WHERE THERE'S SMOKE,

by Prentice Winchell ("Stewart Sterling') '16. Lippincott,1946, 256 pp., $2.00.

Under the pen name "Stewart Sterling," Mr. Winchell has written a lively and entertaining mystery novel, full of fire. The book departs from the trodden paths of whodunit tradition. As fire marshal of New York City, the heroic sleuth rescues a lovely radio singer from a burning theatre, investigates arson complicated by murder, and safely conducts the reader through smoke, flame, slang, and slaughter to a thrilling finale. Mr. Winchell has a large stock of authentic information about the New York City Fire Department and its little-known activities; he knows how to construct a good mystery yarn; and the complexities of the plot are enlightened and made interesting by the genuine lurid colors of the background and by his narrative skill.