The Egyptian Cross Mystery

In this book the writers Ellery Queen (as opposed to the fictional author Ellery Queen) can be seen to be working toward as less Philo Vancish lead character while still in the thralls of concocting overly ornate murders. Queen (the fictional character) still talks far too much and says far too little. The book would be a good third shorter if only he said what he meant, the first time, and without circumlocution. The entire books/story/plot would fall apart were not Queen, the other characters and apparently the readers as well, ignorant of that part of the world that the genesis of the tale is supposedly set in. In order to captivate the reader Queen and Professor Yardley must react (not much more than a decade after the end of the show more Great War) as if parts of Europe were separated from America by centuries as well as distance and as if a blood soaked crime scene and a decapitation bespoke brutality beyond any of the pograms of recent history.

Perhaps the irritation of this reviewer is increased by the fact she found the solution to the crime obvious a good forty pages before it was unveiled and suspected it long before that--consequently found much of the book transparently an exercise in biding time and haring off after irrelevancies. show less

Sarà per gli omicidi truculenti, sarà per la storia che ha radici nel passato dei protagonisti, sarà perché ho indovinato l’assassino (ieeeeeee!!!!!), sarà perché effettivamente questo romanzo è migliore degli altri della serie che ho letto, fatto sta che mi è piaciuto molto di più, e sono stata per un po’ indecisa se dargli o no 5 stelline. Alla fine ho optato per le quattro, ma comunque veramente un bel romanzo giallo.

http://www.naufragio.it/iltempodileggere/17799

Ellery Queen insinuates himself into the police investigation of a gory ritualistic murder in West Virginia, with no discernible success. However, when there's a similar murder on Long Island several months later Queen jumps in again. He rides his famous father's coat tails to gain entree with the police. The resulting investigation continues on for another two murders, until Queen finally has an "ah ha!" moment. That initiates a frantic chase from West Virginia to Chicago where the killer is apprehended, and his identity is revealed.

The story is well-crafted but falls down in the execution. The author focuses on plot development to the exclusion of character development and to a lesser extent, setting and local colour. Regrettably, show more Queen's investigation becomes monotonous. He and the police chase their tails with no progress. Queen's pompous behaviour makes him a big pain in the neck. There are some red herrings, e.g. the mysterious British neighbours, some romantic entanglements to add melodrama, and some oddball characters to muddle the story. It's a male-dominated story as was common at the time it was written (1932). The women stay in the background adding little to the story.

It's a "fair play" mystery, with the author explicitly inviting readers towards the story's denouement to figure it out. By then, the process of elimination can lead to the killer's identity without the iodine bottle clue that triggered Queen's "ah ha!" moment. The ending feels unsatisfying: the killer's motivation is elusive. Is he a serial killer, or just deranged?

The plot is original and has plenty of potential to be a great story, unfortunately that is not achieved. show less

What the hell! How can I never find the murderer in Ellery Queen books?

A breathtaking book. Wonderful. This book deserves more readership. It is a very clever and exotic plot and all of it works. The first crime is glossed over, but its significance overshadows the buildup to the next, more sinister crime. There are bland passages when the hippies show up. But harakht is a funny character, albeit a tragic one too. Ellery Queen's deductions are flawless and I wish I had deduced from THAT clue(the bottle) the murderer's identity.

Probably my favorite of this series so far.

3.5*

band los