Nancy Barr Mavity. The Body on the Floor (1929) 325 pp.
By jiminy! A woman found dead in the kitchen of her ranch house in the village of Medbury, a short distance from the city, draws Herald reporter Peter Piper into the strange circumstances surrounding her death. Jealousy, revenge, psychological abuse, and bootlegging combine to make Peter doubt the police and coroner’s jury verdict—based on evidence including a detailed discussion of blood spatter trajectories—that rules it a suicide. Aided by cub reporter Jerry Dean, who is in love with the dead woman’s daughter, and his wife Barbara, Peter continues to investigate, solves the mystery, and earns himself a front-page byline.
Baird & Greenwood 1693