Bedelia

the long version

"The author of the successful Laura with another accomplished and artfully sustained novel of murder as indulgently infatuated Charlie brings his new wife, Bedelia, to his Connecticut home. Kittenish, childish, appealingly soft, Bedelia is the must alluring and affectionate of wives. Her contradictory claims about her past go unnoticed until Charlie is the victim of a poisoning attack, and the small deceptions become more obvious under the alert vigilance of Chaney, next door neighbor. Finally, approached by Chaney, who turns out to be a private detective, whose suspicions of Bedelia as a female bluebeard Charlie discredits, Charlie is forced to accept the evidence as Bedelia prepares to kill again. In spite of his love, in spite of himself, Charlie interrupts her criminal career. The female of the species, deadly and decorative, in a curious and clever tale.... This is a good one.". Kirkus Reviews