Mystery in Blue - a pulp mystery by Gertrude E. Mallette

If you follow my posts, in my recent post about Terry Carvel's Theater Caravan ( ), I mentioned that the back cover of the dust jacket for that book listed some career girl books by author Gertrude E. Mallette.  When I saw that on the back of the book, I didn't think much of it, other than to look at the titles and their descriptions.  But when I did a search online and discovered that she also wrote this particular book, which I already had in my collection, I was pleasantly surprised!  I bought this book because I stumbled across it online and the title reminded me of the first Connie Blair mystery, The Clue in Blue.  So, I picked it up on a lark.  Once I learned the same author wrote a series of career girl books aimed at teen readers, I decided I should probably read this book and see what it was like! 

Set in World War II, Mystery in Blue is the story of Kerry Owen, a young career woman who has set out on a path to become a first-rate secretary.  After working at the district attorney's office for some time, she is re-assigned to a new job at the engineering firm of Gerard & Gerard, Inc. - which is owned by Napoleon Gerard and his son, Remy Gerard, both of whom are well known to Kerry.  She grew up with Remy, getting into trouble with him when they were kids.  She always knew his father to be a bit of a tyrant, which resulted in his nickname, "Old Emperor Gerard."  But it had been a number of years, and after high school, Kerry studied at the local university, while Remy went on to MIT and later served in the war.  Kerry is not surprised that Mr. Gerard does not recognize her, and she manages to impress him immediately with her skill and efficiency (although he certainly does not let her know that!).  Kerry also has to deal with Mr. Stickover, the office manager who manages to make it clear that he is more important to the office than she is!  Then there are the other men in the office - Mr. Allen and Mr. Grove.  And there's also that former secretary, Miss Bowen, who not only avails herself of Kerry's office when she is out to lunch, but she also makes it clear that Remy is HER man!

The mystery becomes apparent right away when a particular file is missing, and no one is able to find it.  Remy and Mr. Stickover (referred to as "Mr. Stick" by the men in the office, because of his tall, lean stature) seem very concerned about the missing file, and they tell Kerry to keep an eye out for it, and if it should turn up, get it to them right away.  Then stranger things begin to happen, as Kerry's stenograph pad disappears from her desk drawer, only to turn up later on the floor in the corner of the room.  Add into the mix a strangely coded note that Miss Bowen says she might have left in Kerry's office, as well as a stolen briefcase that contains some very important blueprints, and you've got yourself a war-time mystery of espionage and spies! Kerry is faced with the dilemma of sifting through all of the conversations she overhears, the odd actions she sees in the people around her, and the clues that she finds in her own stenograph book to determine who is the spy in the office and who is trying to undermine and steal the plans for the government project.

I give the author credit for appearing to use valid engineering terminology and coding for the story, as when Mr. Gerard first tests Kerry by given her what appears to be a strange equation (Joists 2x6 O P No 1 Com 16" oc), which she easily interprets as "the joists are to be of two-by-six-inch lumber, Oregon pine, number 1 common, and set sixteen inches apart on center" (p. 9).  As I know absolutely nothing about engineering, I can only assume this is a correct interpretation, as it certainly seem logical!  What I do know is that the metes and bounds legal description that Kerry later gives in the book to a telegraph operator is an actual way of describing property: "Beginning at a point north fifteen degrees, thirty minutes, ten seconds west, and from thence eighteen hundred and twenty feet et cetera" (48-49).  Having dealt in real estate law for enough years now, I easily recognize that type of description for real property.  And finally, that coded message of Miss Bowen, "Setono Circle RT 3: 60L2 R5" (122) turns out to have a very clever solution that definitely helps Kerry figure out exactly who is doing what in the office.  

There are several unexpected twists in the story regarding a couple of the characters - Kerry's (and the reader's!) impression and expectations of those characters are completely turned on their head by the end of the book.  This is not a bad thing though, as the reader realizes they were misleads intended to make Kerry (and the reader) believe one thing, while something else entirely was going on.  And Kerry's intuition and quick-thinking also serve to ferret out someone who is impersonating a federal officer, which serves to bring the mystery to a resolution for everyone involved.

The book was originally copyrighted in 1945, but the edition I have is the 1958 Berkley Edition.  I love the cover art for this edition, as it is definitely reminiscent of the Connie Blair book with the similar name.  The author, Gertrude E. Mallette.  I had a little difficulty learning about Ms. Mallette, as I found numerous sites that listed her books, but I could not find any biography of the author.  I did, however, come across a website that provided some history about Moraga, California that gave some interesting insight into Ms. Mallette's life (Moraga History).  It reveals that Gertrude E. Mallette "was an author of children's books and a writer for the Oakland Tribune newspaper.  She and her friend, Alberta Hortense, had worked together to plan a home for orphaned boys using land that Alberta inherited from her father.  Gertrude is credited with being responsible for the design of the original Hacienda de las Flores, and she and Alberta are said to have built the first story of the building.  Sadly, it appears the orphanage had to close when state inspectors found no male nurse on duty for the boys, and the two women turned it into a ranch.  In 1929, after the stock market crash, they were forced to sell the property.  Certainly some fascinating details about the author's life (and it also confirms the name "Gertrude E. Mallette" is not a pseudonym, but her actual name).

This book was originally written three years prior to the release of the first Connie Blair mystery, The Clue in Blue, so I'm looking forward to reading that particular mystery to see how it compares to this one other than in name (especially since Connie herself could be considered a career girl who gets into the advertising industry).

RATING:  9 slips of pink paper out of 10 for a different type of career girl mystery with enough twists and turns to give you whiplash!