Cat of many Tails by Ellery Queen

About the book: A strangler is killing Manhattanites, seemingly at random. The only common thread is the unusual silk cords that are used for the killings; blue for men and pink for women. Other than that, the victims come from all social classes and backgrounds, ethnicities, races, neighbourhoods, etc. The city is in a panic. Ellery Queen forms together a small group of people related to some of the victims, and some consultants, and works to determine the killer's reason for selecting these particular victims. When he finally realizes the thread that connects the victims, the murderer is revealed and peace returns to the city.

First line: The strangling of Archibald dudley Abernethy was the first scene in a nine-act tragedy whose locale was the City of New York.


My thoughts: This Ellery Queen novel, first   published in 1949, is the first I've read by this author. I enjoyed reading this vintage mystery. It was a puzzler that kept me guessing till the end then....there was the twist! At 241 pages it was over a little two quickly for me. The characters, victims and main, were well developed and sympathetic. I found the spoken language of the era entertaining and the layout of the story was engaging.

Note: While reading about Ellery Queen in Wikipedia I found that Ellery Queen is both a fictional character and a pseudonym used by two American cousins from Brooklyn, New York: Daniel Nathan, alias Frederic Dannay (October 20, 1905 – September 3, 1982[1]) and Manford (Emanuel) Lepofsky, alias Manfred Bennington Lee (January 11, 1905 – April 3, 1971[2]), to write, edit, and anthologize detective fiction.[3] The fictional Ellery Queen created by Dannay and Lee is a mystery writer and amateur detective who helps his father, a police inspector in New York City, solve baffling murders.