Murder in the Madhouse (Library of Crime Classics)

Rating:
Summary: SNAPPY 1930'S HARDBOILED, GENTLY SKEWED
Review: If you like humor with mayhem, hardboiled and "closed community" "golden age" mysteries this melange of a funny novel is for you. PI Bill Crane goes undercover at a lunatic asylum (well, OK, it *is* a high-class joint, and they don't call the patients lunatics but "guests") to solve a theft and guard an old lady, and then people start dying.

Terse hardboiled-style writing, well done, a fast read. Seems as though the writer is quite tongue-in-cheek about the PI conventions - a running gag is that the PI gets beaten up at least once daily, and he has a great time poking fun at this premise. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, but can't give 5 stars because I feel he has better stories in him.