''The Tinkling Symbol'', first published in 1935, is a detective story by

Phoebe Atwood Taylor Phoebe Atwood Taylor (Boston 18 May 1909–Boston 9 January 1976) was an American writer of mystery novels. She graduated from Barnard College in 1930 and married surgeon Grantley Walder Taylor in December 1951. Phoebe Atwood Taylor wrote mystery ...

which features her series detective

Asey Mayo Avsey (russian: Авсе́й) is a Russian male first name.Petrovsky, p. 36 There are several theories as to its origins.Superanskaya, p. 30 According to one, it is simply a colloquial variant of the name Yevsey.Petrovsky, p. 36 Anot ...

, the "Codfish Sherlock". This

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

is a

whodunnit A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with the ...

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

Plot summary

The little

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

town of West Weesit has been rocked by four suicides from the same location, now known as "Suicide Cliff". Kay Truman was the found at the foot of the cliff a month prior. Her father, Dave, had already been depressed because his business had failed and his wife had left him. When a number of witnesses in a neighboring house see him come out of his house and aim a gun at himself, they assume the resulting shot is another suicide. But when it is learned that Dave had in fact been stabbed in the back, Asey Mayo is called to investigate, soon becoming a target for a determined shooter. Meanwhile, he sorts out some local Cape Cod entanglements and learns the meaning of a dying clue left by Dave Truman— "ink"—and what the tinkling bell around the neck of Sully the cat has to do with anything.

References

1935 American novels Novels by Phoebe Atwood Taylor Novels set on Cape Cod and the Islands W. W. Norton & Company books {{1930s-mystery-novel-stub