“I did not know they admitted Mexicans to the police.” — Mr. Sanchez (who has reported a stolen car)

“Well, the force is always shorthanded. We take what we can get. One has to make allowance for human nature.” — Luis Mendoza

“Indeed, that is so. But it is annoying. I had thought perhaps, if this should be in the newspapers, a Mexican gentleman who aids the police — ” Mr. Sanchez

“I will see it is mentioned. But strange ideas are not easily changed.” — Luis Mendoza




Ed McBain’s greatest rival in the police procedural has largely been forgotten today, but should not be. McBain is certainly the king of the police procedural, his 87th Precinct novels groundbreaking. But Dell Shannon (Elizabeth Linington) is without doubt the undisputed queen of the police procedural, her series just as groundbreaking. Both were prolific, widely read and critically praised in their day. McBain has had a sort of renaissance of sorts lately, mostly due to him finally being back in print. It is time for that same kind of renaissance for Dell Shannon’s Luis Mendoza’s groundbreaking series.

Both series showed cops in a different light, and neither series was afraid to be daring in its subject matter. For that reason, both series are often wildly politically incorrect, steeped socially in the times they were written. But there is also a timelessness about them, a truth about how cops view segments of society and crime, and even uncomfortable sexual truths. McBain probably touched on the latter more, Dell Shannon the former.

The first Dell Shannon Luis Mendoza mystery, Case Pending, was so critically acclaimed and successful, that its publication in 1960 may have caused the publishers of each series to shift focus a bit to be more like the other. Though McBain would continue having an ensemble cast of cops at the 87th Precinct, it may have been Dell Shannon’s decision to have a central figure at the heart of hers, in Luis Mendoza, that prompted McBain’s publisher and McBain to make Carella the lynchpin of the detective room in the 87th. Likewise, McBain’s decision to have several ongoing cases would influence Dell Shannon’s Luis Mendoza mysteries. The early ones in the series usually deal with a specific case, but gradually more than one case would become the norm for the series. Both McBain and Dell Shannon were terrific writers, and that’s where the similarity in the series ends.

The Luis Mendoza series is startlingly different in tone from Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct series. From the first entry McBain’s 87th Precinct was gritty, realistic, never afraid to go there. Dell Shannon’s police procedurals were a blend of police work, mystery, and cozy. Luis Mendoza was the focal point, but soon it would expand to Mendoza’s family life with Alison and their cats; and eventually their human children. The Mendoza’s home-life, and marriage, gloriously loving and steeped in the traditional roles of the period, became a warm and fun backdrop to the cases Luis would be puzzling over and working on with his underlings — and friends — Hackett, and Higgins.

In its own way, the Luis Mendoza series also gives a realistic picture of crime and cops, but marriage too. Just because it was the softer side to some degree, makes it no less enjoyable or compelling. If McBain had softened the grittier 87th a tad, and made Carella and Teddy’s home life and marriage about 1/4 of each entry, it would have been very similar. McBain deserves the praise he receives for the 87th Precinct series, but I can think of no reason this great series, one of the finest in crime fiction, has received the short end of the stick in modern times. The fact that Linington could walk that tightrope between mystery cozy, and gritty police procedural, and never waver, speaks volumes about how great a writer she was, and how fun this series is to read, both then, and now. They were extremely popular, and once you close the final page on this one, you’ll understand why around forty of them were gobbled up by the mystery-reading public.

Death of a Busybody is book #5 in the series. In the previous entry, Death of Knaves, Mendoza realized he couldn’t live without Alison. It was from Busybody forward, that this series really became what it would be for the rest of the series. I remembered it fondly, and after revisiting it, there’s no doubt this series needs a reboot, and more people reading it. It works as a cozy mystery with bite, and a police procedural that’s just a little soft around the edges.

As this one opens the Mendoza’s and their cats, Sheba, Nefertiti, El Señor, and Bast are at home. The Mendoza’s are discussing the crazy names in Los Angeles where they are looking to build a home. Linington portrayed their marriage, and that of every cop in the series, as quite traditional. Someone will surely object to this, but Linington also showed how busy the wives were, and what a job it was keeping everything in order. For example, as soon as a spot to build their home is decided upon — rather quickly, by Luis — it will be left to Alison to do all the coordinating with architects, contractors, etc. while Luis works on his cases.

Mendoza was always upscale from the first book, Case Pending. Impeccably dressed, and driving a Ferrari, he has remained a policeman because he has a knack for solving human puzzles and enjoys the work. The case he gets this time is a good one, and connects up with Alison, and Hackett’s expecting wife, Angel. It seems Margaret Chadwick was murdered after leaving a baby shower for Angel that Alison attended. Though the killing appears to be random, Mendoza isn’t buying it, and plays one of his famous hunches.

He soon discovers the Chadwick woman was the worst type of busybody. Mendoza has no end of suspects, and soon uncovers some of the secrets Margaret knew. One of them involves the gay community in early 1960s Los Angeles. In the first book in this series, which set the tone, Dell Shannon openly showed that even good cops like Mendoza, hardly unaware of the prejudice in California against his own race, differentiated between classes as well. One death might be more tragic than another, for example. In this one, she shows the attitudes and perceptions of cops in real time — and they do ring true for this time period. To criticize it for being an honest depiction of a time period, and cops’ attitudes during said time period, is ridiculous.

Mendoza is certain that two people committed the crime, but then he runs into a brick wall. One lead after another turns to quicksilver, frustrating Mendoza. There is another murder, and then one of his men is shot. A gentleman burglar and his daughter, a bigamist, and a burgeoning romance between a smart young cop named Pallisar and one of the suspects, all come into play, but it is a cat left unattended which gives the upscale Mexican copper who donates his salary to the pension fund the key to it all. And it is the cruelty to the cat which angers Mendoza perhaps more than the two deaths, especially since Margaret Chadwick could hardly be considered a nice person. On a whim, just for his own amusement, Mendoza calls in all the suspects for a reveal, just like in the detective shows. And it’s a surprise.

This one has some twists, and some wonderful domestic moments, ranking high in the series. Death of a Busybody is really where the series took off, in my opinion. There’s a good wrap-up of the case with information about the trial, and good news for both Hackett and Mendoza. Mendoza’s news comes with a caveat which will put a smile on the face of the reader, and move the domestic side of the series forward. A good mystery, a good conclusion, and some dangling domestic ends to look forward to in the coming books make this a terrific read. I have Mark of Murder and Root of All Evil on the way, and will be reviewing those and more in this great, but sadly forgotten series. ( )