The Dragon's Teeth

Rating:
Summary: Homicide with humor in the Queen style
Review: What I like best about the Ellery Queen novels and short stories is the sense of fun with which they are infused. Here we have the usual tangle of contested unfair wills, dubious identities, attacks on a lovely lady who is then accused of murder herself, and all the while Ellery's keeping one step ahead of them all.

Now you can hear one of the goofiest of them all for yourself on the Audio Partners audiotape edition of "The Dragon's Teeth" (61197), a complete reading by actor Blain Fairman, whose voice nicely matches the lightweight tone of the text. There are six cassettes with a running time of 8 hours, 14 minutes. I will not go into the plot, because most mystery fans want to come in fresh, but I have to explain that the title refers to the myth of Cadmus sowing the teeth of the dragon to raise fighting men. Since an important character is named Cadmus Cole, Ellery draws the parallel between the situations; but truth to tell, it is a weak one and plays no part in the solution. I thought I had pinpointed the real murder halfway through, but I was wrong! Well, that's what makes books like this one so much fun.