I bought and read all 15 Edward D. Hoch collections published by Crippen & Landru. Their new collection, The Case of the Flying Graveyard and Other Stories, brings all of Hoch’s Sebastian Blue and Laura Charmes–two investigators for Interpol–together in one satisfying volume. Sebastian Blue is a former Scotland Yard detective who joins Interpol after his wife divorces him. Blue is paired with a young woman skilled in martial arts and languages, Laura Charmes. Together they crack some baffling cases.

I enjoyed all the stories in The Case of the Flying Graveyard and Other Stories but a few really stand out. “The Case of the Musical Bullet” features a murder on an airliner. A government official is shot and killed in his seat in First Class. No one heard the shot, no one saw a gun. And, how could a gun make it past the high Airport Security? Blue figures it out.

Another clever mystery is “The Case of the November Club” where a number of people die while skydiving–more than normal. The resolution is both logical and scary!

The Introduction by Martin Edwards is special because Edwards writes about how he first met Edward D. Hoch after years of admiring his stories. Edwards and Hoch become friends and eventually work together. If you’re looking for a collection of wonderful mystery stories, I recommend The Case of the Flying Graveyard and Other Stories. GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction: By Martin Edwards — 2

The Case of the Third Apostle — 13
The Case of the November Club –29
The Case of the Modern Medusa — 46
The Case of the Musical Bullet — 63
The Case of the Lapitated Man — 83
The Case of the Broken Wings — 99

The Case of the Terrorists — 114

The Case of the Flying Graveyard — 132

The Case of the Devil’s Triangle — 149

The Case of the Battered Wives — 172

The Case of the Five Coffins — 186

The Case of the Chloroformed Clerics — 203

The Case of the Straw Serpent — 220

The Case of the Drowned Coroner — 236

Sources — 251