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This page lists books that feature the 1930's California based DA Doug Selby

The D.A. Calls it Murder

Erle Stanley Gardner

1937

A Doug Selby novel.

"The little clergyman had died peacefully in bed in the Madison Hotel. But Douglas Selby, recently elected District Attorney, suspected there was more to this death than meets the eye, and soon knew that something was definitely wrong. So Doug finds himself faced not only with a wily murderer, but with virulence from a hostile press, reluctant witnesses, and a film star unwilling to explain why she was on the spot."

The D.A. Holds a Candle

Erle Stanley Gardner

1938

A Doug Selby novel.

"Douglas Selby, the ambitious young District Attorney of the territory around Madison City, had up before him a young man guilty of embezzling a comparatively small sum of money which he had spent gambling. Selby could have locked him up - and perhaps ruined his life. But he wanted to find the how and the why of this otherwise law-abiding young man's gambling. Selby's investigations led him to a hit-and-run motorcycle accident, to blackmail, and to the doorstep of DeWitt Stapleton, the local big-wig, who ran things in that part of the country by and for himself."

The D.A. Draws a Circle

Erle Stanley Gardner

1939

A Doug Selby novel.

"The murdered man had been shot - twice. Either bullet could have caused the death. D.A. Doug Selby had both the bullets and one of the guns. On that gun were the fingerprints of Pete Ribber, a known criminal. The other bullet was from a different - and missing - gun. Which bullet had caused the death? That was the D.A.'s problem. Because there's no law against firing a bullet into a corpse."

The D.A. Goes to Trial

Erle Stanley Gardner

1940

A Doug Selby novel.

"The case started with a corpse. Nobody knew who he was. Next, a man named John Burke disappeared. But D.A. Doug Selby could not find his body. Then Mrs Burke swore that the corpse and her missing husband were one and the same man. This should have solved both mysteries. All it did was run the D.A. up two different trees. Sure, the faces of the dead man and John Burke were exactly the same. The only trouble was that their fingerprints were different! Impossible? That's what Doug Selby thought too - until the killer struck again."

The D.A. Cooks a Goose

Erle Stanley Gardner

1942

A Doug Selby novel.

"A midnight hit-and-run accident on a mountain road ... a tragic fatality ... the discovery of the missing car ... and Doug Selby, District Attorney of Madison City, finds himself not only up against a most involved case but in the hottest spot of his career. Featuring an absorbing cast of supporting characters, including genial Sheriff Rex Brandon, the sly, suave A.B. Carr, a strange couple from New Orleans who should be cooperative but aren't, and Inez Stapleton, Madison City's only woman lawyer, who finds the going tough when she tries to be both friend and foe of Doug Selby."

The D.A. Calls a Turn

Erle Stanley Gardner

1944

A Doug Selby novel.

"The case began with a phone call from a drunken car thief who wanted to be arrested. Then the stolen car was wrecked and the dead driver identified as Desmond Billmeyer, prominent businessman. 'The facts just don't add up,' said District Attorney Doug Selby. 'Why would a wealthy man dress like a hobo? And more important was it Mr. Billmeyer who called?...This looks like murder!'."

The D.A. Breaks a Seal

Erle Stanley Gardner

1946

A Doug Selby novel.

"Doug Selby, Madison City's ex-DA is at the Madison Hotel on leave. When a Kansas lawyer called Roff drinks a coffee laced with cyanide Selby becomes involved. A mystery blonde and Carr, the defence counsel, complicate the mystery further."

The D.A. Takes a Chance

Erle Stanley Gardner

1948

A Doug Selby novel.

"Blond Eve Dawson came to Hollywood to be a star and didn't make the grade. But as a party girl she was much in demand - until someone shot her during a wild party given for a lot of prominent politicians. Everyone clammed up and pressure was brought to bear - even on popular D.A. Doug Selby. But Selby and Sheriff Brandon wouldn't hush. The next time beautiful Eve turned up she was a corpse with a carving knife deep in her chest. And even that suave old fox A.B. Carr couldn't stop the D.A. from finding out who killed her and why."

The D.A. Breaks an Egg

Erle Stanley Gardner

1949

A Doug Selby novel.

"D.A. Doug Selby was in trouble again. An enticing redhead had been murdered; the county newspaper, The Blade, was after his neck; he had an unsolved jewellery theft on his hands and that sly, unscrupulous attorney A.B. Carr was running circles around him. Selby knew that somehow or other all four of his troubles were tied up in one explosive bundle. But how could he open the bundle ... without setting off more murder?"