The Four Johns

By: Jack Vance, Ellery Queen

Narrated by: Mark Peckham

An exciting mystery by the masterly Ellery Queen.

The four of them had only two things in common - their name and a love for the ladies. John Boce was a no-account accountant who lusted after food, drink, cars, and women. John Thompson was a secretive librarian who liked his books and his women well-stacked. John Viviano was a fashion photographer with a great feel for a body - any body! And John Pilgrim was a poetic bum who had the girls hanging on his every stanza. All of them wanted the same woman, but which one wanted her enough to kill?

©1964 Ellery Queen (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Well written but undramatic

For suspense elements by today's standards this older mystery was only moderately entertaining, although I did enjoy the nuanced reading. Listeners are likely to have very different reactions, from one to five stars, given that this is more of a cosy involving eccentric characters (or womanizers) all after the same woman, and an old woman's getting pushed down the stairs to uncover the killer.