The Case of the Dubious Bridegroom by Erle Stanley Gardner

Mystery. Noir. Legal Thriller. 

Rating: 4/5

Pages: 206

Started: 25 December 2023

Finished: 26 December 2023

Summary: 

    After a mysterious and alluring woman climbs into his office window in the middle of the night, 1950s lawyer Perry Mason is drawn into a mystery involving a mining company, two wives, and an embezzling scheme. 

Thoughts: 

    This was such a fun cozy read. The mystery was excellent, and the writing and dialogue, while simple, were well-done and just the right amount of followable. The resolution to the book was the perfect balance of engaging and solvable, with the key being how favorable the archetypes of each character were (i.e. he suspicious but pretty and kind woman was mostly innocent, etc.). 

    The misogyny and racism was unsurprisingly very present--the woman's double standard of being mad about being invasively searched but also mad about Mason not being interested in her, the manipulative ex-wife, the slutty and flighty second wife, the promiscuity and hypersexuality of the Mexican hotel owner. 

    Overlooking the ways in which the book is a clear reflection of its times, but was a really fun read. My favorite quote was the short sentence "Mason decided to resort to subterfuge"; I think the line accurately summarizes how the book was concise, fun, and clever. I will definitely be reading more Perry Mason mysteries in the future, if the opportunity arrises. 

    

Words

    Aborning (adv) being born or produced

    Urbanely (adv) courteous and refined in manner