Books: Mysteries

• Share

Of the 26 detective stories in the April-May crop, the following stood out as best bets:

THE PROBLEM OF THE GREEN CAPSULE—John Dickson Carr—Harper ($2). A man is poisoned in the presence of three witnesses, none of whom can tell what happened. But ingenious Dr. Fell catches the culprit. Intricate and astute.

JUDAS, INCORPORATED—Kurt Steel—Little, Brown ($2). While tracking down the murderer of a Connecticut industrialist, case-hardened Hank Hyer comes between two rival strikebreaking agencies. Tops for the tough type.

RENO RENDEZVOUS — Leslie Ford — Farrar & Rinehart ($2). Two daring and brutal murders are cleared up by Colonel Primrose and misogynist Sergeant Buck. Another of Miss Ford's first-person stories, with her usual good plot and dialogue.

THE CAT SAW MURDER—D. B. Olsen—Crime Club ($2). Lieutenant Mayhew needs help from 70-year-old Rachel Murdock in solving the killings of her niece and another guest. A good creepy story.

THE CASE OF THE CRUMPLED KNAVE—Anthony Boucher—Simon & Schuster ($2). Young Fergus O'Breen, with the aid of Colonel Theodore Rand, U. S. A. (Ret.), nails the crafty killer of a wealthy California chemist-inventor.