Review: "Turning the Witness" by Jeremiah Healy

 

“Turning the Witness” by Jeremiah Healy from Cuddy-Plus One Crippen & Landru, 2003   “Turning the Witness”—which was originally published in Guilty as Charged, edited by Scott Turow, in 1993—is an excellent John Francis Cuddy tale with some admirable sleight of hand and a beautiful climactic twist. Rick Blassingale, an unlikable investment advisor, is accused of killing his estranged wife. The prosecution seemingly has a slam-dunk case since Blassingale has a financial motive for the murder and a witness saw him leaving the crime scene. In desperation, Blassingale’s lawyer hires Cuddy to find enough dirt on the witness to poke holes in her testimony. Cuddy isn’t much interested in helping Blassingale side-step the murder wrap—he’s a pompous ass and jailtime would do him some good—but Cuddy’s professional integrity requires that his investigation be rigorous and thorough. So he does what Cuddy does—interviews the witness, ponders the elements of the crime—and in short order finds the solution. “Turning the Witness” is a solvable puzzle with solid clue placement and a convincing narrative. Cuddy is, as usual, thoughtful, inquisitive, tough and, perhaps most importantly, likable and honest. Littered in the narrative are shimmering descriptions of Boston, Cuddy’s hometown, and even one backhanded comment about New York City. Which adds up to a very good time spent reading. “Turning the Witness” was shortlisted in the best short story category for the Shamus Award in 1994; losing to Lawrence Block’s Matthew Scudder tale, “The Merciful Angel of Death.”

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Review: "Battered Spouse" by Jeremiah Healy

“Battered Spouse” by Jeremiah Healy from The Concise Cuddy, Crippen & Landru, 1998   “Battered Spouse”—which was originally published in the Fall 1990 issue of Armchair Detective—is Jeremiah Healy’s fifth published John Frances Cuddy short story. Mona Gage’s husband, Kyle, was killed in a hit-and-run accident while jogging six days earlier on a quiet country road. Three men witnessed the accident but none were able to identify the car beyond the general make and model. The police investigation has gone cold and Mona wants Cuddy to revive it with some private sleuthing. Cuddy does what Cuddy does and he interviews everyone involved—the witnesses, Kyle’s boss, and a few others the police missed—and discovers a thread that ultimately leads him to the killer. “Battered Spouse” is a solid whodunit that should have been easier to solve than it was (for this reader, at least) because the clues were well-placed and the situation, after reading the conclusion, should have made it obvious. But that’s what makes any whodunit good—the reader kicking himself for not seeing the culprit before they’re revealed on the page. Healy’s matter-of-fact style and Cuddy’s likable mannerisms make the narrative easy-to-read. The climactic ending had a perfectly ironic twist that was one part funny and two parts surprising. “Battered Spouse” is easily the best of the four or five Cuddy shorts I’ve read so far. “Battered Spouse” was nominated for the Private Eye Writers of America’s 1991 Shamus Award for best short story, but it lost out to Marcia Muller’s Sharon McCone tale, “Final Resting Place.”

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