More Ellery Queen Novels by Plot Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. A newly adopted baby is found dead in his crib and his nanny claims it was murder but no one else does.

Answer: Inspector Queen's Own Case

In this novel, Ellery does not appear though he is mentioned. It focuses on his father, Inspector Richard Queen, who strikes up a romance with Jessie, the baby's nanny. Jessie believes the baby was murdered because a pillow sheet with a hand print in it has disappeared but the police are skeptical. Inspector Queen uses his police connections to track down the baby's birth parents as he believes the key to his death lies there.

Note: In this book, Inspector Queen is said to have been forced into retirement having reached the age of 63. However, in future novels Inspector Queen is back on the police force and no mention is ever made of his forced retirement.

2. A man is murdered in an apartment office but absolutely everything in the room is turned backwards or inside out.

Answer: Chinese Orange Mystery

The murdered man's name is never discovered or learned by the reader and Ellery Queen claims that it is not important. The murder takes place in the office of Donald Kirk, a well known collector of stamps. The victim arrives at the office suddenly and apparently without reason. He is shown to a separate room that was constantly watched by various characters whom all claim no-one entered the room. However, the strange man is murdered anyway and his clothes and furniture are inside out and upside down.

This novel is considered a locked-room mystery and has ranked as one of the top locked-room mystery novels of all time by various literary institutions including by author Edward Hoch, a noted locked-room mystery author.

3. A man leading a double life is killed but no one is sure exactly which identity he was using when he died.

Answer: Halfway House

Joe Wilson and Joseph Gimball are the two identities of the murdered man. Joe is poor and Joseph is rich but no one can figure out which personality the victim was in when he was killed. Joe/Joseph was found dead in his halfway house, the building located half way between his two lives (geographically) where Joe/Joseph switches between his personalities.

This is the last Ellery Queen novel to feature the famous "Challenge to the Reader" where the reader would be told that he or she has enough information to solve the crime. It is also the first novel not to have a nationality in the title like the first 9 Queen books did. However, this story is called "The Swedish Match Mystery" within the book itself.

4. A friend of Ellery believes his father is having an affair and begins an affair with same woman who is later shot dead.

Answer: Fourth Side of the Triangle

Dane McKell, a friend of Ellery, is told by his mother Lutetia that his father Ashton is seeing another woman, a fashion designer named Sheila Grey. Dane, in an attempt to save his parents' marriage, decides to check Sheila out and winds up having an affair with her. Sheila is shot to death one night and her murder winds up sending both of Dane's parents to trial. However, Ellery believes the solution lies within Sheila's fashionable creations.

The title refers to the love triangle (or perhaps square) between Ashton, Lutetia, Sheila and Dane.

5. An aged celebrity whose husband is a serial philanderer is shot dead but first leaves behind a cryptic clue: "face".

Answer: Face to Face

Glory Guild was once a famous singer and did not marry until later in life. Her husband was the gold-digging Count Carlos Armando who had been married a number of times before and always had affairs. Even while married to Glory, Armando was conducting affairs with at least six or seven women, including some ex-wives. One of these women, Roberta, appeals to Ellery claiming Carlos had previously solicited her into killing Glory months earlier. She refused but when Glory is murdered and she turns out to be Carlos' alibi, Roberta came forward with the story and suspects Carlos has gone through with his plan and convinced another woman to kill Glory.

However, Ellery's father, the inspector in charge of the case, has other theories and Ellery is obsessed with a the clue "face" which Glory had written as an apparent clue to her killer.

6. When an elderly art dealer dies, his will goes missing and another dead body turns up in his casket.

Answer: Greek Coffin Mystery

When the wealthy Georg Khalkis died, his will mysteriously disappeared. Ellery determines that no one could have possibly stolen the will and transported it out of the house during the funeral, so the will must be in the coffin. When the coffin is dug up, the will is not there but there is a new dead body inside. Ellery and his father try to figure out just what happened; however, Ellery makes a blunder early on in the case and refuses to publicly discuss anything about the case until he is sure, much to the ire of the inspector.

7. In a bizarre case, Ellery solves a murder in a secluded desert town with a cult-like atmosphere.

Answer: And on the Eighth Day

During World War II, Ellery wrote propaganda videos to support the war effort. While driving across country back home to New York from Los Angeles, Ellery stumbles across a bizarre society in the Nevada desert. The town called Quenan is totally separated from the outside world. None of the people have names and are all referred to by their occupation (such as the Teacher).

There is a religious, cult-like atmosphere to Quenan and the people think Ellery is some kind of god or prophet to be worshiped.

When a murder occurs, Ellery must dig deep into Quenan's origins to discover just who these people are and what they are all about.

8. Ellery solves the Jack the Ripper murders decades after Sherlock Holmes did.

Answer: A Study in Terror

Ellery comes across a long lost manuscript written by Dr. Watson detailing his and Sherlock's adventures in hunting down Jack the Ripper. Ellery does some further investigating when he is not satisfied with the solution Watson proposed.

Note: This story is fictional. The actual person revealed to be Jack the Ripper in this story is a fictional character. The identity of Jack the Ripper remains unknown.

9. A gardener is seemingly behind the brutal murders of his landlords who are wealthy heirs but squabble over money.

Answer: Player on the Other Side

Walt is a gardener at York Square. York Square is the home of four York cousins (Robert, Myra, Percival and Emily) who must live there for a certain period of time in order to gain full control of their inheritances. However, the cousins argue over petty things, especially small purchases. One by one, the cousins are killed in ways that match anonymous letters Walt has been receiving. To the reader and the Queens, it is quite obvious that Walt has been carrying out the murders.

The real mystery lies in who is sending Walt the anonymous letters.

10. Ellery searches through the pasts of two wealthy jewelers to discover why they received some rather unusual gifts.

Answer: The Origin of Evil

This novel is one of a short run of novels that are set while Ellery is pursuing a screenwriting career in Los Angeles. He is called upon by Laurel Hill, whose father Leander had just died apparently from the shock of having received a dead dog in the mail. Leander's business partner Roger Priam continues to receive a number of strange gifts, though he denies there being any symbolism in them. Ellery, Laurel and Laurel's naturist boyfriend Crowe work together to discover what dark secrets may lie in Leander and Roger's pasts and who would want to seek revenge on them.

Source: Author Joepetz

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor MotherGoose before going online.
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Questions		Choices
1. A newly adopted baby is found dead in his crib and his nanny claims it was murder but no one else does.		And on the Eighth Day
2. A man is murdered in an apartment office but absolutely everything in the room is turned backwards or inside out.		The Origin of Evil
3. A man leading a double life is killed but no one is sure exactly which identity he was using when he died.		Face to Face
4. A friend of Ellery believes his father is having an affair and begins an affair with same woman who is later shot dead.		Greek Coffin Mystery
5. An aged celebrity whose husband is a serial philanderer is shot dead but first leaves behind a cryptic clue: "face".		A Study in Terror
6. When an elderly art dealer dies, his will goes missing and another dead body turns up in his casket.		Inspector Queen's Own Case
7. In a bizarre case, Ellery solves a murder in a secluded desert town with a cult-like atmosphere.		Fourth Side of the Triangle
8. Ellery solves the Jack the Ripper murders decades after Sherlock Holmes did.		Halfway House
9. A gardener is seemingly behind the brutal murders of his landlords who are wealthy heirs but squabble over money.		Chinese Orange Mystery
10. Ellery searches through the pasts of two wealthy jewelers to discover why they received some rather unusual gifts.		Player on the Other Side

Match the Queen novel to its plot description. NO SPOILERS!