Man Slaughter

Is it a mystery or suspense? When is the suspense introduced?How is it resolved?Did the author include any red herrings?Is the story an example of poetic justice?

A "Lamb to Slaughter" is a suspense short story. Mrs. Maloney is a loving housewife who shows complete compassion for her husband. We are lead into thinking that the pair are solely compatible. After a day of ordinary rutiene, her husband confesses his act of adultery and the tension errupts. He refuses to stay for dinner, but Mrs. Maloney insists that he stay and she goes down to the freezer to grab the meal. The unexpected occurs when Mr.Maloney drops dead when he is struck from behind with a slab of lamb leg. She is fast to think when she flees to the market covering the time in which she then claims the murder took place. When the law officers arrive they are not convinced that she is guilty of murder. They do not suspect a lamb leg to be the murder weapon as they are eating it and Mrs. Maloney is off the hook. The red herring is found in the beginning of the story when the reader is made to believe that Mrs. Maloney is a good and loving housewife. The author then finishes by showing a great example of how looks can be very decieving even in the most unlikely situations. This story is not an example of poetic justice because Mrs. Maloney doen't get punished for the crime that she committed.