Saturday, January 22, 2005

A Bargain

While poking around in the Nostalgia section at Half Price Books, I came across an Ace Double I didn't have: D-45, which consists of DEATH HITCHES A RIDE by Martin L. Weiss (who he?) and TRACKED DOWN by Leslie Edgley (who he? or she?), which was originally published under the title THE ANGRY HEART (doesn't sound real hardboiled to me). Despite never having heard of either author, and despite the fact that the book was in good but not great shape . . . it was only a buck. The cover on the Weiss side of the book isn't bad, and you can't beat cover copy like "Corpse Cargo on a Highway to Hell!" Needless to say, this one went home with me. Lord knows when or if I'll get around to reading it, but by golly, I've got it if I do want to read it!

6 comments:

Juri said...

Leslie Edgley was a screen writer who also published a handful of crime novels, mildly hardboiled. According to Hubin, he was born in 1912 and wrote with his wife, Mary Edgley, as by Brook Hastings. He also wrote as by Robert Bloomfield. "Fear No More" was his first, from 1946. It was made into a totally unknown film in 1961. He was in the grey list in the early fifties and doesn't have many screen credits. I remember reading one comment on one Edgley's novels - it was Woolrichian noir, but I don't remember the title of the book in question.

On Martin L. Weiss there's not much. Besides the book you found, he wrote also "Hate Alley" (Ace 1957).

James Reasoner said...

Thanks for the info, Juri!

Juri said...

I checked again. The book that the commentor had read was exactly "Fear No More", Edgley's best-known title. Interesting, but not very intriguing, was how I understood the comment.

Graham Powell said...

James, which Half Price Books do you shop at? I was over at the one by Ridglea Mall on Saturday and picked up a couple of books by the late Joseph Hansen, plus GUN IN CHEEK by Pronzini. They had John D. MacDonald's THE BRASS CUPCAKE but I didn't get it.

Anonymous said...

James, I loved your comment "Lord knows when or if I'll get around to reading it, but by golly, I've got it if I do want to read it!" I had to read it to my wife to show her that I wasn't the only person who thought like that.

Danny

James Reasoner said...

Graham,

The Half Price near Ridgmar Mall is my usual stop. I'm there at least a couple of times a week. Occasionally, I make it over to the Half Price on Hulen, but I don't go there as much because the traffic is so much worse in that part of town.

Danny,

When it comes to buying books, I go by Crider's Law: "You never regret the books you buy, only the ones you didn't buy."