A true classic
I've been reading EQMM since I was a child and have always enjoyed it. I particularly like finding new mystery writers in it. Just this month, C J Harper has a very good tale in the tradition of Rex Stout and Phillip Marlowe.

Great Magaine
I absolutely love this magazine! This is a wonderful read for any who like short stories and mysteries! The magazine includes new writers as well as more well known ones. A wonderful magazine!

A poor quality publication
I had to wait for 5 five months till I got my first issue, imagine that! When the issue did arrive, I found it was very poor. I think that the publishers of Ellery Queen just don't understand that you have to provide value for the price they are charging.

Most the stories were predictable and boring. After the first few pages you can tell where the author is going.

I think I am going to use the magazine for recycling, I can't think of reading another copy.

Enjoyable and reliable mystery tales
Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine (EQMM) is the sharper image of its sister publication, Alfred Hitchcock's (AHMM). The stories are more polished, some have literary aspirations, and I'm more likely to find the well-executed twist in an EQMM story. While not every piece is a textbook mystery (some are police procedurals or psychological thrillers), all are good entertainment.

Editor Janet Hutchings introduces each piece with a description of the story, or what the author is working on, or an introduction to the writer if this is a first story. Occasional pen and ink illustrations, while not required to enjoy any of the stories, add to the feeling that EQMM is richer than AHMM. Some authors appear every month (Edward Hoch, amazing!) or almost as much (Doug Allyn) and deliver a quality story every time. There are plenty of other writers to enjoy; some are series tales with a recurring character, some create new worlds but impress with their mastery of the short story form.

EQMM relies on fewer gimmicky departments and more fiction. There is a book review column, calling your attention to novels worth reading.

If you love mysteries you should be getting both AHMM and EQMM.

Note: Starting with the 2004 issues, EQMM will publish only 10 issues a year; 2 will be "double issues" with almost twice as many pages. I remember when the Dell Magazines published 13 issues a year, including the "mid-December" one; back then the magazines came every 4 weeks. Those were the days and I have shown myself to be a certified grumpy codger.

EQ Delivers every month!
Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine consistently delivers solid stories every month. As others have noted, not every story is a gem, but I usually find *at least* one really good story per issue, and most of the rest are quite enjoyable. (With around 10 stories per issue, you have to expect the occasional dud.)

This has been true for as long as I've been reading the magazine, which must be close to 30 years, now! The quality of the writing is consistently good, because the editors know what they're doing.

As a previous reviewer said, it is a good idea to pick up one issue to see if you like the kinds of stories EQ has to offer. But if you like that one issue, you can be sure you will enjoy others.

Note: Though it's known as EQ "Mystery Magazine", not all stories are mysteries. They do all fall generally into the "crime" category.