pulps
Duke y sus cuarenta detectives
Duke y sus cuarenta detectives This fifth Duke Straley adventure, by J. Figueroa Campos (José Mallorquí's pseudonym), blends detective, adventure, and pulp fiction conventions. Duke Straley, a wealthy New Yorker, resolves crimes aided by sister Elizabeth, Bob Dennison, and others, using a high-powered automobile equipped with technological gadgets and pursuing criminals, oriental cults, and mad scientists across America. The narrative opens as Duke bids farewell to his sister Betty and her newlywed husband Bob aboard the Japanese ship Kiichiro Maru in San Francisco, following their recent case involving Hiranuma and "The Ten Dragons of Confucio." On the dock, Duke encounters Susana Cortiz, a twenty-two-year-old lawyer who obtained her degree unconventionally and now seeks his help defending Julie Givens, accused of murdering wealthy industrialist Terrence Pellton's son. Susana, armed and direct in manner, proposes Duke assist her in finding the "real murderer" to free her client, despite acknowledging Givens's disreputable past.