Product Description
THE SPANISH CAPE MYSTERY is a study in jealousy, revenge and mistaken identity.The setting is a brooding headland called the Spanish Cape. The cast contains the monstrous Captain Kidd, the ill-fated David Cumer and his beautiful niece Rosa, and Rosa's suitors.Into this scene drives Ellery Queen, intent on a holiday.Instead he must solve a baffling kidnap-murder! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

GOOD BUT NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ellery Queen is the master of the logical whodunit where fairplay and clues are a must. In this novel there are two major flaws. First the book should have been a short story or a novella at the most. The story is dragged and the clues are spaced after the interval of two or three chapters when they could have been given sooner. Second there are only two startling facts about the deductions in the book otherwise it's quite simple nothing complex. Not entirely bad but it could have been better. The killer is easy to guess too.Good as a short story nothing for a full length novel. Still the final explanation is well done. Not amongst his best books but worth a try.

The Spanish Cape Mystery - Another Superbly Crafted Story
As I write this book review, I am still excited at having solved this mystery, not simply by guessing, but largely through careful deduction. My reasoning was not entirely flawless, nor as systematic and precise and complete as the final explanation by Ellery Queen, but it was sufficiently exacting to warrant some self-praise. I did take the author's suggestion and set the book aside for several hours and wrestled with the conundrum before looking at the final chapter.

The Spanish Cape Mystery is classic Ellery Queen: a superbly crafted mystery with intriguing characters, a rather remarkable setting, and a concluding exercise in impeccable logic. The title refers to both the fictional setting, a small rocky peninsula on the New England coast, and a key element in the mystery, a rather flamboyant item of dress.

Ellery Queen mysteries are entertainingly written, but are not as literate as works by P. D. James or Colin Dexter. However,as his fans have come to expect, Ellery does sprinkle his conversation with literary and poetic quotations. Look for Voltaire, Bacon, Keats, Coleridge, La Rochefoucauld, Germaine de Stael, and William Collins in The Spanish Cape Mystery.We also occasionally meet examples of Ellery's vocabulary excesses like natatorial habits and prestidigitating deductions.

Although The Spanish Cape Mystery was first published in 1935, it has been reprinted many times, and a paperback version is readily available through Amazon.com. Apparently, The Spanish Cape Mystery is also available on audio tape.

If you enjoy trying to unravel a carefully constructed mystery, I highly recommend Ellery Queen`s many excellent stories. The Spanish Cape Mystery would make a good introduction to Ellery Queen for the reader that has yet to have the pleasure of his acquaintance. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Suspense as bodies pile up during investigation leading to logical solution.
In Double Double writer/detective Ellery Queen (son of Police Inspector Richard Queen) is summoned to the small town of Wrightsville to investigate the death of the town drunk.After receiving anonymous letters implying a link between the apparent killing of Tom Anderson with the supposedly natural death of wealthy Luke MacCaby and the apparent suicide of bankrupt John Hart, Ellery is visited by Anderson's daughter, who the drunk / beggar had named Rima after the bird-girl in Green Mansions - and raised accrodingly.Though educated beyond her years, the shy girl has no worldly knowledge, no social experience.She asks Ellery to look into her fathers death.

The only connections Ellery can find between the decedents is their relationships with Doctor Dodd and his gardener, who had previously been gardener to both the rich man and the poor man, and friend of the drunk/beggar.When a third friend of the latter, the town thief, is killed in self defense by Doctor Dodd's associate, Doctor Winship, Ellery notices a childish pattern in the victims:Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief.The next line in that rhyme begins "Doctor, lawyer . . . " leading Ellery to assume Doctor Dodd is next, though he had been beginning to suspect the Doctor himself.Meanwile, Doctor Winship and Rima get married.

The plot isn't a typical whodunnit formula, but more like "Ten Little Indians," with more victims dropping dead during the investigation.This keeps it suspenseful, and there are enough suspects - the gardener, Rima herself, two doctors, even a lawyer - that the final logical solution still comes as a somewhat effective surprise - especially after Ellery learns that the rhyme exists with various endings:"Indian chief,""Merchant chief," "Merchant, Chief" . . .

I didn't find any flaws, and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

This book has also been printed with the alternate title "Seven Murders." ... Read more

Product Description
THE SIAMESE TWIN MYSTERY finds Ellery and his father, the irascible Inspector Queen, trapped in a mountain retreat by a raging forest fire.The members of the household are a strange lot, and the mysterious murder of the retreat's host indicates to the Queens that not only are they isolated with an odd assortment of characters, but a dangerous killer as well! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Twins at the Same Business
This used to be my favorite among Ellery Queen's early books, and I remembered much of its menace and grotesquerie fondly, but taking it off the shelf again I spoiled it for myself.As a child I gaped to read about John Xavier, the "mad scientist" with cages full of animals, in pairs, like some mad Noah without the Ark, a scientist who built himself a country house, "Arrow Head," at the top of the Tepee Mountains up New England way.The story has atmosphere, atmosphere enough for a better plot than the one they've given us.How many Ellery Queen books have the same storyline where first the police and Ellery arrest one suspect, based on "airtight" deductions on EQ's part, then they find out, oh, they were wrong, and arrest another clown, and then, once again, oh I'm sorry, you were innocent too?(I just finished THE FOURTH SIDE OF THE TRIANGLE where this plot is even more absurdly worked up.)

But in general, THE SIAMESE TWIN MYSTERY may be the best novel I've ever read about a forest fire, as the mountain blazes up and Ellery & company are trapped in the mansion at the very top of the impossibly twisty mountain road--trapped for days while their situation grows increasingly worse.By the end of the book you wonder, how the devil are they ever going to get out to this nightmare?

Who killed John Xavier and why is he clutching half of a playing card--the six of spades--in his vivisectionist hand?Another victim croaks and his last word is "I."Crazy me suspected until long after the book was over, that the killer would turn out to have one of those names, like "Eileen," in which the first syllable would sound like "I."After Ellery's complicated reasoning in the matter of the "Six of Spades" clue, you will agree that I'm hardly out of line pursuing this ludicrous possibility.It would have made a great 30s movie, with Charles Laughton as Xavier, Judith Anderson as his wife, Dolores del Rio as Marie Carreau, Freddie Bartholomew (and himself) as the twins, Alice Faye as Ann Forrest the comely companion, and perhaps lean, saturnine Raymond Massey as Mark Xavier, the doctor's shady brother.Oh, and Sydney Greenstreet as the threateningly fat lump, "Smith."(Didn't you think "Smith" was going to turn out to be the first husband of Sarah Xavier?Whatever happened with that line of questioning?It seems Ellery and his dad, Inspector Richard Queen of the NYPD, just accept Mrs. Xavier's assurances that her first husband was not a factor in this crime.Well, check, boys!)

Weak reasoning, strong story, well worth reading.
I agree with the fine review which leads the list for this book save in one particular. While making for tension necessary to keep the reader moving, I felt Ellery was led by his two Brooklyn creators into some less than sterling reasoning. However, despite that, this is a fine story that should provide readers (or listeners to the excellent audiobook production)with hours of entertainment.
Readers of other early Ellery Queen mysteries (this is from 1933) can be assured that the authors had already begun to flesh out a more human and less thinking machine character for the durable hero of books, film, radio, and televison (which probably did the best job of translating the original books into dramatic form with Bob Hutton (Ellery), David Wayne (Inspector Queen)leading a strong cast which always included interesting guest stars.

Classic Ellery Queen - Among His Best Stories
We join Ellery and his father, Inspector Richard Queen, in an unfamiliar habitat, a remote rugged road in a forested mountainous area in upstate New York. Tired, somewhat uncertain of their directions, with night falling, the situation suddenly worsens as they find themselves cutoff by a forest fire.Following a barely visible rutted road upward, they find temporary safety at a sprawling lodge nestled on the top of Arrow mountain. As the fire below slowly encircles them, the Queens find themselves involved in a bizarre murder mystery.

Certainly, the situation is contrived. Dr. Xavier's work on Siamese twins in an isolated mountain lodge is a bit fantastic. The clues are supremely subtle. And yet this mystery is highly effective. Under the stress of the approaching fire, Ellery too hurriedly offers solutions, seemingly masterful examples of pure logic, but flawed nonetheless. (The reader may be reminded of another remarkable Ellery Queen story, The Greek Coffin Mystery.)

Ellery and Inspector Queen refuse to let the relentless forest fire dissuade them from continuing their investigation. The drama and suspense shifts back and forth between the danger posed by the ever advancing fire and the more immediate threat, the likelihood that the unknown killer will murder again.

The Siamese Twin Mystery (October, 1933) is a good example of the deductive mystery genre that was especially popular in 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. To assist the reader in unraveling the mystery, it comes complete with a playful description of the cast of characters and a floor plan of the ground level of Dr. Xavier's lodge. Surprisingly, it is missing Ellery's trademark, a pause generally found at the beginning of the last chapter, in which the author challenges the reader to solve the mystery before reading further, as all clues have now been revealed.

The Siamese Twin Mystery makes a good introduction to Ellery Queen. It has all of the elements that characterize a classic Ellery Queen mystery.It is among the best of Ellery Queen stories, comparing favorably with The Greek Coffin Mystery, The Spanish Cape Mystery, and The Tragedy of X. ... Read more

Product Description
Ellery Queen finds himself in charge of the young rambunctious lad, Djuna. What better way to spend his time than at the newly opened amusement park called Joyland. But the park’s designer pride and joy is his “House of Darkness”. A haunted house that reminds Queen of the set of Dr. Caligari. But what terror does the darkness hold? Ellery Queen and Djuna is about to find out! ... Read more

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From the Golden Age of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie to the works of such innovators as Robert Barnard and Ruth Rendell, a collection of twenty crime, mystery, and suspense stories represents the most popular and well-known British mystery writers. Reprint. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

disappointing
This was pretty crap to be honest. I should have read it when I was a kid, like I read all the rest, when I wasn't so critical. In a similar vein, the last of the Father Brown books ("The wisdom of...") wasn't as good as I remembered the others being. On the other hand, the Sherlock Holmes novels are all as strong as Hound of the Baskervilles.

Ellery Queen's cold case
Excelent mystery.12 months of crime solving a murder.Ellery does it again with style. ... Read more

Product Description
Selected Mysteries by Ellery Queen ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Flawed but entertaining
Also, I will add, apparantly written by Avram Davidson and not the original authors who wrote under the Ellery Queen psuedonym.Be that as it may, this is an intriguingly written mystery in four parts, each part focussing on one of the four principle characters.Ellery doesn't show up until the 2nd part and there's a rather humorous twist at the conclusion involving the actual solving of the case.It is spoiled to a degree by various flaws, but still is fun reading for Ellery Queen fans albeit a bit sophisticated compared to the earlier books.

A puzzler from the 1960s
Written in the sophisticated style of the classic Queen morphed into a more knowing, sexually daring 60s setting, THE FOURTH SIDE OF THE TRIANGLE is a little more mechanical than usual.Would any district attorney, even in Manhattan, try first a man, then his wife, then his son, for the same crime?I don't think so, even though one marvels at the way Ellery Queen, or whoever wrote this potboiler, ultimately does his best to make it seem possible if not plausible.

The plot turns on a particular sexual quirk of the victim, a fashionable New York coutierere called Sheila Grey, that not many will find convincing, and it also depends on the way everyone is willing to believe that the millionaire dad, Ashton McKell, is actually impotent.I suppose the point is that no man would ever say anything like that about himself unless it was really true and he was backed into a corner?McKell's wife, Lutetia, is from the old school but I do not believe that any woman, even one who seems to have stepped out of Edith Wharton's imagination, would be reading, in 1965, a novel by "Mrs. Oliphant."Give me a break. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Lots of stories!
This book contains 2 short novels...Counterfeit for Murder by Rex Stout & Volcano in the Mind by Hugh Pentecost. 2 novelets...The House in Goblin Wood by John Dickson Carr & The Missing Sister Case by Ross MacDonald.
13 short stories...
Such a Nice Man by Christianna Brand,
Invitation to a Murder by Josh Pachter,
No Time to Lose by David Ely,
The House of the Shrill Whispers by John Breen,
Golden Tuesday by Celia Fremlin,
Wynken, Blynken and Nod by William Brittain,
Hunting Season by Jerrold Phaon,
Inspector Maigret Thinks by Georges Simenon,
The Last Sassetta by Haskell Barkin,
The Theft of the Satin Jury by EdwardHoch,
The Murderer by Joel Townsley Rogers,
Hong Kong or Whatever by Florence Mayberry,
The Little Spy by Ellery Queen. ... Read more

Product Description
Ellery is persuaded to accompany an old friend to his ancestral home when the latter arrives at Ellery's house covered in blood and unable to remember anything from the past few weeks. There, tensions erupt and foul play results in the murder of one of the household's members. Originally published by Little, Brown in 1948. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Ellery Queen's Greatest
In my opinion of course. Ellery Queen fans are kind of divided between those who love the technically intricate whodunits of Ellery's earlier career and the more psychological and introspective mysteries of the later era, but I love them both. This is one of the latter ones.

An old friend of Ellery, Howard Van Horn approaches him seeking help. He's been suffering blackouts and fears he may have committed a crime during one of them. Ellery follows him to Howard's New England hometown of Wrightsville - a town that Ellery knows very well, for twice Ellery has been there, and each time Ellery's a murder has occured for him to solve.

Already uneasy, Ellery meets Dietriech Van Horn, Howard's father, and Sally, the old man's very much younger and very attractive wife. As Ellery gets more involved with the Van Horns, and a series of odd, almost irrational crimes happens, his intution tells him one thing - there's definitely murder in the air, and he may be powerless to stop it.

"Ten Days' Wonder" is, in my estimation, Ellery Queen's best novel. It completely overwhelmed me the first time I read it, and it is a novel that not only delves into the secret lives hidden beneath small-town exteriors but also into the very heart of Ellery's own psychology. The clues are before the reader - all fair, no hiding - but when you and Ellery think you've got the solution, a final, delicious, deadly twist and a nasty surprise awaits both at the end. An ending that a friend of mine has described as feeling as if someone had sideswiped you with a nightstick. A high-water mark in the series.

One of the best detective novels ever
This book, coupled with the book that follows it, Cat of Many Tails, are the best detective novels I have ever read.Not only are the plots carefully constructed, but the level of characterization is nearlyunparalleled in the detective genre.This is one of the riskiest mysteryseries novels ever written, and one that stands up to substantialrereading.Buy it.Read it.You won't be sorry. ... Read more

Product Description
Radio script for The Adventure of the Murdered Ship, by Ellery Queen.Loose lips can sink ships, and Ellery must untangle the clues to the sinking of an American warship in World War II.How did the enemy know the exact location of the American ship? ... Read more

Product Description
Little Jim is a big time swindler and the cops have him surrounded in his house.But when the cops move in to arrest him, he has mysteriously disappeared! Only Ellery Queen has brains enough to solve this sort of puzzle! ... Read more

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Nero is My Hero!
I fell in love with the Nero Wolfe character while watching the series of shows produced by Timothy Hutton on television.Since then I've gone back to the original stories Rex Stout wrote in the forties and listened to many of the old radio shows via mp3's.No matter what medium you use, tv, radio, or just reading the mysteries or the old radio scripts, this series is pure entertainment! ... Read more

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Ellery Queen's 5 short stories
Excelent mysteries.3 Novelettes and 2 short stories.Three entertaining murder mysteries, 1 theft, and 1 portential murder.Ellery does it again with style. ... Read more