The Case of the Bigamous Spouse

The 'Foreword' is dedicated to Mitsuo Yokoyama M.D., Ph.D., and the other Japanese hematologists who are a the forefront of research. They can "classify approximately forty blood group systems, seventy blood group factors, and more than 100,000,000,000 theoretically genotypes". Gwynn Elston visits Perry Mason because she thinks her best friend's husband tried to poison her! Gwynn has been staying with Nell and Felting Grimes while she works selling books to families. One customer had a picture of her husband, who looked like Felting Grimes. That night Felting started asking her questions about her work. Later Gwynn tasted something bitter in the drink Felting gave her. Tonight Gwynn must return for her business meeting. Perry tells her what to do for her safety (Chapter 2). Later Gwynn calls to report that nothing happened (Chapter 3). The next day Gwynn tells of the strange event that happened, and how she was given a pistol (Chapter 4)! When she went to revisit that location, she found Felting Grimes dead, and that delayed her return to Perry. Perry Mason telephones Lt. Tragg to report the dead body. Lt. Tragg's quick actions finds the likely suspect (Chapter 6). Perry warns Gwynn to say nothing while in custody until Perry can find out about the situation. Perry and Della go to visit Nell Grimes, Felting is away on business. Nell knows little about her husband's business. But news on the radio tells the police found a body and identified it. Perry's interview is quickly ended. Perry visits the murder scene to watch the police find a pistol. Gwynn's story about giving a strange man a lift is verified. If the father of Felting Grimes died the day before would that be just a coincidence? Perry and Della visit the mountain town to inquire about Gorman Gillet, recently deceased (Chapter 10). Perry took fingerprints, and got a hit from the FBI. Now a new person could be a suspect (Chapter 11). Perry is able to get his fingerprints, but they do not match a known person. There are other complications and difficulties for Perry. Gwynn is in trouble as she started talking to the police without her lawyer. The missing witness shows up, confirms Gwynn's story, but can implicate her. The Preliminary Hearing looks bad for Gwynn until Perry examines a hostile witness; the testimony reveals surprising facts that cast doubt about the prosecution's case. A prosecution witness is recalled and the mystery is solved in Chapter 15. [There is no comment on the unconventional household of the Grimes. Some items of everyday life then are noticeably out of date. Note the plug for the magazine that paid well for Gardner's stories.]