Synopses & Reviews
Written in the late 1920s and never before published, this mystery by the author of such early feminist classics as The Yellow Wall-Paper is a major literary find. Gilman's first and only detective novel recounts the murder of a pernicious attorney who has been shot, stabbed, bludgeoned, strangled and poisoned. The husband-and-wife detective team present a model of true partnership, while the unfolding details of the case offer poignant evidence of the injustice that poor and powerless women can suffer at the hands of a brutal man. Gilman weaves her case for women's freedom and empowerment into a mystery rich in twists and turns, colorful characters, red herrings, suspense and wry humor.
Synopsis
Edited with an afterword by Catherine J. Golden and Denise D. Knight Written in the 1920s, this mystery by the author of the Yellow Wall-Paper features a husband-and-wife detective team who must solve the murder of a well-known attorney who has been shot, stabbed, bludgeoned, strangled, and poisoned! The duo must unravel the mystery that grows more complicated with each turn, in this humorous, decidedly feminist whodunit.
Synopsis
Charlotte Perkins Gilman's first and only detective novel begins with a murder to confound any mystery fan: a local attorney, Wade Vaughn, is found dead in his study with a bullet in his temple, a knife in his back, a gaping wound in his skull, a cord around his neck, and a poisoned whiskey glass by his side. As the plot unfolds, it reveals motives for murder as numerous as the means: Vaughn is an evil man who has abused and blackmailed clients, servants, and family members, driven his wife to suicide, and devised a sinister plan for forcing marriage upon his young stepdaughter. The task of untangling this multitudinous mystery falls to a husband-and-wife detective team. The good-natured and resourceful Jim Hunt is sometimes outshone by his clever and intrepid wife Bess, a former journalist, who goes undercover as a servant in the dead man's home. When Bess and Jim finally discover the solution - through secret diaries, hidden surveillance, and last-minute confession - it surprises even them. Unpunished is a mystery with a message; Gilman weaves her case for women's freedom and empowerment into a story rich in twists and turns, colorful characters, red herrings, and wry humor.
Synopsis
Possibly the world's first feminist mystery--by the author of the best-selling The Yellow Wallpaper.