Review: Give a Man a Gun - John Creasey

When I was checking out books from the bookmobile in the early Sixties, the fellow who drove it out to our little town every Saturday allowed me to get books from the adult fiction sections even though I was only 10 years old. John Creasey was a popular author in the mystery section, and I read and enjoyed several of his novels featuring Inspector Roger West of Scotland Yard. West, nicknamed Handsome because he’s, well, handsome, stars in 43 novels published between 1942 and 1978. Since I remembered liking them and hadn’t read any in more than 60 years, I decided it was time to give the series a try again.

So when I was in Recycled Books in Denton recently, I picked up several of them, and I just read GIVE A MAN A GUN, originally published in hardcover in England in 1953 by Hodder & Staughton as A GUN FOR INSPECTOR WEST and reprinted in American paperback by Berkley in 1963. That’s the copy I read in the scan, somewhat the worse for wear because of age (as am I).

A murder has already taken place when this one opens. A pawnshop owner and dealer in stolen merchandise has been knifed. This killing sets off a string of events that lead to an organized campaign of violence directed against London’s police force. Several cops are shot and killed and numerous others are wounded in gun and knife attacks. The newspapers set up a howl about this and demand that the police be armed. Vigilante groups form. Roger West is in charge of the effort to get to the bottom of this and keep the violence from getting worse.

This is basically a police procedural novel, so a lot of pages are taken up with interrogations and following suspects around, interspersed with scenes of West’s home life. He’s married and has two young sons. For a book with a bunch of murders in it, there’s very little action on-screen, although everything does lead up to a satisfying slam-bang climax.

I enjoyed GIVE A MAN A GUN, but I have to admit I found it slightly disappointing and thought it didn’t quite live up to my good memories of the series. I think this is because the plot really just meanders along and despite the dangers facing the characters Creasey doesn’t generate much urgency or suspense for most of the book. As I said above, it does end well, and Roger West is just such a likable protagonist that I want to read more about him. Maybe this just isn’t one of the better entries in the series. I’ll certainly read the other two I bought, and if nothing else, I’m glad to have renewed my acquaintance with the character after all this time.

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.