Murder by Jury / Murder on the Aphrodite: (Golden-Age Mystery Reprint)

Murder by Jury: "If there is any place one would think himself safe, it would be in a jury room, locked up with fellow members of a jury, considering a verdict. Yet that, strangely enough, is the place Miss Sanborn chose for her victim. Naturally it takes an unusual bit of scheming on her part to make the murder plausible, and to set the stage so that the killer goes undetected long enough to fill the volume. Yet she manages it without false leads, or last-minute introductions of new characters. The big-jawed lady on the jury, who had almost dominated the scene until that moment, is actually-and cleverly-made away with by another member of the 12, and right under their eyes. Another female member of the same jury finally follows the course of logic which solves the mystery, and in so doing uncovers the real secret of the case upon whose settlement they were debating when murder entered their locked room. It's well told, and is interesting in the portrayal of the characters of the story." (Birmingham, Alabama, News, April 3, 1932) Murder on the Aphrodite: "A houseboat is a pretty fair place on which to stage a murder mystery, and Ruth Burr Sanborn uses such a locale to good advantage. When Mrs. Christine Van Wycke is killed while a psychologist is conducting an experiment to show that no persons notice the same things during a moment of stress, Bill Galleon finds himself wondering if Jane Bridge, or Jane Barron as he once knew her, has anything to do with the murder. Before the solution is reached, Bill has some bad moments about his suspicions, but naturally the romance ends happily and the murder is solved in an ingenious manner." (Minneapolis, Minnesota, Star, October 19, 1935) For more golden-age detective fiction, visit CoachwhipBooks.com.