Deadly Beloved by Max Allan Collins is actually the first Ms. Tree publication from the Hard Case Crime brand of Titan Books. Under an exceedingly attractive Terry Beatty painted cover we get a terse, fast-paced novel which for the first time puts Ms. Tree in the format from which the hardboiled dick first emerged, the prose printed page. This novel was published in 2007, long before Titan Books decided to reprint the original comic book adventures of the Ms. Tree.
The novel, a brisk read which I devoured in single sitting, is an adaptation of the first two Ms. Tree stories "I, for an Eye" and "Death Do Us Part" which between them explore the mystery of the honeymoon murder of Mike Tree, the tough-as-nails husband of Michael Friday Tree. We get into the case through the curious but effective technique of Ms.Tree talking to her psychologist. The story is not necessarily told in chronological order, but Collins is too deft a writer to let the reader lose the plot. There are twists inside of twists and by blending the two stories this turns out to something of a revamp and update of the original yarns. Topical and timely things such as the first Gulf War replacing the Vietnam War for instance.
If you're a Ms. Tree fan like I am you will want to read this novel even though it's something of a rehash of stories you think you know. This telling does a masterful job of creating a sleek whole from the parts. And speaking of sleek, have I mentioned Terry Beatty's stylish and smokin' hot image of the alluring Ms. Tree? It's a stunner.
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