Because I Needed a Fischer Fix …

The Silent Dust, by Bruno Fischer (Signet, 1951). This was the fourth of five Fischer novels to feature Ben Helm, an ex-cop turned private investigator in New York City.

Cover illustration by Warren King.

Because I Needed a Henry Kane Fix …

Dead in Bed, by Henry Kane (Lancer, 1961). This was an entry in Kane’s series starring New York City “private richard” Pete Chambers. Cover illustration by Oscar Liebman.

(Not to be confused with this other novel by Day Keene.)

Because I Needed a McCloy Fix …

Do Not Disturb, by Helen McCloy (Dell, 1948). Published originally in hardcover by William Morrow back in 1945, this mystery’s 1948 paperback edition was part of Dell Books’ famous “mapback” line. Cover artist unidentified.

Because I Needed a Coxe Fix ...

Venturous Lady, by George Harmon Coxe (Dell, 1953).

Coxe was a lively stylist and a prolific crime novelist, with a 40-year publishing career (1935-1975). Venturous Lady was among his early standalones, released originally in 1948 by Alfred A. Knopf. In its March 1948 review of this yarn, The New York Times wrote:

It is easy enough to guess who is going to be murdered. Dean Fenton’s reputation as a first-class heel has preceded him; and when he appears at the Fellhaven Summer Playhouse he loses no time in proving that he deserves that reputation. Six persons connected with the Playhouse are known to have reasons to desire his death, and there may be others. Lieutenant Baldwin of the State Police is completely stumped, and a second murder does not make the situation any clearer. There are too many suspects and too many possible motives. Then one of the suspects comes to the rescue and spreads a net which catches the murderer in its tangle meshes. There is lively action before the truth becomes known.

Cover illustration by Griffith Foxley.

Because I Needed a Charteris Fix …

The Saint Sees It Through, by Leslie Charteris (Avon, 1954). Originally released in hardcover back in 1946, this was the 26th novel by British-Chinese author Charteris to star his Robin Hood-like troubleshooter, Simon Templar, aka “The Saint.”

Cover painting by George Ziel.

Because I Needed a Blochman Fix …

Blow-Down, by Lawrence G. Blochman (Dell, 1953). Cover illustration by Griffith Foxley.

Because I Needed a Tey Fix …

The Man in the Queue, “Josephine Tey,” aka Elizabeth MacKintosh (Great Pan, 1958). This was the first of Tey’s novels to star Scotland Yard Inspector Alan Grant.

Cover illustration by Glenn Steward.

Because I Needed an Abbot Fix …

About the Murder of a Startled Lady, by “Anthony Abbot,” aka Fulton Oursler (Avon Murder Mystery Monthly, 1944). Published originally in 1936, this was the fifth of Oursler’s novels starring New York City Police Commissioner Thatcher Colt. Sadly, the artwork fronting this entry in Avon’s once-popular paperback line is not credited. And the back cover … well, let’s just say it’s extremely boring.

Because I Needed a Latimer Fix ...

Red Gardenias, by Jonathan Latimer (Methuen, 1939). This was the fifth and final novel to star Latimer’s “booze-soaked and possibly inept” New York detective, Bill Crane.
Cover illustration by C.W. Bacon.



Dark Memory, by Jonathan Latimer (Permabooks, 1953).
Cover art by Carl Bobertz.

Because I Needed a Slesar Fix ...

The Gray Flannel Shroud, by Henry Slesar (Zenith, 1959).
Cover illustrator unidentified.

READ MORE: “Henry Slesar,” by Russell Atwood (Ellery Queen
Mystery Magazine).

Because I Needed a Pearce Fix …

The Mark of the Pasha, by Michael Pearce (‎Poisoned Pen Press; 2010). Sudan-born English novelist Pearce, who died earlier this year, penned 19 mysteries built around Gareth Cadwallader Owen, a Welsh army captain who has gone to serve as the head (or “Mamur Zapt”) of Cairo, Egypt’s secret police in the early 20th century. This congenial series began in 1988 with The Mamur Zapt and the Return of the Carpet and concluded in 2016 with The Women of the Souk. The Mark of the Pasha was the 16th installment. Pearce’s 1992 tale, The Mamur Zapt and the Spoils of Egypt, won the Crime Writers’ Association’s Last Laugh Award for funniest crime novel of the year.

Cover illustration by John Dawson.

Because I Needed a Thorp Fix …

Into the Forest, by Roderick Thorp (MacFadden, 1962). Originally released in hardcover in 1961, this was the first novel by Bronx native Thorp, who would go on to compose The Detective (1966), which provided the plot for a 1968 Frank Sinatra movie of that same name, and its 1979 sequel, Nothing Lasts Forever, adapted very loosely into the Bruce Willis action film Die Hard (1988).

Cover illustration by Ron Lesser.

Because I Needed a Kurland Fix …

The Infernal Device, by Michael Kurland (Signet, 1979). This is the first of Kurland’s five novels built around Sherlock Holmes adversary Professor James Moriarty.

Cover illustration by William Maughan.

Because I Needed a Trimble Fix …

Cargo for the Styx, by Louis Trimble (Ace, 1958). This was published as part of a paperback “double novel,” with J.M. “Jay” Flynn’s Terror Tournament on the flipside. Unfortunately, the cover artist for Cargo is unidentified.

READ MORE: “A P.I. Mystery Revew—Louise Trimble, The Surfside Caper,” by Steve Lewis (Mystery*File).

Because I Needed a Hitchens Fix …

F.O.B. Murders, by Bert and Dolores Hitchens (Permabooks, 1956). Cover illustration by Robert Schulz.

Because I Needed a Disney Fix …

The Hangman’s Tree, by Dorothy Cameron Disney (Bantam, 1951). Cover illustration by Harry Schaare.

READ MORE: “Not What You'd Expect from a Disney,” by TomKat (Beneath the Stains of Time).

Because I Needed a McCoy Fix ...

No Pockets in a Shroud, by Horace McCoy (Signet, 1948). The initials “T.V.” in the lower left-hand corner of this illustration probably stand for Tony Varady. More examples of Varady’s cover artistry can be enjoyed here.

Because I Needed an Ozaki Fix …

Dressed to Kill, by Milton K. Ozaki (Graphic, 1954). This novel marks the single appearance of Chicago private eye Rusty Forbes, who here “takes a job repossessing cars, and the first one he goes after is driven by a beautiful blonde and has a corpse in the trunk,” according to the blog Pulp International. “The corpse of course leads to loot, and the loot of course attracts the villains—a bunch of Chicago mobsters. Generally well reviewed, but not Ozaki's best, according to most sources.” The cover illustration is by Walter Popp. You can see this book’s backside here.

Because I Needed a Cox Fix …

Murder in Vegas, by William R. Cox (Signet, 1960). The cover illustration here, by Jerry Allison, had previously been employed on Adam Knight’s I’ll Kill You Next (Signet, 1954).

READ MORE: “TMF Review: William R. Cox—Death on Location,”
by Steve Lewis (Mystery*File).

Because I Needed a Crane Fix …

Murder on the Purple Water, by Frances Crane (Bantam, 1951). Published originally in 1947, this novel, says The Thrilling Detective Web Site, is part of Crane’s colorful and long-running series starring “dapper San Francisco gumshoe” Pat Abbott and his “not-quite-bubbleheaded little wifey,” Jean. Cover art by Denver Gillen (see more on him here, here, and here).