Not a mystery in the true sense, but it was interesting in a different way. No one is murdered and there is no detective trying to unravel a crime. It's more a story of an ordinary man who finds himself up against life and how a decision he makes ends up in what could be a terrible mistake. The last part of the book is more like a comic chase scene from "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" than anything found in a suspense book. Enjoyable but, again, not a mystery.
This delightful tale won the author an Edgar award and rightfully so. The story centers around a poison that a man steals to commit suicide. However, he loses it en route home.
To backtrack a bit, the man is older and married to a much younger woman whom he loves very much. Attending the funeral of a colleague, he finds he was drawn to the man's grief stricken daughter who found herself destitute. To help, he proposed a marriage of convenience. Involved in an auto accident he feels he feels vulnerable and asks his sister to come visit and help with his recovery. The sister soon dominates and controls their lives and believes that his wife is involved with a handsome neighbor. Bereft, the man decides to take his life and free his wife so she can marry the man he believes that she loves. Hence, the decision to commit suicide. I found myself laughing out loud many times as he and his friends search for the poison. It's a light-hearted and most entertaining read.
To backtrack a bit, the man is older and married to a much younger woman whom he loves very much. Attending the funeral of a colleague, he finds he was drawn to the man's grief stricken daughter who found herself destitute. To help, he proposed a marriage of convenience. Involved in an auto accident he feels he feels vulnerable and asks his sister to come visit and help with his recovery. The sister soon dominates and controls their lives and believes that his wife is involved with a handsome neighbor. Bereft, the man decides to take his life and free his wife so she can marry the man he believes that she loves. Hence, the decision to commit suicide. I found myself laughing out loud many times as he and his friends search for the poison. It's a light-hearted and most entertaining read.
