A Fatal Fondness

Mary MacDougall has dreamed of being a private detective though she doesn't really need to work because her family is wealthy. In A Fatal Fondness by Richard Audry, Mary's dream comes true with a slight catch. She has to hire her older cousin Jeanette to be a secretary/minder. This makes Mary the only private detective in Duluth, Minnesota with a chaperone.

Mary's relationship with an unsuitable suitor Edmund Roy has caused her father much consternation, but she tries to keep his appearance in Duluth a secret. Throwing herself into her work, she becomes involved in simple cases. Her first cases involve missing napkin rings, four missing cats and a stolen watch, but the stolen watch leads her into more intrigue then she bargained for. When three street urchins ask her to find the watch owned by one of them, she thinks there is no hope of finding the watch. 


The young man who owned it wants it back because it belonged to his grandfather and had the only picture of his mother he had. Jiggs Nyberg is sure his friend Beansie is the one who stole the watch. The watch, a Swedish made one called a Linderoth, is worth $50. (We are in 1902 in this story.) 

Jiggs says he hasn't seen Beansie in a few days and he tried to go round to the pawn shops. but that was unsuccessful. Mary sets out to find the watch while Jeanette works on the kidnapped cats. 

A random visit from Detective Sauer has Mary's nose out of joint. He tells her should she uncover any type of criminal activity in the course of her work, she is to notify the department. That sets Mary's teeth on edge. Sauer teases her about an international case that might be unfolding in Duluth, but stays mysterious about it. 

Before she knows it, Mary is involved in a dangerous case filled with international intrigue, duplicity and murder. As she pieces together the case, she finds herself the target of a political assassin. 

Lively, fast paced series with a captivating and unconventional young woman taking the leading role in solving the crime.