Poison In Jest, first published in 1932, is a detective story by John Dickson Carr which does not feature any of Carr's series detectives. This novel is a mystery of the type known as a whodunnit. One of the characters is Jeff Marle, who had previously served as the sidekick in Carr's Henri Bencolin novels.

Poison In Jest
First US edition
AuthorJohn Dickson Carr
LanguageEnglish
GenreMystery, Detective novel
PublisherHamish Hamilton (UK) & Harper (USA)
Publication date
1932
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Media typePrint (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages192 pp (1st UK)

Plot summary

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Jeff Marle, is visiting a friend at the Quayle mansion in western Pennsylvania. Although various members of the Quayle household hate each other, all are united in hatred of the paterfamilias, Judge Quayle. A few moments after being introduced to Marle, Judge Quayle collapses after having been poisoned. More than one poison is used in murder attempts in the household; strange shadowy figures are seen prowling the halls at night, and there is a creepy story about a marble hand that was broken from a statue of Caligula which apparently creeps around the house on its own. After the first two deaths, a young friend of the family, Rossiter, takes a hand in detecting, with the aid of Jeff Marle; Rossiter identifies the murderer.