Erle Stanley Gardner

"Helen Kendal's woes begin when she receives a phone call from her vanished uncle Franklin, long presumed dead, who urges her to make contact with criminal defense attorney Perry Mason; soon after, she finds herself the main suspect in the murder of an unfamiliar man. Her kitten has just survived a poisoning attempt, as has her aunt Matilda, the woman who always maintained that Franklin was alive in spite of his disappearance. Lucky that Helen took...

The bait is half of a $10,000 bill, delivered to Perry Mason by a man who promises the second half of the note should his companion, a silent masked woman, ever require the lawyer's services. When a dead body is discovered soon after, Mason feels the hook--but how can one prove the innocence of a person whose identity is unknown?

A tale of two sisters, family fortune, and murder: “Millions of Americans never seem to tire of Gardner’s thrillers” (The New York Times).
 
Beautiful Sylvia Bain Atwood is overseeing her ailing father’s estate while her sister serves as his caregiver. But their father’s fortune has shadowy roots—and now one of his creditors is blackmailing the family.
 
When the situation...

The Edgar Award–winning author’s tale of a missing woman and a crime ring, featuring the lawyer and detective who inspired the HBO limited series.
 
Defense lawyer Perry Mason needs a temporary typist, but the one he hires turns out to be more temporary than expected. When she disappears, leaving a couple of diamonds behind in her haste, Mason winds up taking on a new client: a gem importer in his office building...

A crime thriller starring the sleuthing lawyer portrayed in the HBO limited series—from the Edgar Award–winning “kingpin among the mystery writers” (The New York Times).
 
Stewart Bedford is willing to cooperate with a blackmailer to protect his beloved wife. But when he wakes up in a daze to find the man shot dead with Bedford’s gun and his blond escort missing, he’ll need some help...

A private detective searches for a missing person in this "breathlessly dramatic" (Los Angeles Times) whodunnit from the creator of Perry Mason

Bertha Cool is the gruff, tough-talking, corpulent head of her private detective agency, opened after the death of her husband; Donald Lam is her meek, slight, and nervy new hire, who makes up for a lack of boldness with brilliant deductive work. The duo couldn't be any more dissimilar

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