The Roman Hat Mystery

De: Ellery Queen

Narrado por: Robert Fass

Despite the dismal Broadway season, Gunplay continues to draw crowds. A gangland spectacle, it's packed to the gills with action, explosions, and gunfire. In fact, Gunplay is so loud that no one notices the killing of Monte Field. In a sold-out theater, Field is found dead partway through the second act, surrounded by empty seats. The police hold the crowd and call for the one man who can untangle this daring murder: Inspector Richard Queen. With the help of his son Ellery, a bibliophile and novelist whose imagination can solve any crime, the Inspector attacks this seemingly impenetrable mystery. Anyone in the theater could have killed the unscrupulous lawyer, and several had the motive. Only Ellery Queen, in his debut novel, can decipher the clue of the dead man's missing top hat.

©2013 Ellery Queen (P)2013 AudioGO

Roman theatre and Top hat

my first Queen mystery, style circa 1929, 20 years before I was born. interesting look back to popular fiction of era. Good performance, storyline very dated. I will try a couple more by the author before I can decide yea or nay!

ok but....

Struggled to finish. I usually like these types of stories but this one was hard.

love mystery

I do enjoy a good mystery but this one went on a bit long of tooth. Not that I didn't enjoy listening to the story, but I almost finished before it ended.

A classic period piece

The first in the Ellery Queen series of novels is a classic of the genre. The whodunit style made quite a contrast from my recent diet of 1930s noir crime fiction. But the matter-of-fact use of contemporary realities - like hats! - in ways that seem crazy today offers similar pleasure to the noir scenes of cops pursuing gangsters on the running boards of flivvers.

Fun & Instructive

This cleverly written and engrossing mystery is also a ticket to travel to another era. The trip to the Roaring Twenties is revealing, endearing and, at times, disturbing. Truly worth the read.

Good puzzle, dated story

While this is the first Ellery Queen case published, I'm not sure it's a good place to start for someone who'd never read a Queen before. The story is dated (it's very much of its time, when it would be inconceivable that someone would attend a play without a hat) and more dry than the later entries of the series. Inspector Queen really takes most of the limelight here. In fact, Ellery (for some strange reason) leaves town at the very end of the story, leaving his father to do the big reveal! Overall, it's not bad...it's just that Queen gets better.

Not my favorite

I try to make allowances for the times (the racism, slow style of the mystery,etc). It’s an old book, and I can appreciate it for what it is. The thing that drove me crazy was Ellery Queen’s father, who was telling the story. He was grouchy and not likable. Worst of all was his weird obsession with his son, who couldn’t go on a vacation on his own without his dad having a meltdown. I was sick to death of hearing how perfect Ellery Queen was. If he narrates all the stories, I’ll pass.

Pretty good "who done it?"

Low on atmosphere, less than stand out characters but all in all a good puzzle. It has a well earned reputation and mostly lives up to it.

Oldie but goodie

Always wanted to feed an Elroy queen novel. Definitely an old style, but what can I say, it was created in 1929

Interesting.

I was fascinated by the storyline all the way to the end. I was somewhat appalled by the racist ending.