Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1943
Description
Once upon an evil time, there was a wicked old woman with a mammoth shoe company worth many millions of dollars, a henpecked husband, and six miserable children. Then one day death came visiting the vast Potts mansion-and began claiming its inhabitants one by one. It was then that Ellery Queen was invited to sup on this nightmare brew of diabolical murder and baffling mystery-in a case that made the most horrific crimes in his entire career seem like fairy tales. As he endeavors to solve the case, he tries to make sense of this family that defies rationality.
User reviews
LibraryThing member JeffreyMarks
A hodge-podge of earlier characters and themes, it's still an interesting read in terms of the Queen character and the interests of the authors.
LibraryThing member tgraettinger
Turned out to be a better story than expected, based on the first few chapters. Rekindled some fond memories of the TV show from the '70s.
LibraryThing member steve12553
My first Ellery Queen novel. (I've scene the Jim Hutton series and read one of the short stories). Obvious ly a period piece now but once it got going it had its fair share of twists and turns. right up to the last couple of pages.
LibraryThing member ChazziFrazz
Ellery was there when the first murder happened. He saw it, yet he didn't believe it. He and Inspector Queen were both there when the second murder was done. Both by the same family member. Insane!
But then half of this family seems insane and the other half normal. The scary part is the insane side
The Potts name is synonymous with shoes. "Potts shoes are America's shoes. $3.99 everywhere" Not just their tag line, but also in neon above the bronze statue of one on the front lawn of the family's ornate family mansion. The Old Lady is obsessed over this and so is one of her offspring.
Ellery applies his brain power and solves this mystery, but it takes 3 go rounds to get all the loose ends. Just when he thinks he has all figured out, another thread needs to be untangled.
A very enjoyable read.
But then half of this family seems insane and the other half normal. The scary part is the insane side
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seems to be killing off the sane side.The Potts name is synonymous with shoes. "Potts shoes are America's shoes. $3.99 everywhere" Not just their tag line, but also in neon above the bronze statue of one on the front lawn of the family's ornate family mansion. The Old Lady is obsessed over this and so is one of her offspring.
Ellery applies his brain power and solves this mystery, but it takes 3 go rounds to get all the loose ends. Just when he thinks he has all figured out, another thread needs to be untangled.
A very enjoyable read.
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Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1943
Physical description
vi, 321 p.; 20 cm