Pick Up A Pulp [54]: THE WIND-UP DOLL by Carter Brown

The Wind-up Doll pits Carter Brown's resident Hollywood fixer against a conglomerate of mobsters, shysters, movie stars, and greedy mothers as he delves into the past of a singer who has his sights set on a young and upcoming movie starlet. 

Hired by the starlet's studio bosses to check out the singer,Holman gets a whole lot more than he bargained for; expecting mystery, he soon becomes embroiled in murder!  

The case, if it can be called that, is one of the more sloppy ones written by Carter Brown; usually his pulps have a distinct style and voice which mirrors his protagonists (Holman - the Hollywood fixer, Al Wheeler - the hardboiled cop, Danny Body - the debonair private eye, Mavis Seidlitz - the dizzy blonde bombshell who moonlights as a private eye, etc.) but The Wind-up Doll lacks any real identity. Holman is equal parts Boyd, Wheeler, and Seidlitz which doesn't make this read like the standard Holman story. 

As with many other Carter Brown pulps, the dialogue can be hit or miss and this one is largely miss. Holman reads like a child out for candy and frequently throws tantrums when he doesn't get what he wants (in this case, said candy happens to be the prominent bust of a blonde beauty). 

Despite the obvious flaws, The Wind-up Doll is an 'OK' read. Clocking in at the standard 127/8 pages it's a quick form of escapism, which, if you know what you're getting into, can be some fun humorous time-off from other forms of literature. I give this 2 (out of 5) stars. 

My edition: second edition, published by Horwitz Publications, 1965.