For classic mystery fans, I am recommending The Invisible Host by the writing team of Gwen Bristow and Bruce Manning. Written in 1930, this was turned into a stage play, and then faithfully adapted into a film titled The Ninth Guest in 1934 (available for free on YouTube) and subsequent editions of the book can be found under that title. Predating Agatha Christie's 1939 And Then There Were None, it has a similar plot which is to say, it's a puzzling golden age thriller!
"Congratulations stop. Plans afoot for small surprise party in your honour Bienville penthouse next Saturday eight o'clock stop. All sub rosa big surprise stop. Maintain secrecy stop. Promises you most original party ever staged in New Orleans. Signed Your Host."
Eight telegrams were sent off with the same message to eight strangers, eight destinations. The city doyenne who feels she cannot be outdone in the party department, a prominent doctor, a successful stockbroker, a playwright, a female lawyer, a civic leader, an artist, and a Hollywood actress all picture a different person as The Host. It's someone who admires them and recognizes they deserve celebrating, and they accept without question. Greeted on the night by only a butler and cook, they realize they are loosely connected friends and enemies and accuse each other of being The Host. At the appointed hour, the butler turns on the radio to hear: the voice of The Host inviting them to a game of death! The entryways now electrified there is no escape. Every round of the game ends in a murder unless they can guess the identity of The Host - in which case he will die in front of them all! The first to die is the one least deserving to live - and although they remain a group together in the penthouse, each hour one of them somehow dies!
This was completely entertaining and exactly what I look for in a 1930's mystery. A diabolical party where the ninth guest is Death himself. Sharp characters and a tricky plot that defies logic - The Host could be one of the group, but they are all present when he announces his next move! All the pieces fit, but I sure did not know who was The Host until the final reveal. The one location setting adds to the feeling of entrapment and it's perfect for stage play adaptation. Gwen Bristow wrote several mystery titles with her screenwriter husband Bruce Manning.
My hardcover edition was published by The Mystery League, Inc., a small press that only published a handful of titles, their hallmark being art deco covers and featuring an excerpt from another mystery - in this edition it's The Hardway Diamonds Mystery.
1930 / Hardcover / 286 pages
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