I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason: A Cece Caruso Mystery [Hardcover]

Susan Kandel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 4, 2004

All that writer Cece Caruso -- a thirty-nine-year-old former beauty queen from New Jersey -- really wants to do is finish her biography of Erle Stanley Gardner so that she can finally stop obsessing about Perry Mason. Well, that and find a 1970 silk chiffon Ossie Clark to add to her collection of vintage clothing. And fix the broken front doorknob on her West Hollywood bungalow. But first she has to help save her daughter's foundering marriage, which is more than Cece could manage for her own.

Everybody's got problems. In a last-ditch effort to kick a bad case of writer's block, Cece pays a visit to a prison inmate who had once corresponded with Gardner, pleading his innocence. Her impetuousness lands her smack in the middle of a case worthy of Perry Mason himself -- a double-edged mystery linking a forty-year-old murder to one where the body is still warm. Propelled by tenacity, curiosity, a sense of humor, and an understanding of human nature's dark side, Cece will channel the inner sleuth she never realized she possessed to find a killer who is all too real -- and all too close.

I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason is hip, sexy, and smart. Susan Kandel has created an unforgettable cast of characters planted firmly in terra California. Join Cece as she breaks into crime scenes, outfoxes lawyers, rekindles a romance with a police detective, and -- oh, yes -- finally makes her peace with Perry Mason.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

All former Jersey beauty queen Cece Caruso really wants to do is finish her biography of Erle Stanley Gardner, "creator of the brilliant, unflappable Perry Mason," but in art journalist Kandel's entertaining, often witty debut, she must contend with a few distractions, including murder. Once he became a famous writer, Gardner for a while took on "hopeless cases." In the Gardner archives, Cece stumbles across a misfiled 1958 letter from Joseph Albacco, who had recently been convicted and imprisoned for murdering his wife. Claiming his innocence, Albacco begged Gardner to intervene and track down the real killer, but the author never did. Intrigued, Cece is determined to find the truth in a scenario complicated enough to challenge Perry Mason himself, and soon finds herself involved in a fresh murder linked to the long-ago crime. Meanwhile, she worries about her daughter Annie, whose marriage seems about to implode, and never misses a chance to add to her sizeable collection of vintage clothing. Though the denouement is a bit over-the-top, readers should give Cece a warm welcome to the legion of perky female sleuths.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“This first novel straddles, rather elegantly, the genres of ‘chick-lit beach book’ and ‘smart mystery.’” (LA Weekly )

“Cece Caruso is the new girl on the mystery block, and is she ever a hoot....lively reading.” (Rocky Mountain News )

“Thumbs up to newcomer Kandel’s series for its snappy dialogue and carefully worked-out plot.” (Kirkus Reviews (starred review) )

“This lively and slightly idiosyncratic heroine, the sometimes exotic California surrounds, and the complicated plotting make this series debut essential.” (Library Journal )

“A well-spun plot and clever writing.” (Entertainment Weekly )

“This is a book that would make Perry Mason proud.” (Mystery Scene )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow (May 4, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060581050
• ISBN-13: 978-0060581053
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #526,713 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars preposterous but great, May 14, 2004

By 

M. S. Butch (Katonah, New York USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason: A Cece Caruso Mystery (Hardcover)

The publisher must not have advertised this book AT ALL -- I found it purely by accident -- but it is a wonderful first mystery in the "screwball" mode. In fact, I read a great many of these, and this is one of the best -- entertaining without being too strained. As other reviewers have noted, the plot involves writer Cece Caruso, writing a biography of Erle Stanley Gardner and suffering writer's block. Reading old correspondence leads her to a convicted murderer who asked for Gardner's help decades ago and who is still in jail. Cece decides to solve the crime.

Following this plot obviously involves considerable suspension of disbelief, but the story moves along at a good clip with entertaining episodes and all the right ingredients -- an old mystery, a locked box, wacky best friend, and so forth. I highly recommend it.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The ghost of Perry Mason channeled through a modern writer, August 9, 2004

By 

Dr Cathy Goodwin (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason: A Cece Caruso Mystery (Hardcover)

This book deserves considerably more attention than it's received. The author needs to get going with some publicity! Her book is a natural for PR hooks.

Cece Caruso, writing about her hero Erle Stanley Gardner, stumbles across a case unsolved by the Court of Last Resort. A man has been accused of murder and it doesn't take look for Cece -- and we the readers -- to realize he's innocent. He's got the oldest alibi in the world and the oldest reason to keep it quiet.

Author Susan Kandel lovingly recreates contemporary as well as old Southern California. The heroine herself is a period piece, dressing in vintage clothing and balancing family obligations, crime-solving and deadlines.

Kandel sometimes slows down the action a little too much as she describes characters and sets scenes. I found myself skipping over some paragraphs. I wanted to say, "Let's get on with it," but I didn't want to put the book down and I genuinely cared how the ending would turn out. Along the way it was fun to read about Erle Stanley Gardner, and I might go back and read a few of his books.

Kandel, through her heroine, encourages us to think of Gardner's themes, such as the role of women in Gardner's books. Perry Mason attracted beautiful female clients. He had a magnificent super-secretary Della Street, who sometimes played a role in crime-solving herself. And I absolutely adored the economy-size Bertha Cool, created in an era when thin was the only way to be. In future volumes, I hope Kandel gives us more of this kind of background.

This book definitely deserves to be higher-ranking on amazon and I hope the publishers take heed! This is an author who could move to best-seller status, given the opportunity.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Case of The Wonderful Mystery, June 19, 2004

By 

John Anthony Miller (Ventura, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason: A Cece Caruso Mystery (Hardcover)

This book is wonderful! I found in really hard to put down once I started reading it. Really different with a fresh new approach
and extremely well written.

This is a book Erle Stanley Gardner would have liked. If you are a Gardner mystery fan, or a Perry Mason fan, this book is for you! Buy this book!

Terrific work and a great new character in Cece Caruso! One thing for sure that is not a mystery: we will be hearing much more from Susan Kandel and Cece Caruso in the future.

John Anthony Miller
[e-mail]

Ventura, CA
"Birthplace of Perry Mason"