Quick question for any of you nautical types out there. You can see from the title that a key clue involves a candle. Said candle has been burning in an interior cabin on a small yacht, completely unattended for a period of time. Is this a thing, even in the 1940s? Seriously, Gardner? Aren’t those vessels infamously, well, woody? SMH.
OK, aside from blatant safety violations, this case had to do with a lot of trotting back and forth along the Ventura coastline, with the occasional trip down to Woodland Hills for Mexican food at a restaurant that I suspect is no longer around. I do recognize the seaside motel, the “Surf and Sun”, but actually well known as the Cliff House Inn. Not too sure where the boat would have been docked, since the Port Hueneme/Oxnard coast is much more developed these days, but somewhere thereabouts. Also some wandering about in the sheep-herding Basque settlements in the Buttonwillow area.
OK, now that my nerd obsession with sussing out the actual locations of the Perry Mason books has been satisfied, the actual mystery was rather hum-drum. A matter to do with disguised plots to snap up valuable land on the cheap, a very common thing in this era of California history. And criminal under-use of Paul Drake, especially after his star turn in the preceding Drowsy Mosquito. Not even any canoodling with Della in the desert under the stars. Step up your game, Perry!
