Book Review: The Case of the Sulky Girl by Erle Stanley Gardner (1933)

Synopsis: Fran Celane comes to attorney Perry Mason for his help with her inheritance, a sum of about $1 million left to her by her father. As a result of Fran's compulsive nature and bad temper, the money is in a trust under the control of her strict uncle, Edward Norton, and with a provision that allows him to dissolve the trust and donate the majority of the money to charity if she marries before the age of 25. When attempts to have a conversation with Norton fail, Mason agrees to represent her if she contests the will. However, when Norton is killed soon after, Mason finds himself defending both Fran and her secret husband, Robert Gleason against murder charges.

Review: When I read through Erle Stanley Gardner's Perry Mason series, there were some books I wasn't able to read because of a lack of availability. This included The Case of the Sulky Girl. I was finally able to get a copy through my library this week and once I started reading it, I had a hard time putting it down.

The thing I liked about this mystery was Mason's client was easily the most likely suspect, to the point I wondered if this would be one of the rare times the attorney was defending someone who was actually guilty. Her story about being out of the house when her uncle was murdered had too much evidence proving it was a lie, including testimony from a housekeeper who was blackmailing her over her secret marriage. On top of it, the person who placed her in the room at the time her uncle was murdered was, at least on the surface, someone who seemed to genuinely not want to testify to that fact.

Also not helping were the impulsiveness of both Fran and her husband, Robert. Fran was the kind of person who was unpredictable and could damage her own case at any point simply because she got mad while Robert was on the verge of confessing to the crime just so he could negotiate to keep Fran out of it.

Even his friend and ally, Paul Drake, believed she was guilty - to the point he was literally betting against the attorney.

Another thing I found intriguing was the focus on Norton's supposedly stolen car, which may have not have even left the garage that night. If it wasn't stolen, why did Norton report it stolen? If it was stolen, who rolled back the odometer, so it looked like it hadn't been driven? What, if anything, did it have to do with the murder? It was a puzzle and was the result I was only able to figure out only part of the solution.

Final Opinion: This is a solid mystery and one of my favorite Perry Mason books. It made me want to make more effort to find the remaining books I missed the first time around.

My Grade: A

______________________________________________________________________

Here are some reviews of other Perry Mason books:

Book Review: The Case of the Singing Skirt by Erle Stanley Gardner (1959)

Book Review: The Case of the Caretaker's Cat by Erle Stanley Gardner (1935)

Book Review: The Case of the Ice-Cold Hands by Erle Stanley Gardner (1962)

Book Review: The Case of the Lucky Legs by Erle Stanley Gardner (1934)