Murder Out of Turn
by Frances Lockridge, Richard Lockridge
Mr. and Mrs. North mysteries (2), Inspector Heimrich
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For Mr. and Mrs. North, there's no vacation from murder In a remote cabin far from New York City, Jerry and Pamela North are getting killed. On the brink of annihilation, they grit their teeth and battle back. In a moment, the fight is finished-and the Norths are named mixed doubles champions. It's a happy moment during a splendid vacation, but off the tennis court, all is not well. After an afternoon of fun and games, the evening's entertainment will be murder. Mr. and Mrs. North have show more invited their closest friends-an ex-aviator, a mysterious doctor, and New York Police Department's own Lt. William Weigand-to join them on this glittering retreat, but the joviality ends when Weigand finds Helen Wilson lying across the path, a knife buried in her neck. A member of the group surely killed her, and unless the Norths act quickly, the murderer will strike again. Murder Out of Turn is the 2nd book in the Mr. and Mrs. North Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Murder Out of Turn is an early Mr. & Mrs. North title, and the one where we first meet** Lieutenant (as he was then) Heimrich of the New York State Police. In this one, he had no first name yet. This is also the one where Bill Weigand of NYPD's Homicide Bureau meets his lady love, Dorian Hunt. It is surely one of the Lockridges' best stories, set at a "camp"--a cabin colony around "Lone Lake" about sixty miles north of the City. Great fun to tramp through the woods with the Norths and their friends, to race around the twisty country roads with Bill at the wheel of his barrellin' Buick (or with Pam scaring the daylights out of Jerry while driving as fast as she's always wanted to do) and to try to puzzle out the mystery of who murdered show more two young women, and why, and in what order. The clues are all in there, honest.
** ETA See my review of Think of Death (1947) in which Heimrich appeared, but was not the main character, and was only a Lieutenant. He also appeared in Death of a Tall Man, but had not earned his own series in either case. Both Murder Out of Turn and Death of a Tall Man are properly designated as Mr. & Mrs. North mysteries. show less
** ETA See my review of Think of Death (1947) in which Heimrich appeared, but was not the main character, and was only a Lieutenant. He also appeared in Death of a Tall Man, but had not earned his own series in either case. Both Murder Out of Turn and Death of a Tall Man are properly designated as Mr. & Mrs. North mysteries. show less
Murder Out of Turn is an early Mr. & Mrs. North title, and the one where we first meet** Lieutenant (as he was then) Heimrich of the New York State Police. In this one, he had no first name yet. This is also the one where Bill Weigand of NYPD's Homicide Bureau meets his lady love, Dorian Hunt. It is surely one of the Lockridges' best stories, set at a "camp"--a cabin colony around "Lone Lake" about sixty miles north of the City. Great fun to tramp through the woods with the Norths and their friends, to race around the twisty country roads with Bill at the wheel of his barrellin' Buick (or with Pam scaring the daylights out of Jerry while driving as fast as she's always wanted to do) and to try to puzzle out the mystery of who murdered show more two young women, and why, and in what order. The clues are all in there, honest.
** ETA See my review of Think of Death (1947) in which Heimrich appeared, but was not the main character, and was only a Lieutenant. He also appeared in Death of a Tall Man, but had not earned his own series in either case. Both Murder Out of Turn and Death of a Tall Man are properly designated as Mr. & Mrs. North mysteries. show less
** ETA See my review of Think of Death (1947) in which Heimrich appeared, but was not the main character, and was only a Lieutenant. He also appeared in Death of a Tall Man, but had not earned his own series in either case. Both Murder Out of Turn and Death of a Tall Man are properly designated as Mr. & Mrs. North mysteries. show less
Jerry and Pam North invite their new friend Lieutenant William Weigand to join them on vacation at Lone Lake, a campground 60 miles northeast of New York City, then rural Upstate instead of the commuter suburb it would be today. Set right when War World II was brewing, this second novel in the series was as delicious as the first.
While there, Weigand meets the Norths’ fellow campers, some friends and some newcomers. One of the campers, the pretty, ambitious Jean Corbin wants her way at the ad agency where she works and with men and doesn’t let much stand in her way. But it’s not Jean who’s murdered after a party held that first night, her throat slashed: It’s the inoffensive Helen Wilson. As the young Mrs. North phrased it, show more it was the wrong girl. To tell more would be to ruin this excellent sequel from a bygone era that’s a delight decades later.
Merged review:
Jerry and Pam North invite their new friend Lieutenant William Weigand to join them on vacation at Lone Lake, a campground 60 miles northeast of New York City, then rural Upstate instead of the commuter suburb it would be today. Set right when War World II was brewing, this second novel in the series was as delicious as the first.
While there, Weigand meets the Norths’ fellow campers, some friends and some newcomers. One of the campers, the pretty, ambitious Jean Corbin wants her way at the ad agency where she works and with men and doesn’t let much stand in her way. But it’s not Jean who’s murdered after a party held that first night, her throat slashed: It’s the inoffensive Helen Wilson. As the young Mrs. North phrased it, it was the wrong girl. To tell more would be to ruin this excellent sequel from a bygone era that’s a delight decades later. show less
While there, Weigand meets the Norths’ fellow campers, some friends and some newcomers. One of the campers, the pretty, ambitious Jean Corbin wants her way at the ad agency where she works and with men and doesn’t let much stand in her way. But it’s not Jean who’s murdered after a party held that first night, her throat slashed: It’s the inoffensive Helen Wilson. As the young Mrs. North phrased it, show more it was the wrong girl. To tell more would be to ruin this excellent sequel from a bygone era that’s a delight decades later.
Merged review:
Jerry and Pam North invite their new friend Lieutenant William Weigand to join them on vacation at Lone Lake, a campground 60 miles northeast of New York City, then rural Upstate instead of the commuter suburb it would be today. Set right when War World II was brewing, this second novel in the series was as delicious as the first.
While there, Weigand meets the Norths’ fellow campers, some friends and some newcomers. One of the campers, the pretty, ambitious Jean Corbin wants her way at the ad agency where she works and with men and doesn’t let much stand in her way. But it’s not Jean who’s murdered after a party held that first night, her throat slashed: It’s the inoffensive Helen Wilson. As the young Mrs. North phrased it, it was the wrong girl. To tell more would be to ruin this excellent sequel from a bygone era that’s a delight decades later. show less
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Author Information
71+ Works 3,253 Members
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Richard Orson Lockridge was born on September 26, 1898 in St. Joseph, Missouri. He was a writer of detective fiction. Along with his wife Francis, Richard Lockridge created the famous American mystery series, Mr. and Mrs, North. Lockridge was educated at the University of Missouri. He began working as a reporter on the Kansas City Kansan and the show more Kansas City Star. In 1932, Lockridge published his first book, Darling of Misfortune: Edwin Booth: 1833-1893. In 1937, Frances Lockridge conceived the plot for a detective novel, but had problems with her characters. Richard Lockridge collaborated with his wife, using her plot and the characters he had created earlier for a series of comic sketches in The New Yorker, Mr. and Mrs. North. The book was published in 1940 as The Norths Meet Murder, launching a series of twenty-six novels, which was adapted for the stage, film, radio, and television. The Lockridge's went on to write several mystery series including Lt. Heimrich series, Nathan Shapiro series and Paul Lane series. Richard Lockridge died in 1982 after s series of strokes. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Pocket Books (376)
Work Relationships
Is contained in
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1941
- People/Characters
- Pam North; Jerry North; Lieutenant Heimrich, Bureau of Criminal Identifcation, NYSP; Aloysius Mullins (Detective, NYPD); William Weigand (Lieutenant, Homicide Bureau, NYPD); Helen Wilson (show all 18); Bram Van Horst; Hardie Saunders; Jean Corbin; Professor James Harlan Abel; John Blair; Arthur Kennedy; Thelma Smith; Jane Fuller; Ben Fuller; Dorian Hunt; Frank Ireland; Henry Marvin
- Dedication
- With the exception of Pete, the characters in this novel are fictional and have no counterparts in life. Pete is real; the authors work for his keep.
- First words
- William Weigand took a hurried look at the sketch map, decided to chance it, and swung left off Route 22 on a narrow macadam road.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Mr. North, however, said that one thing about the country was that nobody ever got any sleep.
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Mr. North, however, said that one thing about the country was that nobody ever got any sleep.
THE END
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- 107
- Popularity
- 302,057
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.88)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 4
- ASINs
- 7
