The Case of the Runaway Corpse

Perry Mason, Book 44

By: Erle Stanley Gardner

Narrated by: Alexander Cendese

The two women in Perry Mason's office were a cat-and-mouse combination. And at first glance it seemed that little Mrs. Davenport was the mouse. But her husband said she was trying to kill him...that she had already murdered once and would not hesitate to strike again. Mason's own curiosity made him take the case, and before long he was wanted for questioning by several different officers of the law. Question: was Myra Davenport a quiet little person, who enjoyed nothing better than pottering about in her garden? Or was she a poisoner, a minx, a modern Lucrezia Borgia? A superb courtroom expose climaxes Perry Mason's brilliant detection.

©2011 Erle Stanley Gardner (P)2017 Brilliance Audio

One of the better Mason books

The story is a page turner and at times down right hysterical. When Mason and Della are in their clients husbands office with his secretary and a cop, the dialogue will have you in stitches!

Enjoy!

good story poor performance

Paul Drake sounds like Della Street...Della Street sounds weak and like a maid with an IQ of 90 max. all the other characters are rushed and just not very good. it would have been better if it had just been read aloud.

Well crafted plot twists

In pursuit of the facts, Perry Mason always uncovers the red herrings to surmise the guilty party.

Fast moving engaging

What’s not to like an Earl Stanley book. The details and the build up / court room dialogue

A definite runaway hit here

Oh What havoc we mortals wreak on our short lives when we practice to deceive. Perry Mason has another challenging murder to solve. A death bed confession not a confession. A poisoning that is not a poisoning but is a poisoning of an exposed dishonest businessman. Discover how Perry Mason unravels the twisted plot framing his naive client from a tragic death in the gas chamber.

Great story; okay narration

I like this story, and I was pleased to get it as an audio book.

I've read most of the books; I have seen parts of the TV series, but I don't know if I've seen a complete show, so most of my knowledge comes from the books.

In general, the narration (with two exceptions) is good. Unfortunately, the two exceptions are the main characters of Perry Mason and Della Street.

I'm used to hearing the late Raymond Burr doing Perry Mason, but even setting that aside, when reading, one gets an idea of what the characters should sound like, and the Perry Mason voice just doesn't sound right. I might be able to get used to it, but every now and then I hear a touch of a southern (Texas, maybe?) drawl in some of the words. It's a little off-putting.

Even worse, however, is Della Street's voice; her voice is described as well-modulated, and in this narration, she sounds a bit strident - or perhaps whining. I don't care for this at all and I could not get used to it.

When not doing a voice, the narration is just fine, and the voice for Sara Ansel couldn't be better.

As noted above, I really like this story. It's a bit different than many of the others.