Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine(2014)

Dennis LehaneStewart O'NanPatricia Powell

In this month’s issue of page-turners, you’ll have a chance to reconnect with a few series characters, like Dana Cameron’s colonial-Boston innkeeper Anna Hoyt, who treads lightly around extreme violence in an attempt to escape with her reputation, her business, and her life (“Declaration”). Master Chef Auguste Didier returns too, and once again finds himself in the presence of murder, this time at a glamorous dinner party (“Murder and the Golden Slipper” by Amy Myers).

Another character you might know—the eponymous star of Michael Guillebeau’s novel Josh Whoever—shows up as a young man coming of age and coming to terms with the social and familial realities of his life as a fisherman’s son in North Florida (“Crimes of Passion”). He’s not the only young protagonist in these pages, as two more fight against quietly deadly foes, one at school (“Ash” by Arthur Piper) and one in his own neighborhood (“Neighbor” by David Dean).

In the chilling and poignant “Cold Island” by Brendan DuBois, a defense lawyer is particularly suited to coax a wanted man from a deserted winter cabin. To warm up, we have “Two for the Price of One” by Belinda Bauer, a charming tale about a couple who become particularly enamored with one of their customers. And you won’t want to miss our two puzzle mysteries: “The Ghost of the Badminton Court” by Szu-Yen Lin and “Death in the Pasig,” a special Black Mask story by Raoul Whitfield, writing as Ramon DeColta.