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3.14 AVERAGE
3.14 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
mysterious
Spoiler
Be prepared for some casual racism that I can only imagine was socially acceptable in 1929
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I suspect most Americans have heard of Ellery Queen, but quite possibly have never read him since his books came out beginning in the late 1920s. "Ellery Queen" is actually a pair of cousins who created a successful template with this book. There is an unusual crime, a complex set of clues, and a number of misdirected solutions before the truth emerges. The reader is actively encouraged to try and solve the crime along with the police inspector by sorting and sifting through the clues. Fans of Sherlock Holmes will feel right at home reading "The Roman Hat Mystery."
I like the style of how the mystery unfolds, etc. the racism is ugly and vile.
(Spoilers -Talk about the ending mildly, the killer's motive, and give two names of who I thought did it but was wrong, but nothing specific about anything.)
The Roman Hat Mystery wasn't bad, wasn't great either. In short, exactly what I expected.
The atmosphere of the first part, the initial investigation at the theater, was nice. Reminded me of the way Dutch Shoe started, even though I was greatly disappointed by parts of the solution to that one. Eventually the Queens leave the theater and do some other stuff; interviews and lots of searching for hats and papers, etc. These middle parts go on for awhile, so it loses some points for that.
This novel feels much more like an Inspector Queen mystery than an Ellery Queen mystery. Sure, Ellery is there for most of the story, and is responsible for the abductive reasoning that led to the murderer's identity becoming known, but not only is his Philo Vance-esque personality especially dry here (at least in French Powder, his annoying aura was comedic, i.e. the little detection kit he carries,) he is also absent during the book's denouement! He leaves at the beginning of the fourth part and isn't present for either the killer's capture or to explain the solution. Inspector Queen does that for his prosecutor coworkers, and to be honest while he does repeat some stuff we already know which feels redundant, his narration of the solution is much smoother than Ellery's usually are.
I'll be honest, Queen got me again this time. I suspected two people specifically - William Pusak, the man who discovered victim Monte Field's body (and is Field a finely written victim, or what?), and Dr. Stuttgard, the audience member who first attributed Field's death to alcohol poisoning. I thought that either Pusak has the perfect opportunity by being the nearest person to Field and "discovering" the body, or Stuttgard (who had a seat right next to an aisle) was the most likely person who would have knowledge about tetra ethyl lead, which killed Field. Of course I was wrong. The murderer was a character who I thought about, but ultimately discarded as a suspect because of a certain aspect about them - an aspect which was the exact reason they were the murderer, and which also explained the mystery of the missing hat (the solution to this hat's disappearance is really well done.) Although one could technically discern the killer's identity by process of elimination, I still feel like there wasn't enough information given for the reader to know that the killer had the opportunity. Maybe I missed something, but that was my major qualm about the solution. Not nearly as bad as Ellery's big deduction in Dutch Shoe, however.
Then of course, we have the killer's... unique motive. We know the gist of the motive by about halfway through (Field, a chronic blackmailer, blackmailed the killer), but what specifically it is that the murderer wants to hide so desperately is not shared until this solution, since it isn't one of the blackmail objects already known by the detectives. And when it's revealed... yikes. The fact that the culprit was trying to hide that they had African-American lineage, making them of mixed race, although it would be very dated in today's society, is not what irks me here. The way that this places the story so firmly in its time-set, and the uniqueness of this motive and how it paints the murderer's desperation and position in society is actually quite interesting, and I wished it was touched upon a bit more at the end. The way Inspector Queen, DA Sampson and ADA Cronin handle this information though... double yikes. "But he was as white as you or me." "Tainted blood." Sentences like these really diminish the quality of the motive's impact and gives the reader of today a bad taste in their mouth at the book's end. Coupled with some unflattering remarks from the third-person narration about Djuna (who, let's face it, is just a weird character in general) just rubs me the wrong way.
Overall, the mystery is quite good despite a couple small qualms, and while Ellery's position in this book is weird and some parts run on for a bit too long, the overall pacing isn't bad. The racism presented throughout the book and especially at the end, though, are what really do it in for me. I obviously don't want to really punish my rating of the book for this - it's a product of its time, and obviously this must be kept in account. However, it is a part of why this is 3 stars instead of 4. However, unlike Dutch Shoe, this is still lower-mid-tier Nationality Mystery, with Egyptian Cross and Chinese Orange ahead of it.
So only Spanish Cape and American Gun remain of the 1st period of Ellery Queen... the former isn't everyone's favorite but not too badly regarded, and the latter... is considered Queen's worst flounder of an ending. I await these two with some anticipation and some alacrity.
The Roman Hat Mystery wasn't bad, wasn't great either. In short, exactly what I expected.
The atmosphere of the first part, the initial investigation at the theater, was nice. Reminded me of the way Dutch Shoe started, even though I was greatly disappointed by parts of the solution to that one. Eventually the Queens leave the theater and do some other stuff; interviews and lots of searching for hats and papers, etc. These middle parts go on for awhile, so it loses some points for that.
This novel feels much more like an Inspector Queen mystery than an Ellery Queen mystery. Sure, Ellery is there for most of the story, and is responsible for the abductive reasoning that led to the murderer's identity becoming known, but not only is his Philo Vance-esque personality especially dry here (at least in French Powder, his annoying aura was comedic, i.e. the little detection kit he carries,) he is also absent during the book's denouement! He leaves at the beginning of the fourth part and isn't present for either the killer's capture or to explain the solution. Inspector Queen does that for his prosecutor coworkers, and to be honest while he does repeat some stuff we already know which feels redundant, his narration of the solution is much smoother than Ellery's usually are.
I'll be honest, Queen got me again this time. I suspected two people specifically - William Pusak, the man who discovered victim Monte Field's body (and is Field a finely written victim, or what?), and Dr. Stuttgard, the audience member who first attributed Field's death to alcohol poisoning. I thought that either Pusak has the perfect opportunity by being the nearest person to Field and "discovering" the body, or Stuttgard (who had a seat right next to an aisle) was the most likely person who would have knowledge about tetra ethyl lead, which killed Field. Of course I was wrong. The murderer was a character who I thought about, but ultimately discarded as a suspect because of a certain aspect about them - an aspect which was the exact reason they were the murderer, and which also explained the mystery of the missing hat (the solution to this hat's disappearance is really well done.) Although one could technically discern the killer's identity by process of elimination, I still feel like there wasn't enough information given for the reader to know that the killer had the opportunity. Maybe I missed something, but that was my major qualm about the solution. Not nearly as bad as Ellery's big deduction in Dutch Shoe, however.
Then of course, we have the killer's... unique motive. We know the gist of the motive by about halfway through (Field, a chronic blackmailer, blackmailed the killer), but what specifically it is that the murderer wants to hide so desperately is not shared until this solution, since it isn't one of the blackmail objects already known by the detectives. And when it's revealed... yikes. The fact that the culprit was trying to hide that they had African-American lineage, making them of mixed race, although it would be very dated in today's society, is not what irks me here. The way that this places the story so firmly in its time-set, and the uniqueness of this motive and how it paints the murderer's desperation and position in society is actually quite interesting, and I wished it was touched upon a bit more at the end. The way Inspector Queen, DA Sampson and ADA Cronin handle this information though... double yikes. "But he was as white as you or me." "Tainted blood." Sentences like these really diminish the quality of the motive's impact and gives the reader of today a bad taste in their mouth at the book's end. Coupled with some unflattering remarks from the third-person narration about Djuna (who, let's face it, is just a weird character in general) just rubs me the wrong way.
Overall, the mystery is quite good despite a couple small qualms, and while Ellery's position in this book is weird and some parts run on for a bit too long, the overall pacing isn't bad. The racism presented throughout the book and especially at the end, though, are what really do it in for me. I obviously don't want to really punish my rating of the book for this - it's a product of its time, and obviously this must be kept in account. However, it is a part of why this is 3 stars instead of 4. However, unlike Dutch Shoe, this is still lower-mid-tier Nationality Mystery, with Egyptian Cross and Chinese Orange ahead of it.
So only Spanish Cape and American Gun remain of the 1st period of Ellery Queen... the former isn't everyone's favorite but not too badly regarded, and the latter... is considered Queen's worst flounder of an ending. I await these two with some anticipation and some alacrity.
Not my favorite mystery of all time. I did finish it but it did take a little while. On the pros, I did like the setting, some of the character interactions, and some of the deductions. I guessed really early that the murder would be someone who has a bit part in first chapter or early on, and the bulk would be chasing wild geese to make those people seem the most suspicious. I think what some people don't like is just the pace of the author and the investigator. He rambles a lot, and makes a short conversation to see if someone was somewhere or to check up on a clue into a whole long chapter. I think it was fair in that we were given the clues, but all the secret questions, and sending messages back and forth is a little unfair in that the characters know a lot more than we do. Comparing this to Poirot, his stories go by so fast in comparison. Oh also the language was so foreign. I feel like I know how the English speak, and their slang from the 20s more than American or New York slang from the time period. Maybe a little too dated in general. We'll see, I might pick and choose from Ellery Queen from now on, books that are on best of lists.
I read a lot of "vintage" mysteries and enjoy them. The Roman Hat Mystery, however, was just not that good., but it's the first in the series, so I'm willing to give the Queens another chance. I liked Ellery, even if he is a bit in the background here, mostly observing, and his dad is an interesting man. One of the problems with this mystery is that it could only have taken place in the 20s, which is good and bad at the same time. It gives us a picture of a bygone era, complete with bootleg liquor, gents who have to have a top hat when attending the theater, and way too much snuff. The women are either over-looked or not quite honest.
Inspector Queen moves quickly between angry and cheery, depressed and "on the hunt." It's a little disconcerting, but the reader, Robert Faas, pulls it off well. He made me feel the differences between the two Queens and also his intonation made the dated phrases work without sounding cheesy to the modern listener.
I liked how the whole mystery was put together, although the reader was given all the clues. Once we knew the whole story it made perfect sense, even why the top hat was so important. It wasn't quite fair though, especially when we are asked during an interlude who we believe the culprit is.
I guess it's expected but the story is pretty racist, including the solution to the whodunnit, and sexist, but felt a little overly so here. It's too much grounded in the 20s attitudes to be thoroughly enjoyable. Or maybe it's not a good enough mystery to overlook the issues.
The Ellery Queen series is one of the classic mystery series. I'm thinking maybe this first was not a good example of the books.
Inspector Queen moves quickly between angry and cheery, depressed and "on the hunt." It's a little disconcerting, but the reader, Robert Faas, pulls it off well. He made me feel the differences between the two Queens and also his intonation made the dated phrases work without sounding cheesy to the modern listener.
I liked how the whole mystery was put together, although the reader was given all the clues. Once we knew the whole story it made perfect sense, even why the top hat was so important. It wasn't quite fair though, especially when we are asked during an interlude who we believe the culprit is.
I guess it's expected but the story is pretty racist, including the solution to the whodunnit, and sexist, but felt a little overly so here. It's too much grounded in the 20s attitudes to be thoroughly enjoyable. Or maybe it's not a good enough mystery to overlook the issues.
The Ellery Queen series is one of the classic mystery series. I'm thinking maybe this first was not a good example of the books.
I know firsts book in a series are a little rough. I love Sherlock Holmes, but [b:A Study in Scarlet|102868|A Study in Scarlet (Sherlock Holmes, #1)|Arthur Conan Doyle|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519031842l/102868._SX50_.jpg|1997473] isn't the best. However, at least Holmes has some character. Inspector Queen is a cop who is hard on crime and soft on the rich. The novel tells the reader that he has a heart, but it never really goes beyond that. Ellery is even worse. He's a logic machine who likes books. The view of cops in general hasn't aged well, even Holmes questioned the usefulness of the police and Hammett was doing much more morally complex work in this era. I suppose some might like the more pure logic, mystery box style puzzles presented here. I do want to try some of the higher rated later novels from this series in the future.
The mystery I finished before reading this one involved a serial killer and a long nightmare of brutal murders. After that, The Roman Hat Mystery was like a cool sorbet to refresh the palate. It's a "cozy" but an unusual one, in that the murder takes place not in a mansion house on a vast, isolated estate but in a theater, in the city. The detectives are contrasting characters, but they are not friends like Holmes and Watson, or a couple like Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane: they are father and son. (I wonder what happened to Mother?)
As you can tell, I had never read an Ellery Queen book before. I did know in advance, though, that they would be deep in deduction and shallow in psychology: that's a given. So is the unthinking racism and the stereotypes of Jews and Irish people. That's to be expected in a book from the 1920's. If that's going to spoil it for you, don't bother.
I enjoyed the book for what it was, and I may read another, but I'd be more likely to re-read a Dorothy Sayers novel instead.
As you can tell, I had never read an Ellery Queen book before. I did know in advance, though, that they would be deep in deduction and shallow in psychology: that's a given. So is the unthinking racism and the stereotypes of Jews and Irish people. That's to be expected in a book from the 1920's. If that's going to spoil it for you, don't bother.
I enjoyed the book for what it was, and I may read another, but I'd be more likely to re-read a Dorothy Sayers novel instead.