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In this "bright, amusing addition to this series" by an Edgar Award winner, sleuth Peter Duluth faces his greatest challenge: remembering who he is . . . (Kirkus Reviews). Patrick Quentin, best known for the Peter Duluth puzzle mysteries, also penned outstanding detective novels from the 1930s through the 1960s under other pseudonyms, including Q. Patrick and Jonathan Stagge. Anthony Boucher wrote: "Quentin is particularly noted for the enviable polish and grace which make him one of show more the leading American fabricants of the murderous comedy of manners; but this surface smoothness conceals intricate and meticulous plot construction as faultless as that of Agatha Christie." When Gordy Friend wakes up in the hospital, he's got a broken arm, a broken leg, and apparently a broken head, since he can't remember anything that's happened before now. Luckily, Gordy learns he has a doting mother, a loving sister, and an absolute knockout wife to care for him and remind him of his lavish, hedonistic lifestyle. He's also in line to inherit a great deal of money from his recently deceased father--if the will isn't contested by some killjoys who think Gordy isn't up to snuff. Then, his trip down easy street hits the skids as Gordy realizes not everything around him is what it seems, and that his father's passing might not have been so peaceful. Plus, he's got some weird thoughts clanking around his head--strange memories about the bright lights of Broadway and a beautiful starlet. The more Gordy finds out about himself, the more he suspects that his entire life might be a lie. And that the lie might just kill him . . . show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
Highly unusual plot. The kind of story one reads with pleasure and interest not because it’s baffling but because one wants to know how the author will work it all out.
A great read
Will definitely look for more of these. Have now read 2 but this was quite differnt to the other though I have rated both ****.
This was a continual twist and turn, even more so in the second half.
The plot of course is preposterous, at least for those who have not experienced the strangeness of the world,
I am sure that the main character ( Peter Duluth, though most of the book suffering from amnesia and hence not knowinh who he is ) was in the previous book I read but was a completely different character and not with teh wife I expected! I will have to go back and check
PS
now having checked , yes it was a Duluth but in the other book it was Jake the father and Bill the only son
will have to track down whether there is any show more connection or just that the author liked that surname!
Well worth a read.
Big Ship
24 July 2015 show less
Will definitely look for more of these. Have now read 2 but this was quite differnt to the other though I have rated both ****.
This was a continual twist and turn, even more so in the second half.
The plot of course is preposterous, at least for those who have not experienced the strangeness of the world,
I am sure that the main character ( Peter Duluth, though most of the book suffering from amnesia and hence not knowinh who he is ) was in the previous book I read but was a completely different character and not with teh wife I expected! I will have to go back and check
PS
now having checked , yes it was a Duluth but in the other book it was Jake the father and Bill the only son
will have to track down whether there is any show more connection or just that the author liked that surname!
Well worth a read.
Big Ship
24 July 2015 show less
Cuando Gordy Friend se despierta en el hospital, tiene un brazo roto, una pierna rota y aparentemente la cabeza rota, ya que no puede recordar nada de lo que sucedió antes.
Afortunadamente, Gordy se entera de que tiene una madre cariñosa, una hermana amorosa y una esposa increíble para cuidarlo y recordarle su estilo de vida lujoso y hedonista. También está en línea para heredar una gran cantidad de dinero de su padre recientemente fallecido, si el testatmento no es impugnado por algunos aguafiestas que piensan que Gordy no está a la altura.
Cuanto más descubre Gordy sobre sí mismo, más sospecha que toda su vida podría ser una mentira. Y que la mentira podría matarlo...
Afortunadamente, Gordy se entera de que tiene una madre cariñosa, una hermana amorosa y una esposa increíble para cuidarlo y recordarle su estilo de vida lujoso y hedonista. También está en línea para heredar una gran cantidad de dinero de su padre recientemente fallecido, si el testatmento no es impugnado por algunos aguafiestas que piensan que Gordy no está a la altura.
Cuanto más descubre Gordy sobre sí mismo, más sospecha que toda su vida podría ser una mentira. Y que la mentira podría matarlo...
Nov 15, 2022Spanish
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Author Information
103+ Works 1,646 Members
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Puzzle for Fiends
- Original title
- Puzzle for Fiends
- Alternate titles
- Love is a Deadly Weapon
- Original publication date
- 1946
- People/Characters
- Peter Duluth; Mimsey Friend; Selena Friend; Marny Friend
- Important places
- Lona Beach, California, USA
- Related movies
- Female Fiends (1958 | IMDb)
- First words
- Behind us the bomber’s propellers were roaring.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)“If my back’s slap up against the wall, I may even tell you the truth.”
- Original language
- English US
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 93
- Popularity
- 344,724
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.86)
- Languages
- 10 — Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, German, Norwegian (Bokmål), Polish, Portuguese, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 11
- ASINs
- 8































































