Book Review: The Case of the Stepdaughter's Secret by Erle Stanley Gardner (1963)
Synopsis: Harlow Bancroft comes to Perry Mason with a problem. He has received a blackmail letter and, believing someone has found out about his criminal past, is worried the blackmailer will ruin his stepdaughter, Rosena's, upcoming wedding. Mason agrees to help him out, even after learning the blackmailer actually has information about Rosena's fiancé's family. When things escalate and Bancroft's wife, Phyllis, is forced to shoot at one of the blackmailers in self-defense, Mason finds himself defending Phyllis against murder charges. Review: While I am determined to get through the remaining Perry Mason novels, I am finding many of the later mysteries just aren't as good as the others. Unfortunately, this book fell into that category. There are a couple things I found were disappointing about this book. One of the main ones is the title is very misleading. First, the stepdaughter isn't even the person hiding a secret, her future husband's family is and ...