The Case of the Fenced-in Woman (Perry Mason, #81) in Perry Mason

Nov 06, 2018 Richa rated it it was ok · review of another edition

This case was built up and explained at the very end. I wouldn't call this a proper mystery since very few facts or clues were given. The court scene was also very fortituous. Moreover, the narrative was too repetitive. Gardner relied majorly on sex appeal to sell this one. ...more

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Aug 25, 2021 Newly Wardell rated it liked it

I really wish he had gotten the chance to polish this one. This woman goes through a divorce and her husband is hiding his wealth so she cant claim it. He sells and builds a house on a property that a judge decrees is half her's to a third party. Before the third party can move into the house, the ex-wife splits the property with a barded wire fence. The court also grants her a restraining order so that if the owner breeches the fence she can file charges. This case is different because it shows ...more

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Aug 15, 2015 Bob rated it it was ok

I've been reading Gardner's Perry Mason books off and on for decades. Many years ago, I was an intense fan of the series, and read them all at least once. Now, after a lot of water over the dam, I'm looking at them again.

Those who are used to really fine mystery writers (in the literary sense), such as Ross Macdonald, may find the writing style here off-putting. It can be stiff and mechanical. Nonetheless, I still love the general setting: the characters of Perry, Della, Paul, Lt. Tragg, and Ham I've been reading Gardner's Perry Mason books off and on for decades. Many years ago, I was an intense fan of the series, and read them all at least once. Now, after a lot of water over the dam, I'm looking at them again.

Those who are used to really fine mystery writers (in the literary sense), such as Ross Macdonald, may find the writing style here off-putting. It can be stiff and mechanical. Nonetheless, I still love the general setting: the characters of Perry, Della, Paul, Lt. Tragg, and Hamilton Berger. That, and the ingenious plots, are why I read Perry Mason.

On the whole, the ones written by 1954 are the best. This one was published in 1972, and is one of the very last. By the mid 1960s, Gardner was crafting and overseeing the stories, but most of the actual writing was done by helpers. It shows. Though the plot is ingenious, as always, the book is not very good, and will seem dated to many.

The plot centers on a shady businessman, Loring Carson, and his wife Vivian, who are getting a nasty divorce. The man had hired a detective, who accidentally shadowed the wrong woman, thereby involving another, innocent young woman, Nadine Palmer, in some nasty publicity. Meanwhile, Carson has sold a large house to Morley Eden. Problem is the house stradles two lots, one of which is actually owned by Vivian. To get revenge and pressure her husband, Vivian has a barbed wire fence built right through the house on the boundary. It cuts through the living room and a swimming pool, though it's possible to duck down and swim under the fence. Morely Eden comes to Mason to get some kind of legal redress.

As you might guess, it's not long before Carson is found murdered in the house, right next to the fence. A clever hiding place is nearby and may have held a great amount of money and securities. Mason pursues clues that lead him to Nadine Palmer and then to various casino hostesses in Las Vegas. While in Las Vegas, someone tries to frame Perry by putting a brief case full of the missing securities in his hotel room!

The book is dated in its handling of divorce, and in its many attempts to be titilating with descriptions of nubile young women in and around the swimming pool. It reminds me of some of those B-movies from the early 1960s.

Della Street and Paul Drake are in it only briefly. No Hamilton Burger, although there are pretty good courtroom scenes with an assistant DA.

Recurring characters or themes: Perry gambling in Las Vegas; car is parked next to a hydrant and gets a ticket; witness watches the scene of the murder from a hillside overlook.

Good Tragg; no Hamilton Burger; pretty good courtroom scenes. Possibly unique: The case actually goes to the jury and the defendents are found not guilty. Recommended only for clever plot and the early-mid 1960s atmosphere. ...more

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Aug 17, 2025 Jackson Burnett rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: legal-mysteries, courtroom-drama, whodunit, mystery

The manuscript of this novel was found unpublished after Erle Stanley Gardner died. The author had not finalized the work, but the book went to press anyway.

It should not have.

Of note and unusual for the author this series, this Perry Mason novel presents an entire trial from opening statement to jury verdict. While real jury trials can be tedious, fictional ones needn't be. Unfortunately, this one was. This story has many of the characteristics that make Perry Mason novels compelling, but the ...more

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