826702067792013-02-02T13:51:16.000-06:002013-02-02T13:51:16.000-06:00Thanks, Tracy, for your first comment here at PSB....Thanks, Tracy, for your first comment here at PSB. I "run into" you at other mystery blogs when I'm commenting. Thanks also for becoming Follower #73 of this odd little corner in cyperspace. Hope you enjoy DESERT MOON MYSTERY when you get your copy. I wish I had a way of earning a kickback from the used book dealers each time I manage to tempt someone to buy a copy of a book I reviewed. It would make me a nice second income!J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-45199484616999706472013-02-02T11:44:23.896-06:002013-02-02T11:44:23.896-06:00I stopped by (via your comment at My Reader's ...I stopped by (via your comment at My Reader's Block) to check out your vintage mystery reading in January. This post grabbed me due to the skull on the cover of the book. I collect mysteries with skull covers (on a very small scale). Usually vintage paperbacks. On the strength of your review, I went ahead and bought a copy with a nice cover but published later (Caxton House, 1939). Thanks for this excellent review.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-33703610026119672702013-02-02T11:07:09.788-06:002013-02-02T11:07:09.788-06:00Of course, just when Death Traps was nearing the t...Of course, just when <i>Death Traps</i> was nearing the top of my TBR-pile, you will probably beat me to the review... again. ;)<br /><br />Anyway, I rather liked <i>Footprints</i> and it’s depiction of family life on a ranch in the early 1900s, but the absence of a solution, or half of it, can kill any promising detective story. Heck, even the name of the murderer was more of a suggestion than a statement of fact. It's actually surprising that the book won a prize!<br /><br />Fascination story, it must be said, but a lousy mystery. <br />TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-77844814204756688962013-02-01T23:09:43.372-06:002013-02-01T23:09:43.372-06:00Ah, John, you've beaten me again. Strahan has...Ah, John, you've beaten me again. Strahan has been on the long TBR list forever, but I've never gotten my hands on one. This one does sound particularly good. I'm especially intrigued by the female detective. Terrific review, as always.Bev Hankinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01127476456755776574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-74868206986458364742013-02-01T14:20:03.254-06:002013-02-01T14:20:03.254-06:00I should add that my copy is always available for ...I should add that my copy is always available for loan to a select few. Just drop me an email with a mailing address and I will explain how it all works.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-52561182839260021402013-02-01T14:18:15.596-06:002013-02-01T14:18:15.596-06:00A handful of copies are available on-line. I found...A handful of copies are available on-line. I found one for as little as $3. No paperback edition exists, but there is a hardcover reprint edition (Grosset & Dunlap) that should be cheaper than the original Crime Club. Remarkably, some dealers don't know of the value of the book as the first Crime Club and you can get a 1st (without the extremely rare DJ) for under $10 from one bookseller.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-30767349679903682762013-02-01T13:55:30.370-06:002013-02-01T13:55:30.370-06:00PS Supposed to read 'female detective' ......PS Supposed to read 'female detective' ... Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-18291992951709539332013-02-01T13:54:28.342-06:002013-02-01T13:54:28.342-06:00Sounds great John, especially the female - well do...Sounds great John, especially the female - well done on the literary sleuthing. So, to make us even more envious, what would a copy set us mere mortals back?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-69340577312883455562013-02-01T12:52:37.286-06:002013-02-01T12:52:37.286-06:00John, my mistake. I overlooked the period upfront....John, my mistake. I overlooked the period upfront. Thanks for the explanation. I was looking up Strahan's books online and found only PEGGY-MARY (1915) at Archive. I read the first few lines and I could see that she was a gifted writer. Prashant C. Trikannadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16079354501998741758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-53901724380382291732013-02-01T12:14:03.032-06:002013-02-01T12:14:03.032-06:00It's 1920s Nevada. It's not a western in t...It's 1920s Nevada. It's not a western in the sense of a cinematic western. Cowboys in Stetsons and chaps, savage Indians, gunfights, saloons, etc., are nowhere in sight. The dealings of the ranch are of a business nature and you get an idea of what a real cowboy is about and what cattlemen think of the dairy industry which is pretty funny as described by Strahan though her character of Mary.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-74987542453847961462013-02-01T11:39:21.132-06:002013-02-01T11:39:21.132-06:00John, I enjoyed the samples of Strahan's imagi...John, I enjoyed the samples of Strahan's imaginative writing. Her "dense and rich" narrative suggests humour as well and I hope I am right there. Is this book set against a western backdrop? Not least because of the ranch setting.Prashant C. Trikannadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16079354501998741758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-90013966188050767812013-02-01T11:05:59.852-06:002013-02-01T11:05:59.852-06:00I have Deathtraps and Footprints. I didn't lik...I have <i>Deathtraps</i> and <i>Footprints</i>. I didn't like <i>Hobgoblin...</i>, the first Strahan I read. Thought I'd never read her again until I came across Diane's glowing review of this one. Last year TomCat reviewed <i>Footprints</i> which you can read <a href="http://moonlight-detective.blogspot.com/2012/01/snow-blind.html" rel="nofollow">here.</a> Not very favorable primarily because of its ending. I'm going ahead in reading <i>Deathtraps</i> this month. I was really taken with her debut - genuine fair play detection, superbly drawn characters, unusual setting, rich imaginative prose. Well worth reprinting, I'd say.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-32057719258284726762013-02-01T10:53:13.641-06:002013-02-01T10:53:13.641-06:00I have Deathtraps and October House and The Hobgob...I have Deathtraps and October House and The Hobgoblin Murder too in jackets, but haven't read one yet. I'll have to get this one. Not sure about Footprints from your comment!The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.com