My first encounter with Ellery Queen occurred when I was about seven. My mom and I were at the library when she found an issue of 'Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine' on the paperback swap shelves. She hurriedly put it back, grimacing. She said she didn't like his books and made them sound utterly ghastly.

In the fifteen years since, I've learned to form my own opinions. :) My mother, a fan of westerns and romances, dislikes mysteries. Westerns usually bore me, romances make me gag...and I LOVE mysteries.

When I was about fourteen, I found myself searching for an obscure Agatha Christie short story. It was said to be in a compilation edited by Ellery Queen. Back to the library. I rummaged through all of the compilation books they had that were edited by this author I'd so studiously avoided. No luck...but as long as I had the books for a month, I figured I might as well read them.

In one of them I found a story about an exiled Eastern European nobleman who told his daughter he'd hidden a treasure of some sort for her--using clues culled from Edgar Allan Poe and Abraham Lincoln. The detective was described as an intellectual young man with an athletic build and silver eyes. The story was, I believe, "Abraham Lincoln's Clue." The detective and author? Ellery Queen.

I was in love. I had never matched wits with such a 'tec before. He was totally fair--making sure the readers had all the clues--but still confounding. Can we say, "addiction?"

This page, then, is my tribute to the Master. I'll try not to make this another "my-opinion-of-his-books" page. (Not that there's anything wrong with those; I've found several that are quite excellent.) This is more...my warped attempt at honoring him. I'll have some essays, some analyses, and maybe even some fanfic. Hope you enjoy!

P.S. I finally did find that story...in an old issue of 'Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine.' *grins*

NEWSFLASH!!!!!
In case you haven't heard, the cable channel TVLand now shows the 1975-1976 series 'Ellery Queen' starring Jim Hutton. This is widely regarded as THE definitive rendition of Ellery and company. The show airs Monday-Friday at 12:00 p.m. CST. Gee, I'd better get more blank videotapes! :)

Essays

Curiosity about one of J.J. McC.'s remarks led to this train of thought....Mrs. Ellery Queen

Fan Fiction

Here, a little Ellery Queen/Jonny Quest alterniverse 'fic starring a few of my friends....
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Ellery Queen Links
Exit to the Town Square