Morgue for Venus - Jonathan Craig (Frank E. Smith)

I remember Bill Crider telling me that he liked this series of police procedural novels featuring New York City detectives Pete Selby (the narrator) and his partner Stan Rayder. They were published originally by Gold Medal and some were reprinted by Belmont/Tower. I’m not sure if all of the series was reprinted. MORGUE FOR VENUS is the second book in the series but the first I’ve read. That doesn’t really matter since in those days, series books could usually be read in any order.

MORGUE FOR VENUS opens with Selby and Rayder catching a new case. The scantily clad body of a beautiful redheaded teenage girl has been pulled out of the Hudson River. The circumstances seem to indicate that she was murdered, so the two detectives set out to discover her identity, learn all they can about her life, and figure out who killed her.

That’s really all the plot amounts to, although there are some twists and turns as it’s revealed that the murder victim knew a lot of different people and some of them were criminals. Selby and Rayder go here and there and talk to this person and that, and they use the medical and scientific capabilities of the NYPD to study evidence, and finally, they confront the killer.

When Belmont/Tower reprinted the series (with the numbers all out of order, by the way, which was common for Belmont/Tower), they called the books Sixth Precinct Thrillers, as if they were similar to the 87^th Precinct series. And in a very basic way, they are, of course. But the predominant influence on this book seems to be DRAGNET. Although it’s set in New York instead of Los Angeles, the plot, the pacing, and especially the dialogue seem to be very DRAGNET-inspired. Practically everything Pete Selby says in his dialogue and narration, I heard it in Jack Webb’s voice.

This is a good thing, mind you. I love DRAGNET, and this is a very good substitute. Like most substitutes, not quite up to the level of the real thing, of course, but still pretty darned enjoyable and satisfying. I felt like the resolution of the plot was a little lacking and could have used one more good twist, but other than that, I had a fine time reading MORGUE FOR VENUS. I think I have more of this series on my shelves, and I’m going to check today.