Reviewed by Jo Rogers, MyShelf.com
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WHO WAS THAT LADY? marks the first real effort to unravel the myths surrounding the life of comedy mystery writer, Craig Rice.  She was tops in the genre at making murder funny, and her chief rival during her career was none other than the grande dame of mystery, Agatha Christie. But little was known about Rice herself, and what was known were conflicting stories told by Rice.  It seemed as though she didn't want anyone to know her story.  So, who was this comic genius who made crime funny?  That is what Jeffrey Marks set out to learn.

Jeffery Marks does a superb job of telling us her real story, and of tracking down the truth, separating fact from fiction. It was no small chore.  He found himself following a trail that took him from New York to Los Angeles and even into Mexico as he tried to find people who knew the real Craig Rice.

Though many of her friends were gone, her children had records of her work and letters from friends, agents and publishers.  These revealed the tragic story of a genius who was also a bipolar manic depressive.  In her day, the only treatment for the disease was shock therapy or a lobotomy, either of which would have destroyed her career.

Sadly, much of Rice's work is out of print.  Perhaps, if enough of us mystery lovers read WHO WAS THAT LADY?, publishers will revive her work and restore to the reading public a comic genius too long missing from the bookshelves of America.  Readers, how about it?

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