Ralph Lindsey #01 - The Venus Death

According to Allan Hubin's 20th Century Crime & Mystery Writers, Benjamin Benson (1915-1959) was born in Boston, educated at Suffolk University Law School, and served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945. He earned a Purple Heart, two battle stars, and was seriously wounded and confined to a hospital for three years. While hospitalized, Benson received numerous detective stories to read, which encouraged him to write as a form of therapy. 

Benson's first series character was Inspector Wade Paris, a fictional Detective serving the Massachusetts State Police. The character appeared in Benson's first three novels, Alibi at Dusk (1952), Beware the Pale Horse (1952) and Lily in Her Coffin (1954). But, my first experience with this author is his second character, Trooper Ralph Lindsey. The character debuted  in 1953's The Venus Death, and appeared in at least six further installments. 

Perhaps Benson's therapeutic writing or experience in country living influenced his use of characters in unique settings. Instead of placing his creations in familiar big city locales, Benson chooses the rural small-towns and byways of the rural American Northeast. Like Paris, Lindsey is also employed by the State of Massachusetts as a law enforcer, in this case he's a 23-year old “boot”, meaning a rookie in the State Police.

In the opening pages, Benson introduces Lindsey's brief history in quick one or two-page histories. He is a Korean War veteran, the son of a former State Police Trooper, and he has a routine girl named Ellen. The author invests in Lindsey's father, providing a little backstory on how the man was shot in the back on patrol and now remains paralyzed from the waist down. Because of his career being cut short, Lindsey's father is heavily involved in his son's career. He consistently asks Lindsey about firearms, current cases, his patrol, and is there to prod and poke his son for wearing scuffed shoes or having a shirt unpressed. The old man is a wonderful addition to the story.

While off duty at a bar Lindsey meets a young mysterious girl named Manette. She's new in town, works at the local mill, and desperately wants a man in her life. Lindsey takes her out a couple of times and is surprised one evening when he's called to his superior's office. Manette has been found murdered with a bullet in the brain. The murderer? Lindsey's girlfriend Ellen. Could this be a case of jealous rage?

The Venus Death hooked me from the beginning and really never let up. What's interesting about the setup is that Lindsey is mostly restrained from the murder investigation business. Remember, he's a State Trooper involved in highway crime, stolen cars, that sort of thing. But, his connectivity to both women allows him to team up as an apprentice with the  local detectives, a couple of hard-nosed sleuths named Newpole and Angsman, as well as a State Police Detective-Lieutenant named Granger. There's a lot of pressure placed on Lindsey not only because of the crime but due to his father's legacy – tough shoes to fill. 

Through 211 pages, the investigation digs into Manette's past in Chicago, her former husband, and a couple of seedy gentleman that are in town for what appears to be a big heist. How the police handle the preparation for the bust and work through procedural interviews and evidence examinations was really enjoyable. Comparisons can be made to Hillary Waugh's excellent police procedural series Fred Fellows, complete with the tight-knit mystery aspect and the Northeastern locale of Connecticut, a state where portions of The Venus Death takes place. 

Based on small sample size, this Ralph Lindsey series seems like a winner. Recommended! Get the physical book HERE and the digital ebook HERE.