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Well, finished plowing through all the Philo Vance mysteries -- definitely an acquired taste -- enjoyed them immensely at the start, but they became too padded and gimmicky towards the end. Aside from van Dine inserting himself as a character, each book showcased Vance's in-depth knowledge in some esoteric area associated with the crime .... everything from chess to mathematics to tropical fish to .... dragons.
Now revisiting Elizabeth Daly's fascinating Henry Gamadge series - with some of the most convoluted/involuted plot lines ever imagined -- no wonder Agatha Christie was such a fan. Gamadge is a kind of Philo Vance/Albert Campion/Peter Wimsey/Sherlock Holmes mash-up, IMHO.
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