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Jonathan Stagge

Dr. Hugh Westlake investigates murder in a powerful family, by the Edgar Award–winning author who wrote the Peter Duluth Mysteries as Patrick Quentin.

Patrick Quentin, best known for the Peter Duluth puzzle mysteries, also penned outstanding detective novels from the 1930s through the 1960s under other pseudonyms, including Q. Patrick and Jonathan Stagge. Anthony Boucher wrote: “Quentin is particularly noted for the enviable polish and grace which make him one of the leading American fabricants of the murderous comedy of manners; but this surface smoothness conceals intricate and meticulous plot construction as faultless as that of Agatha Christie. ”

The entire town is at sixes and sevens with the homecoming of the Hilton family, whose ancestor, Benjamin, left the village of Kenmore ages ago and eventually rose to become vice president of the United States. Now the Hiltons have returned—not that they’re particularly happy about it, if their rather standoffish attitude is any clue.

But even such a highly regarded family has its secrets. And when their aged nanny dies under mysterious circumstances, Westlake is asked by Inspector Cobb to step beyond his role as local coroner and conduct a clandestine investigation into the Hilton household. Such a task won’t be easy, as other branches of the family arrive and expand Westlake’s list of possible suspects. But he’s not about to let a possible murder go unsolved, no matter how blue the blood being spilled …

MysteriousPress.com/Open Road

The Doctor Westlake Mysteries

Death, My Darling Daughters

A song holds the key to murder in this Dr. Hugh Westlake mystery from the Edgar Award–winning author who wrote the Peter Duluth series as Patrick Quentin.

Patrick Quentin, best known for the Peter Duluth puzzle mysteries, also penned outstanding detective novels from the 1930s through the 1960s under other pseudonyms, including Q. Patrick and Jonathan Stagge. Anthony Boucher wrote: “Quentin is particularly noted for the enviable polish and grace which make him one of the leading American fabricants of the murderous comedy of manners; but this surface smoothness conceals intricate and meticulous plot construction as faultless as that of Agatha Christie. ”

The affluent Bray family was known for throwing the most enjoyable picnics, and this one seemed to be no different to Dr. Hugh Westlake and his precocious progeny, Dawn. When their host’s daughter breaks into a version of the old English folk ballad, “Green Grow the Rushes, O, ” no one gives it a second thought. Little do they know the song portends death.

It begins with the bodies of twin boys found in the river, which connects to a lyric from the ballad. And before anyone can even recover from such a horror, more killings occur—all diabolically tied to the song. With help from Dawn and his old friend, Inspector Cobb, Westlake must sort through an ever-shrinking circle of suspects and stop a murderer from striking another deadly note.

Death's Old Sweet Song

Dr. Hugh Westlake and his daughter, Dawn, help a diva in danger, by the Edgar Award–winning author who wrote the Peter Duluth Mysteries as Patrick Quentin.

Patrick Quentin, best known for the Peter Duluth puzzle mysteries, also penned outstanding detective novels from the 1930s through the 1960s under other pseudonyms, including Q. Patrick and Jonathan Stagge. Anthony Boucher wrote: “Quentin is particularly noted for the enviable polish and grace which make him one of the leading American fabricants of the murderous comedy of manners; but this surface smoothness conceals intricate and meticulous plot construction as faultless as that of Agatha Christie. ”

At the behest of a friend, country doctor Hugh Westlake retires to Bittern’s Bay—a ritzy New England resort—for a holiday with his daughter, Dawn. The place is abuzz with the presence of legendary actress Daphne Winters, who has with her a coterie of young actresses she hopes to mentor. The divine Daphne soon finds her star dimmed with the arrival of Lucy Milliken, who was once her understudy and has since usurped Daphne’s role as America’s sweetheart. Almost immediately, Westlake can see both cats sharpening their claws.

Then, one of Daphne’s wards is struck down by poison—one of the actress’s greatest fears. And when recurring incidents play upon her other fears of fire and closed spaces, it seems she has been singled out for murder. With a full cast of suspects, it’s up to Dr. Westlake to shine a spotlight on a killer—before it’s curtains for Daphne Winters.