Up Goes the Curtain - a Penny Parrish book

I picked up this book at Atlanta Vintage Books when we went through Atlanta this past summer going up to Kentucky to visit my Dad.  Having done community theater, I have grown rather fond of reading stories about the theater (such as the Mary Perkins, On Stage newspaper strips, the Carol Page theater stories, Terry Carvel's Theater Caravan, and the Backstagers series for young adults).  So, when I saw this cover, I did not hesitate to buy the book.  I have heard the author, Janet Lambert, mentioned in various book groups to which I belong, but I've never actually owned or read any of her books.  I had always assumed her books were simply young adult romance stories, but this book definitely proves me wrong.  This story was clearly based on Lambert's own experiences, both on Broadway as an actress and as an Army wife (both of these elements playing a large part of this story).  And what surprised me even more is that this book, while having a stand-alone story, is actually part of a series - the fourth book in a series of novels about Penny Parrish (with three prior books being published in 1941, 1942, and 1943 respectively, and two more after this book being published in 1947 and 1950).  Knowing this, I'm more than likely going to track down the other books in the series to see how the character evolves over the course of the decade in which the books were published.  (NOTE - Lambert also wrote series about Tippy Parrish, who is Penny's younger sister, as well as other characters, suich as Parri MacDonald, Candy Kane, Dria Meredith, etc.)

 

Up Goes the Curtain actually contains two separate stories, although Lambert does intertwine them a bit. The book opens with Penny excited about her part in an upcoming Broadway play (her background sounds very similar to that of Carol Page - spent a summer in a stock company training, went to New York, and finally lands a part in a play (p. 10), and, just like Carol Page, she makes a vow that not matter what, she will succeed, so she does not have to return home (p. 12)).  But, since the rehearsals do not begin for three weeks, Penny decides to visit her family, who are staying at Fort Knox, Kentucky where her father and brother are stationed, which begins the mystery that surrounds a young woman named Marcia McMain (what is with the alliteration in names?  Penny Parrish?  Marcia McMain?), who is being escorted to Fort Knox by Terry Hayes, a young man that had previously shown an interest in Penny. Penny is somewhat taken aback by Terry's attitude towards her, but it slowly begins to dawn on her that since Terry is serving in the military, perhaps the woman was a job - perhaps he was actually keeping tabs on her because she was a spy!  (What she does not know, but what the reader does learn thanks to a point-of-view switch to Penny's brother and his wife, who are fully aware of the situation, is that the woman is indeed a spy, and it is Terry's job to flush her out in the open!)  Of course, a lot of miscommunications ensue as the family tries to convince Penny to stay out of it, but Penny is determined to prove her theory - and, of course, she ultimately does through a fateful night at a movie theater when she witnesses the exchange of a note between the woman and a young serviceman.  Penny is able to get a hold of that note, and its contents end up giving the Army everything they need to capture the woman and her accomplice, as well as to foil the damage these spies intended to do.

 

The second half of the book features Penny's return to New York with her sister-in-law (whose name just happens to be Carrol), where they stay at the lavish multi-bedroom apartment Carrol had inherited from her family.  A young woman by the name of Letty, whose husband also happens to be in the military and fighting overseas, joins them in the house, keeping Carrol company while Penny begins her rehearsals and eventually opens the show.  And, in yet another similarity with the Carol Page series, Penny ends up having difficulties with a stage manager who seemingly dislikes her, going out of his way to make things difficult for her - but she eventually learns the truth behind his gruff attitude, and the two develop a friendship of sorts.  In addition (like Carol Page), she happens to personally know the big-name actress who is headlining the play, and because of that, the other actors try to get in her good graces - all except one actor, Miltern Wilde (what a name!), who makes every effort to upstage Penny in every scene they share.  Penny's courage grow, however, to the point where she turns the tables on him one night when he purposefully steps on her toe, causing it to bleed, and she steals the scene from him, getting a thunderous ovation (p. 157) that leads to her gaining his respect.

 

The book ends on a rather sad note, with Penny receiving news that a young man she knows was shot down in a plane over Germany, and it is uncertain whether he survived or not.  There is also uncertainty regarding her growing friendship with the stage manager, and no resolution whatsoever about her feelings for Terry Hayes.  Instead, the book ends with Penny putting on her makeup for another performance of the play, sighing to herself, "It doesn't matter about me - the show must go on" (p. 189).  That ending alone is enough to make me want to hunt down the next book in the series to see where Penny goes from here. 

 

While I had a bit of disappointment in the fact that entire book was not focused on the theater, I did rather enjoy that spy/mystery part in the first half of the book.  The second half that did feature the theater - well, I wish we could have gotten an entire book on that, so the reader could get more fleshed out characters and feel more of the drama and tension among the cast.  As it is, we only get touches upon each of the characters, and I, as the reader, do not really know enough about them, nor spend enough time with them, to really care about how they interact with Penny and how she treats them.  I will be curious to see if any of the other books in the series follow Penny's acting career.  Definitely not a bad read, and one that has me curious enough to read more.

 

RATING:  7 large cokes with lots of ice out of 10 for an unexpected combination of war, spies, theater, and drama - like getting two books for the price of one! 

Blackhawk - a novel based on the DC Comics characters

The 1970s and 1980s were the decades when I was just getting into comic books as a kid, and while my growing love of the medium expanded by leaps and bounds, my knowledge of all the non-comic merchandise being put out there was very limited (remember, this was pre-Internet days!).  Thus, just like I was unaware of the two House of Mystery novels by Jack Olsek (The House of Mystery, Book 1 and The House of Mystery, Book 2), I was also unaware of the William Rotstler novel from the early 1980s based on some DC characters that were acquired from Quality Comics.  While I am not really a fan of war comics or war stories, this book was passed on to me by my friend, Kevin, after he finished reading it.  So, since it was a gift, I figured it was time to sit down and read it.

 

Blackhawk was originally published by Quality Comics and first appeared back in 1941 in the first issue of Military Comics.  The character and team was created by Chuck Cuidera, with assistance from comic legend Will Eisner, along with Bob Powell.   The character has seen a number of iterations through the decades, and his origin (and even his real name) has changed as well.  Author William Rotsler, as he states in the book's Afterword, stays pretty close to the original story in Military Comics No. 1.  The main character is an ace pilot who is shot down over Poland, and while trying to reach the house of his brother and sister, he witnesses the Germans bomb the house, killing both of his siblings.  He vows vengeance on Von Tepp, the man responsible for their deaths, and he sets about building a squadron of men to take on the Nazi forces and find, and kill, Von Tepp.  Assuming the name "Blackhawk," he gathers a rag-tag team of men to form his team:  Andre, a French pilot; Olaf, a Swedish pilot; Stanislaus, a Polish fighter; Hendrickson, a Dutch flyer; and a Chinese man skilled in karate, who they refer to as "Chop-Chop."  

 

I had expected there to be one story within the book; however, Rotsler wraps up the tale of vengeance against Von Tepp within the first half of the book, and the second half is spent with the team rescuing a female British agent known as "Bluebird" and working to take out a WarEagle machine terrorizing England.  From what I can gather online (since I never read any of the Blackhawk comics from either company), the story of Blackhawk's search and ultimate revenge on Von Tepp stay pretty true to the comic tale.  In the comics, they track down Von Tepp in France, where he is holding one of Blackhawk's men hostage.  Blackhawk sends a note demanding the release of his man, so Von Tepp orders his execution along with two other captives, including an English nurse.  The Blackhawks arrived in time to save the captives, capture Von Tepp, and take him back to Blackhawk Island where Blackhawk challenges his adversary to a one-on-one aerial duel.  Both planes crash, and Von Tepp is killed in a volley of bullets.  The book maintains most of these story elements, with slight variations - there is only one other captive being held by Von Tepp (the nurse), and Von Tepp is killed during a physical fight after the planes crash, and he is pushed back against a sharp piece of metal that pierced his heart, leaving him dead.

 

The other two adventures - the rescue of Bluebird and the take-down of the WarEagle - are more fast-paced and read like your typical war stories. And while the Blackhawks are a team, the stories are definitely focused on Blackhawk himself (who, curiously enough, is never identified by any real name - it seems no one, not even his own teammates, know his true identity), who turns out to be the hero of every story.  His men serve him faithfully and rarely, if ever, question his command or his orders.  Again, war stories are not really my cup of tea, so I had to force myself to read page after page to ultimately finish the book.  The writing itself is not bad by any means, but the stories simply did not interest me that much.

 

 The cover art is provided by Romas Kukalis, a Canadian artist, who is well known for his cover art for science fiction and fantasy novels.  Some of his early work apparently included illustrations for Creepy, Eerie, and Heavy Metal magazines, before he moved on to painting book covers for publishers such as Ace, Berkley, Del Ray, and others.  His cover for this novel depicts not only Blackhawk and his men firing off against an unseen enemy, but it includes a lone female figure standing right beside Blackhawk.  The scene does not actually occur anywhere in the book (as the females rescued by the Blackhawks do not take an active role in fighting the enemy during the stories), but is merely a representation of the characters and action.

 

 In my research online after reading this book, I discovered Blackhawk has had much more exposure than I realized - not only the various comic book series and this novel, but there was also a serial back in the 1950s starring Kirk Alyn; there was a radio series, voided by Michael Fitzmaurice; there was even a limited edition G.I. Joe doll of Blackhawk in 2002, complete with various uniforms!  Apparently, in the 1980s, Steven Spielberg had plans to adapt the comic into a movie, but the project was scrapped; later, in 2018, Warner Bros. tried again, with Spielberg once again attached to the project.  In 2022, a script was confirmed to have been written for a film; however, with the new Gunn-driven DC film universe, it's unlikely that film will see the light of day.

 

For those who love war stories and war/military comics, this book is probably a great read.  For me, it was somewhat tedious, and I had to force my way through it to finish it.  There were hints in the Afterword that this was to be the first in a series of novels, but no other Blackhawk novels were ever published.

 

And, ah, yes, before I forget, I should mention that Rotsler did provide some Easter Eggs in the story for comic fans.  The name of Blackhawk's benefactor, who helps finance the planes, provides their secret island, and keeps them informed with secret military information is named "Levitz" - obviously after Paul Levitz, a major player at DC Comics during the '70s and '80s, as both an editor and writer.  The name of Levitz' firm in the book is "Levitz, Cuidera, and Dillin" - a tribute to Paul Levitz, Chuck Cuidera (Blackhawk's creator), and Dick Dillin (who provided art for Blackhawk in both the Military Comics series by Quality, as well as Blackhawk's own series).

 

Aside from that, Rotsler has Blackhawk utilize a "small sabotage device called a fire pencil [which was] the size of a small fountain pen..." (p. 106).  I found this interesting, because it immediately brought to mind those "pencil bombs" that Mildred Wirt referenced in the 12th Penny Parker mystery,  Voice from the Cave.  I had never heard of these before reading the Penny Parker book, and now here they appear for a second time in this Blackhawk novel!  An interesting coincidence...

 

RATING:  6 twin-engine Grummans out of 10 for a novel filled with plenty of wartime action, dramatic battles, and heroic last-minute saves - a definite compliment to the comic stories upon which the book is based. 

Secret of the Forest - a Children's Press mystery (the second Roger and Jimmy Keene mystery)

The Children's Press (London and Glasgow) seems to have published a number of books for boys and girls back in the mid-20th Century under "The Boys' and Girls' Library" heading.  I own and have read a couple of books from this series of titles (Kit and the Mystery Man and The Headland Mystery), and since both of those books were fairly decent reads, I will pick up books from this publisher when I happen across them - which is not too often.  This particular book was found by a friend of mine in Canada (as I rarely see these titles here in the States), and when she sent me an image, I immediately said, "Yes!"  Three teens - two boys and a girl - held at gunpoint by a white-haired villain in what appears to be a cave - yes, there could be no doubt in my mind this would make for an interesting story!

 

Secret of the Forest, as it turns out, is the second mystery to feature Roger Keene and his younger brother, Jimmy. I was not aware of this when I bought it and started reading it, but now that I do know, obviously, I need to find a copy of the first book in this 2-book series.  The author is H.J. Goodyer, and there is not much information out there about this particular writer, other than the fact that he/she wrote three books - this one, the first Keene Brothers book, and a third book entitled Time for Reflection: Love is Every Child's Birthright (which is clearly not a mystery like the other two!).  I find it odd that there is little to nothing on the internet about Goodyer, leading me to wonder if the name is simply a pseudonym.  In any event, Goodyer does offer readers a rather tense mystery involving World War II, spies, and counterfeit money.

 

The adventure begins as brothers, Roger and Jimmy Keene, are traveling the German countryside with their Uncle Arnold, headed for a guesthouse  named "Der grun Specht," which translates into The Green Woodpecker.  Back during the war, the building was taken by the British and used as a temporary headquarters for the Colonel and his men. Eventually, it was purchased and turned into a guesthouse, and a former soldier friend of Uncle Arnold's had offered them a stay at the old place.  Upon arrival, though, they begin to find things are a bit off.  Herr Holz appears cordial enough on the surface, but his wife, Frau Holz, seems extremely fearful and nervous.  The young chap, Willi, who seems to be the hired help, is anything but friendly.  There's also the waiter, Hans Gruber, who Uncle Arnold remembers from the war - but Hans begs his former friend to forget he ever knew him!  And then there is General von Tarkenheim and his daughter, Grizelda.  The General owns the guesthouse, but he does not communicate with his guests and appears to be angry most of the time.  And last, but not least, we must not forget Paul Konrad, who is all smiles, yet, behind those pearly whites, he is hiding a very important secret...

 

Robert and Jimmy are not really looking for a mystery, yet, at every turn, they come across more and more strange happenings.  When they notice the things in their room are being rifled through, and some things even go missing, they decide it is time to start investigating.  Then Grizelda comes to them for help, as someone is blackmailing her father, the General.  The three teens (hmmmm, Frank and Joe Hardy with Nancy Drew, perhaps?) team up to uncover the truth of what is going on at The Green Woodpecker.  It quickly turns into a very deadly game, as Gruber is run down and killed, and a merciless treasure hunter takes the brothers and their new friend deep within a cave and leaves them there to die with no way to escape!  This story is definitely not your typical children's mystery fare, but a much more mature tale of war heroes, unrepentant villains, deadly killers, and ruthless treasure hunters. 

The story mentions several places in Germany, and I was curious as to whether any of them were real.  The small village of Kallendorf that the Keenes and their uncle pass through early in the story (p. 10) is likely a variation on the real city of Allendorf, Germany.  The author does make reference to Hanover, Brunswick, and the Harz Mountains (p. 27), all of which are actual places in Germany.  The boys also indicate they "thought of running down to Goslar," which Konrad describes as "a delightful town ... much of the medieval so well preserved..." (p. 30).  Such town does exist, and it is an historic town that is famous for its ore mines.  It is also just south of Brunswick and southeast of Hanover, which would fit with the other cites the Keene brothers were planning to visit during the stay.  The ore mining would certainly explain the caves in which the teens find themselves captive, and the details of the location lead one to think the author might have visited there or otherwise be familiar with the area.  Again, I'm a sucker for books that integrate factual locations or other elements into the stories, as it tends to ground them a bit more, making even the most unbelievable tales somewhat more believable.

 

While it is definitely more of a mature story than the standard children's mysteries here in the States, this is a pretty good book and worth the read.  Leaves me with a desire to find that first Keene brothers' book and read it!

 

RATING:  8 wild boars with wicked-looking tusks out of 10 for a suspenseful story with a rather intricate and at times very dangerous plot.

 

 

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!