No Orchids For Miss Blandish (1939) by James Hadley Chase features a kidnapped heiress by a local gang in Kansas City.
No Orchids for Miss Blandish, written in 1939 is a noir crime novel written by the prolific British writer, James Hadley Chase aka René Lodge Brabazon Raymond (1906 to 1985). The length of the story is about 176 pages and it reads fast in third person POV. Online I learned that this novel had been heavily revised in 1962 for “modern sensibilities.” I found a copy of this book at Munsey’s. My intention was to read the original text but I’m not 100% sure which version I read. The original 1939 version was said to be controversial at the time for its depiction of “sexuality and violence.”
Note: It’s a known issue too that some of James Hadley Chase’s books were edited by Harlequin. I prefer to read the original books if I can find them. I really hate it when editors/publishers feel they must remove offensive material from vintage novels to sell them to a “modern audience.” That is not cool and I’m not down with that practice at all.
Billed as Chase’s “dark masterpiece,” the story is set in Kansas City and opens with two small time hoodlums looking to make some quick money. Bailey, described as a “leg man”usually passes off tips to the local gangs. He hears about the John Blandish shindig. The word about Blandish is that: “he’s worth a hundred million” and he’s throwing his daughter a party to celebrate her 24th birthday. And at this birthday celebration he’s giving her the family diamonds that are worth “fifty grand.”
Bailey tips off Frank Riley, a small town thug and talks him into stealing the necklace. After a short car chase, violence erupts and the two men’s plan to just steal the necklace goes awry after a murder complicates things. They end up kidnapping Miss Blandish.
On the run, the two men’s luck run out when they come across one of the menacing Grisson gang. The leader of the gang is Ma Grisson. All the men in the group are said to be scared of her. Her son, Slim Grisson, is said to be the scariest of the group. He’s a psychopath. His mother is said to be the only one who can control him, too. “Slim’s bad,” Johnny said uneasily. “I know all you boys. I know when there’s any good in you. There isn’t any good in Slim Grisson. He’s mean and bad right through.”
Midway into the book we meet a former newspaperman now private detective, Dave Fenner. The kidnapping case goes cold for the Feds so Fenner is asked by Blandish to find his daughter. The story leads to one complication after another till it ends with a standoff.
The story is very readable and moves at a fast pace. The storyline is quite dark. It’s noir. The story is tough and gritty depicting love and violence. No surprise that it sold very well. The author knew how to write-up complications and conflicts to keep the story moving right along. His stories are quick reads because most of the story is mostly made up of dialogue with some action and tension filled pacing.
With that said, Chase received criticism for his salacious covers and for his depiction of women in his books. Criticisms are not without merit. Admittedly it’s somewhat hard to ignore how women are flat-out objectified and treated so poorly and depicted not in the best of roles (strippers, hustlers,floozies, etc).
His characterizations are a strength no matter how unflattering: Ma Grisson was big, grossly fat and lumpy. Flesh hung in two loose sacks either side of her chin. Her crinkly hair was dyed a hard, dull black. Her little eyes were glittering and as impersonal as glass. Her big floppy chest sparkled with cheap jewelry. She wore a dirty cream colored lace dress. Her huge arms, mottled with veins, bulged through the lace network like dough compressed in a sieve. Physically she was as powerful as a man. She was a hideous old woman, and every member of the gang, including Slim, was afraid of her.
The Miss Blandish character is described as being very beautiful and rich. It’s all but said that she led a sheltered life until this incident. Her dialogue for most of the story is quite minimal but then words were not needed to understand what she was going through. A few of the scenes with her being held captive was kind of hard to read. It isn’t until close to the end that we get a peek into her thoughts about the ordeal and its impact on her psyche.
Would I recommend this author to other readers, friends and family? Reluctantly, yes. Only if you can get past the major issues of his books and I’m just getting started. His stories are entertaining and he was genuinely a great writer and plotter. Hopefully, not all of his books feature men slapping women around. At least I hope not.
The thing about reading vintage novels is that you’re more than likely to run into a lot of dated ideas, offensive ideas, language, etc. As it has been stated many times, crime fiction is like a mirror of our society. The books are a product of its time and I wouldn’t have it any other way. If you’re like me and are interested in reading a lot of the early crime noir then you are bound to run into his work. No Orchids For Miss Blandish was a good read despite my issues with it. I’d rate it a 4 from 5. Dark story with a great beginning, disturbing middle and ending.
This book was made into a movie with the U.S. re-titled version, Black Ice according to Wikipedia. Controversy was generated by the film for its depiction of sex and extreme violence at the time and we’re talking 1948. It’s said that most critics labeled the film as the “worst movie ever made” and that the movie was set in New York and with a cast that was made up of British actors who “struggled with their American accents.”
See also: Jose’s review at The Game’s Afoot (he liked it with a few reservations)
Filed under: Book Reviews Tagged: crime novel, James Hadley Chase, noir
