An Advance on Vance

John at PRETTY SINISTER BOOKS (October 4, 2013) points us to a tolerable alternative to the unspeakable Philo:

Spike Tracy was one of the better Vance impersonators but a lot more likable.

More short reviews of H. Ashbrook's mysteries are here:

~ THE MURDER OF SIGURD SHARON (1933): "Spike gets another chance at crime detecting . . ." — THE BOOKMAN, February 1933.

~ A MOST IMMORAL MURDER (1935): "20 cents worth." — THE SATURDAY REVIEW, "The Criminal Record," August 31, 1935. Available online.

~ MURDER MAKES MURDER (1937): "Commendable." — THE SATURDAY REVIEW, "The Criminal Record," April 17, 1937.

~ MURDER COMES BACK (1940): ". . . decidedly not for seasoned solvers." — THE SATURDAY REVIEW, "The Criminal Record," November 2, 1940.

~ THE PURPLE ONION MYSTERY (1941): "Spike, tho' still unpredictable, shows real talent for painstaking deduction." — THE SATURDAY REVIEW, "The Criminal Record," June 14, 1941.

See also the GAD Wiki article.

Category: Detective fiction