Grace Latham flies out to Reno, Nevada to support her 22-year-old niece, Judy Bonner, who has gone there to obtain a divorce from her husband, Clem. Grace undertakes the job to prevent Judy's mother from going, since Mildred is "probably the most charming and utterly silly woman in the world", and would only make the situation much worse. Grace also sends an impromptu message to Colonel Primrose, who is in California on a counterfeiting case for the Treasury Department, suggesting that he stop in Reno on his way back east to join her for a few days, an invitation she later comes to regret.

I read several Grace & Colonel Primrose books a long time ago, and I had an impression in my mind that Grace was a pretty smart cookie. I don't know if this book meant to convey how far out of her depth Grace is in tacky Reno, but she spends a lot of time "perfectly open-mouthed" or "staring stupidly". She also does quite a few idiotic things, which eventually make the normally patient Primrose lose his temper with her.

The Colonel's sidekick, Sergeant Buck, has a great time in Reno; wearing gaudy western clothes, winning a small fortune at the slot machines, and beating up an obnoxious creep.

The murderee is a louse, so the reader doesn't have to feel bad when he gets bumped off. He's also the man Judy intended to marry as soon as she was free, and she is being carefully framed for the murder.

I learned how you obtained a legal divorce in Reno in just six weeks. The strict laws are important to the plot. I enjoyed reading Reno Rendezvous; it was a guilty pleasure, although Grace is a very aggravating character. ( )

Grace Latham is going to Reno to see Judy Bonner, her neice by marriage, who is seeking a divorce. If Grace doesn't go, Judy's mother will. Since Grace considers Mildred to be probably 'the most charming and utterly silly woman in the world,' she doesn't think Judy needs her mother at this time. (Neither does Judy's father.)

Grace's misadventures start because Judy neglected to mention that her widowed aunt is under 40 and quite pretty. The friends she asked to meet her aunt assume that the 'old woman' missed her plane. Then the desk clerk at Judy's hotel assumes that Grace is just another woman seeking a divorce. His helpful hints leave Grace bewildered. Then there's the gossip she overhears in the elevator and the stranger who tries to pick her up before she's even found her niece...

On the face of it, Judy is divorcing her husband so she can marry handsome Dex Cromwell and Clem can go back to his first wife, the lovely Kaye Gorman -- now a rich widow. Grace is not impressed with Dex. Soon she's very sorry that she asked her friend, Colonel Primrose, to stop in Reno to see her on his way home from a case in San Francisco. She's with the Colonel when he discovers a murder victim -- and there's a clue that points straight to Judy.

It doesn't help when Grace finds the murder weapon in her niece's laundry hamper. How can she protect Judy when Colonel Primrose and Sergeant Buck are on the scene? Grace pulls some stupid stunts, as usual, but I still like her. When one of the characters claims she knows Grace's sort and doesn't believe that Grace could mistake cheap chantilly lace for hand-made alencon, I couldn't help liking Grace's reply.

I enjoyed the descriptions of 1930s Reno and what it took to get a divorce there. I also enjoyed Sergeant Buck's reaction to seeing one of his Colonel's old flames there. (According to Buck, Primrose got drunk for a week when she married someone else.) There are plenty of cautionary stories about what goes on in Reno. I felt particularly sorry for Vicky Ray, a gambling joint hat check girl.

There are quite a few suspects. Colonel Primrose has his work cut out for him. What Sergeant Buck does to deter a sleezebag of what we would call a paparazzi may not have been legal, but it was satisfying. The last few pages made me chuckle. The racism didn't. The author has a Chinese servant, Wu Lung, use "he" for women and 'she' for men. Worse, several characters, including Grace, refer to him as a 'China boy' even though Wu Lung is about 60 years old!

For readers who enjoy progression in relationships, Colonel Primrose will startle Mrs. Latham by using her first name. His behavior after she's saved from a truly nasty situation is even more interesting. Chapter 20 has -- unless I missed it in the earlier books -- the first time Sergeant Buck tells Mrs, Latham, 'No offense meant, ma'am;' and she replies, 'None taken, Sergeant'.

My copy is the Popular Library edition with the blonde being strangled by a rope. Some of the details aren't correct, but there will indeed be a woman in that peril, so the lurid cover isn't entirely misleading.

I recommend this book to fans of old cozy mysteries, with a warning about the attitudes of the time. I've quoted a sexist remark, something that shows how naive Grace is, and a sample of the humor. ( )

Boring mystery set in Reno when it was still the divorce capital of the US, all about love and murder among the rich and reckless set. I didn't finish it. The only reason I got these books by Leslie Ford is that I had her confused with an author I HAD enjoyed. But these are dated and dull, full of stereotyped characters and cliched plot elements. Add a lurid cover and there's a book waiting to go into the recycle bin. ( )