Phyllis Ayame Whitney (September 9, 1903 – February 8, 2008Leimbach, Dulci

''The New York Times''. 9 February 2008.) was an American mystery writer of more than 70 novels. Born in Japan to American parents in 1903, she spent her early years in Asia. A rarity for her genre, she wrote mysteries for both the

juvenile Juvenile may refer to: *Juvenile status, or minor (law), prior to adulthood *Juvenile (organism) *Juvenile (rapper) (born 1975), American rapper * ''Juvenile'' (2000 film), Japanese film * ''Juvenile'' (2017 film) *Juvenile (greyhounds), a greyho ...

and the adult markets, many of which feature exotic settings. Although she was often described as a Gothic novelist, a review in '' The New York Times'' even dubbing her "The Queen of the American Gothics", Whitney claimed to hate this title. She preferred to say she wrote ” romantic novels of suspense". In 1961, her book ''The Mystery of the Haunted Pool'' won an

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Juvenile Novel; she duplicated the honor in 1964 for ''The Mystery of the Hidden Hand''. In 1988, the MWA gave her a Grand Master Award for lifetime achievement. In 1990, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Romance Writers of America. Whitney died of pneumonia at age 104 on February 8, 2008.

Published works

* ''A Place for Ann'' (1941) * ''A Star for Ginny'' (1942) * ''A Window for Julie'' (1943) * ''Red is for Murder'' (1943), Reissued as ''The Red Carnelian'' (1965) * ''The Silver Inkwell'' (1945) * ''Writing Juvenile Fiction'' (1947) * ''Willow Hill'' (1947) * ''Ever After'' (1948) * ''The Mystery of the Gulls'' (1949) * ''Linda's Homecoming'' (1950) * ''The Island of Dark Woods'' (1951), Reissued as ''Mystery of the Strange Traveler'' (1967) * ''Love Me, Love Me Not'' (1952) * ''Step to the Music'' (1953) * ''Mystery of the Black Diamonds'' (1954) * ''A Long Time Coming'' (1954) * ''Mystery on the Isle of Skye'' (1955) * ''The Quicksilver Pool'' (1955) * ''The Fire and the Gold'' (1956) * ''The Highest Dream'' (1956) * ''The Trembling Hills'' (1956) * ''Mystery of the Green Cat'' (1957) * ''Skye Cameron'' (1957) * ''Secret of the Samurai Sword'' (1958) * ''The Moonflower'' (1958) * ''Creole Holiday'' (1959) * ''Mystery of the Haunted Pool'' (1960) * ''Thunder Heights'' (1960) * ''Secret of the Tiger's Eye'' (1961) * ''Blue Fire'' (1961) * ''Mystery of the Golden Horn'' (1962) * ''Window on the Square'' (1962) * ''Mystery of the Hidden Hand'' (1963) * ''Seven Tears for Apollo'' (1963) * ''Secret of the Emerald Star'' (1964) * ''Black Amber'' (1964) * ''Mystery of the Angry Idol'' (1965) * ''Sea Jade'' (1965) * ''Columbella'' (1966) * ''Secret of the Spotted Shell'' (1967) * ''Silverhill'' (1967) * ''Hunter's Green'' (1968) * ''Secret of Goblin Glen'' (1969) * ''The Mystery of the Crimson Ghost'' (1969) * ''The Winter People'' (1969) * ''Secret of the Missing Footprint'' (1969) * ''Lost Island'' (1970) * ''The Vanishing Scarecrow'' (1971) * ''Nobody Likes Trina'' (1972) * ''Listen for the Whisperer'' (1972) * ''Mystery of the Scowling Boy'' (1973) * ''Snowfire'' (1973) * ''The Turquoise Mask'' (1974) * ''Secret of Haunted Mesa'' (1975) * ''Spindrift'' (1975) * ''The Golden Unicorn'' (1976) * ''Writing Juvenile Stories and Novels'' (1976) * ''Secret of the Stone Face'' (1977) * ''The Stone Bull'' (1977) * ''The Glass Flame'' (1978) * ''Domino'' (1979) * ''Poinciana'' (1980) * ''Vermilion'' (1981) * ''Guide to Fiction Writing'' (1982) * ''Emerald'' (1983) * ''Rainsong'' (1984) * ''Dream of Orchids'' (1985) * ''Flaming Tree'' (1986) * ''Silversword'' (1987) * ''Feather on the Moon'' (1988) * ''Rainbow in the Mist'' (1989) * ''The Singing Stones'' (1990) * ''Woman Without a Past'' (1991) * ''The Ebony Swan'' (1992) * ''Star Flight'' (1993) * ''Daughter of the Stars'' (1994) * ''Amethyst Dreams'' (1997)

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitney, Phyllis A. 1903 births 2008 deaths Agatha Award winners American centenarians American mystery writers Edgar Award winners American expatriates in Japan People from Staten Island People from Yokohama American women novelists Women mystery writers 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers Novelists from New York (state) Women centenarians Deaths from pneumonia in Virginia 21st-century American women Writers of Gothic fiction