Maybe old southern ladies aren't as genteel as reputed to be. Publisher Vinton (Williams) travels to New Orleans to meet author of exciting new novel. She's Julia (Collinge) a shy retiring type that fits the genteel stereotype to a "T". Who would guess that the novel's topic is a murder mystery set in this same refined southern mansion. Still, Julia is presided over by her commanding sister Cordelia (Varden), who orders her about at will. Slowly Vinton suspects the murder in the novel really happened and that the characters are real and have something to do with one of the mansion's rose gardens. But just how accurate is the supposedly fictional text.
It's an okay episode at best, without the usual dose of series irony. As usual, the performers shine in their respective roles. Early Hitchcock excelled at getting top- notch actors, more so than most other series. Also, can't help noticing that these early series years employed many middle-age and older performers as they do here. Clearly, it's story that's paramount and not Hollywood glamour. Anyway, it's mainly the characters that carry audience interest, more so than plot suspense. It's also an entry that could use more atmosphere to deepen the narrative.