Review: The Reader's Room by Antoine Laurain

Synopsis: When the manuscript of a debut crime novel arrives at a Parisian publishing house, everyone in the readers’ room is convinced it’s something special. And the committee for France’s highest literary honour, the Prix Goncourt, agrees.

But when the shortlist is announced, there’s a problem for editor Violaine Lepage: she has no idea of the author’s identity. As the police begin to investigate a series of murders strangely reminiscent of those recounted in the book, Violaine is not the only one looking for answers. And, suffering memory blanks following an aeroplane accident, she’s beginning to wonder what role she might play in the story …

~ ~ ~

Laurain is fast becoming one of my favorite authors of fiction.

We are introduced to Violaine shortly after her hospitalisation following her accident.  As she recovers, she is alarmed to discover that her memory is not what it was ... little things are unfamiliar to her - she notes that her brain has forgotten her vices and sins.

But return to work Violaine does as a newly discovered crime novel and its mysterious author are about to make history, and possibly for all the wrong reasons.

Both the police and Violaine are in a race to discover the identity of the author - the police, to solve the crimes being perpetrated in a manner outlined in the novel, and Violaine, so she can present the author at a notable literary event!

Soon the indirect narrative style merges to become one and the mystery surrounding both the novel and the crimes is revealed.

If you have read Laurain's "French Windows", you will love this one. Laurain's books are not so much crime thrillers but gently unraveling mysteries that don't let you go - even after you have finished them. I have read a number now and cannot but recommend Laurain - take the plunge and explore this French author for yourselves.

Review: One True Word by Snæbjörn Arngrímsson

Synopsis: After a day of simmering tension on a trip to an uninhabited island, Júlia snaps and leaves her husband Gíó marooned in the middle of a freezing fjord in the depths of the Icelandic winter, with night drawing in.

When she regrets her decision and returns, he is nowhere to be found. The police launch a manhunt, but soon their suspicion falls on his wife. She spins them a story to hide her involvement, but she can feel the net closing in.

Is Gíó alive or dead? In hiding or hunting her down? And can Júlia get to the truth before it destroys her?

~ ~ ~

Another Icelandic noir that I am putting right up there was one of my favourite reads for the year (Eva Björg Ægisdóttir's "The Creak on the Stairs" was my first Icelandic thriller - aside from the Icelandic Sagas of old.).

Not only is the reader compelled to finish this mystery, but also impelled by the unreliable first person narrative of Julia and the investigation into the disappearance of "husband" Gíó. 

The concise chapters move back and forth as Julia recounts current events and those from her past in an effort to draw the reader into her mindset. But we know her version of events is unreliable as she constantly lets us know that she is a habitual liar, who lies easily and unaffectedly.

"I enjoyed the way lying tasted"

"I have a habit of lying"

Julia constantly yet not consistently puts forward her version of events and whilst the police net is closing in around her, a decided lack of proof sees Julia embark on her own quest .... for freedom ... for survival.  This is another point she makes quite clear to the reader - she is a survivor!

Is this mystery solved .... well, that is for each reader to decide.

Review: The Ruffler's Child by John Pilkington

Synopsis: Introducing Thomas Finbow – falconer to Sir Robert Vicary and Lady Margaret of Petbury, Berkshire. He keeps his mind sharp and his body primed as he goes about his duties with the diligent confidence of one who once served Queen and country.

When Nathaniel Pickering, Lady Margaret’s older brother is found murdered, Thomas takes her away to London, in search of gryfalcons. Lady Margaret being a keen lover of the sport of falconry herself, Thomas hopes it will help distract his mistress from her grief, however once they reach the city it becomes apparent that much bigger things are at play – and the murder of Master Pickering was just the beginning…

Thomas's astute mind is unable to ignore the clues, and in uncovering some dark secrets, he places himself - and his mistress - in grave danger. Now a target himself, Thomas must face some of London's most notorious criminals, in a battle of both brain and brawn.

~ ~ ~

For some reason, I had thought I had come across this series prior to now - and realised that it was published some twenty years ago and there are seven books in the series - The Ruffler's Child being the first.

Widowed Thomas Finbow, a former solder, is falconer to a local lordly couple. The death of the lady's brother sets both Thomas and Lady Margaret off to London to see what brother Nathaniel may have left behind by way of clues to why he was killed.

Thomas remains behind to investigate, following leads,discovering long-hidden secrets, that result in many a misfortune for our gallant falconer. Along the way, we learn a little about the Dutch community that settled in London at this time - which I found most enlightening.

England in the 1580s was a period of rising internal (see Mary Queen of Scots) and international political tension, particularly with Spain. In addition, the government - headed by Queen Elizabeth I and her Council - dealt with religious tensions from both Catholics and radical Puritans, while managing the economy which was benefiting from new Atlantic trade routes but facing financial strains from war.

Pilkington immerses the reader to the underbelly of London in the 1580s which included a mix of licensed and unlicensed establishments like taverns, alehouses, and brothels, alongside organized crime and poverty. London was home to what we would now refer to as organised crime - "dissolute, loose and insolent people" harbored in various disorderly houses, including gambling dens, brothels, and illicit taverns.

During this period, there was a growing Dutch community in England consisting primarily of Protestant refugees fleeing religious persecution in the Spanish-controlled Netherlands. These "strangers" formed distinct communities, established their own churches, and contributed to the English economy through new industries like silk and lace weaving. While generally welcomed for their skills, they faced some social friction with the local English population - this is also touched upon. 

This then is the social and political landscape into which the reader is drawn. Events build to the dramatic climax wherein the secret and the identity of the "ruffler's child" is revealed - and the connection to Lady Margaret's family is established.

A good first novel, not an overly long read but one which is nicely paced out to keep the narrative and action perpetually flowing. Looking forward to investing in the rest of the series.

Review: The Lewis Trilogy by Peter May

The Blackhouse

The Isle of Lewis is the most remote, harshly beautiful place in Scotland, where the difficulty of existence seems outweighed only by people's fear of God. But older, pagan values lurk beneath the veneer of faith, the primal yearning for blood and revenge.

When a brutal murder on the island bears the hallmarks of a similar slaying in Edinburgh, police detective Fin Macleod is dispatched north to investigate. But since he himself was raised on Lewis, the investigation also represents a journey home and into his past.

Each year the island's men perform the hunting of the gugas, a savage custom no longer necessary for survival, but which they cling to even more fiercely in the face of the demands of modern morality. For Fin the hunt recalls a horrific tragedy, which after all this time may have begun to demand another sacrifice.

The Lewis Man

A MAN WITH NO NAME. An unidentified corpse is recovered from a Lewis peat bog; the only clue to its identity being a DNA sibling match to a local farmer. A MAN WITH NO MEMORY. But this islander, Tormod Macdonald - now an elderly man suffering from dementia - has always claimed to be an only child. A MAN WITH NO CHOICE. When Tormod's family approach Fin Macleod for help, Fin feels duty-bound to solve the mystery.

The Chessmen

Fin Macleod, now head of security on a privately owned Lewis estate, is charged with investigating a spate of illegal game-hunting taking place on the island. This mission reunites him with Whistler Macaskill—a local poacher, Fin's teenage intimate, and possessor of a long-buried secret. But when this reunion takes a violent, sinister turn, Fin realizes that revealing the truth could destroy the future.

The Black Loch

A MURDER

The body of eighteen-year-old TV personality Caitlin is found abandoned on a remote beach at the head of An Loch Dubh - the Black Loch - on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis. A swimmer and canoeist, it is inconceivable that she could have drowned.

A SECRET

Fin Macleod left the island ten years earlier to escape its memories. When he learns that his married son Fionnlagh had been having a clandestine affair with the dead girl and is suspected of her murder, he and Marsaili return to try and clear his name.

A TRAP

But nothing is as it seems, and the truth of the murder lies in a past that Fin would rather forget, and a tragedy at the cages of a salmon farm on East Loch Roag, where the tense climax of the story finds its resolution.

~ ~ ~

I have read the first three in the series, and all stories follow on from the previous - I have yet to read the fourth instalment. These are not your typical police procedural nor detective fiction; but there is certainly mystery, crime, drama.

The stories are a look into the darker side of a small enclosed, almost claustrophobic community, with long hidden secrets, whose community, like the island itself, is not without scars, and no-one remains untouched by tragedy. The truth of murder lies in a past best forgotten.

The Blackhouse sees the return to Lewis of Fin Macleod, sent to investigate a local death. His presence brings to light that long buried secrets from the past, which is a catalyst for the crimes he is sent to investigate. Even Fin himself has secrets so deeply buried that he has forgotten them.

The Lewis Man delves into the past of another island family with the discovery of the bog-body of a murdered man. But are those revealing what they know reliable narrators.

The Chessman deals with past events linked back to Fin's university days and a local rock band.

May has a way of slowly luring in the reader until they find themselves fully immersed in not only the narrative and characters, but the island of Lewis itself. May's prose is dark and brooding, at times even menacing, that one almost feels the isolation and harsh ruggedness of the Outer Hebrides.

For those with an interest in family drama with long hidden secrets, this series is one for you.

Review: The Bishop Murder Case by SS Van Dine

Synopsis: After solving the Greene murders, Philo Vance has taken a well-earned holiday in Switzerland. Returning to New York City he finds his old chum, District Attorney Anthony Markham, up against a bizarre series of murders inspired by children’s nursery rhymes. 

The first murder, involving a beautiful young woman and a private archery range, was apparently based on “Who Killed Cock Robin?”; it is followed by more hideous deaths referencing “Mother Goose.” But Philo Vance is not a man to be fobbed off with points to juvenilia. Markham and his colleagues may be worried that a certain Mr. H. Dumpty is riding for a great fall, but Philo Vance suspects a connection to a rather more sophisticated writer.

~ ~ ~

The fourth in the series with the Benson Murder Case, the Canary Murder Case & the Green Murder Case all preceding. There are - including this one - twelve books in the series, all set in the 1920s and 1930s. I read all of these quite, quite some time ago and enjoyed them all.

Vance is portrayed by his creator as "a stylish — even foppish —dandy, a New York bon vivant possessing a highly intellectual bent." A homage to Sherlock Holmes, Vance even has his own Watson in the form of one Van Dine (friend, legal advisor, narrator, chronicler). Author Van Dine often has Vance monocled, impeccably attired (gloves, hat, top coat), and his speech frequently tended to be effete, affected, quaint and whimsical. He is invariably accompanied by and works with: DA Markham, Sgt Heath, Dr Doremus, Van Dine (his Watson), and Currie (his valet).

In this outing, the nursery rhymes of Mother Goose provide a backdrop for murder, which Vance, using his vast and unique knowledge of subjects obscure, will solve for the police.

Each tome is accompanied by a cast of characters and murder scene to assist the reader follow the narrative.

This is a golden age detective novel - it is a novel of its own time, not ours. Enjoy it for what is represents - the foundations of the modern day private detective tomes - and a little bit of escapism. For unbeknownst to the world at large, the Great Depression was was about to descend - and escapism from the harsh realities of life would provide a little relief for many.

You can find both the films and radio plays still - enjoy!

Review: Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Soji Shimada

Synopsis: Astrologer, fortuneteller, and self-styled detective Kiyoshi Mitarai must in one week solve a mystery that has baffled Japan for 40 years. Who murdered the artist Umezawa, raped and killed his daughter, and then chopped up the bodies of six others to create Azoth, the supreme woman? 

With maps, charts, and other illustrations, this story of magic and illusion, pieced together like a great stage tragedy, challenges the reader to unravel the mystery before the final curtain. The Tokyo Zodiac Murders joins a new wave of Japanese murder mysteries being translated into English.

~ ~ ~

It is 1979, and amateur detectives and friends Kazumi Ishioka and Kiyoshi Mitarai, investigate a baffling series of murders that was said to have occurred some forty years prior. Going back through events and documentary evidence, these two slowly piece together the mystery before the actual denouement is made by a surprising narrator.

A little bit long-winded for my liking but an intriguing and puzzling mystery none-the-less, and one that will keep the sharpest minds engaged.

Review: Murder in Constantinople by AE Goldin

Synopsis: A gripping, immersive historical murder mystery in which a wayward boy from London's East End is pulled into the hunt for a serial killer on the eve of the Crimean War.

London, 1854. Twenty-one-year-old Ben Canaan attracts trouble wherever he goes. His father wants him to be a good Jewish son, working for the family business on Whitechapel Road, but Ben and his friends, the 'Good-for-Nothings', just want adventure.

Then the discovery of an enigmatic letter and a photograph of a beautiful woman offer an escapade more dangerous than anything he'd imagined. Suddenly Ben is thrown into a mystery that takes him all the way to Constantinople, the jewel of an empire and the centre of a world on the brink of war.

His only clue is three 'The White Death'. Now he must find what links a string of grisly murders, following a trail through kingmaking and conspiracy, poison and high politics, bloodshed and betrayal. In a city of deadly secrets, no one is safe - and one wrong step could cost Ben his life.

~ ~ ~

"Murder in Constantinople" reads like a boys-own-adventure. There are political machinations, espionage, murder, secret societies, travel, war, criminal detection, and a naive hero blundering into situations beyond his abilities.

And if you suspend belief and accept it as such, you will find an enjoyable romp through 19th century Constantinople at the time of the Crimean War - where politics and high society meld, where "everyone from high to low has secrets, all tied together in an invisible web", where conspiracies abound, and a serial killer is on the loose. Can our young runaway find his feet whilst avoid being the target of a secret group of assassins .... only time will tell.!

The first in a new series, the scene setting begins here and once it gets going, the action follows.

Review: Feast for the Ravens by Sarah Hawkswood

Synopsis: Worcestershire, September 1145. A Templar knight is found dead in the Forest of Wyre, clutching a bloodstained document naming a traitor. Undersheriff Hugh Bradecote, Serjeant Catchpoll, and Underserjeant Walkelin must uncover whether the killing was personal, political, or the work of outlaws. They are surprised to find that the locals believe the killer to be the Raven Woman, a mythical shape-shifter said to haunt the woods. Then the knight is identified as Ivo de Mitton, who fled the shire many years ago, presumed guilty of the foul murder of his kin.

As the trio dig through legend and lies, they must determine the truth and bring a cunning killer to justice.

~ ~ ~

This is book thirteen in the Bradecote and Catchpoll series, again, with the setting for this latest in firmly during the time of The Anarchy, and the city of Worcestor in 1145.

Bradecote, Undersherrif of Worcester, along with his serjeant, Catchpoll and underserjeant, Walkelin, are sent to investigate the murder of a Knight Templar, amid rumour and susperstition that he was killed by the Raven Women - "hrafm wif".

The murder has its roots in the past - and our trio must untangle these in order to solve the mystery set firmly in their present. Hawkswood again brings the themes of legend and logic, past and present, norman and saxon, into the narrative to deftly weave an entrancing narrative - or rather ".. knots within knots within knots ...".

Highly recommend starting at the beginning of the series as this will provide a much easier introduction into the characters, the setting, the history, though there is enough within this tome to let the reader get the feel for what has transpired before if they are jumping straight into this one.

See my review of book seven: Wolf at the Door

Review: A Sociopath's Guide to a Successful Marriage by MK Oliver

Synopsis: A whip-smart and darkly funny crime novel—perfect for fans of My Sister, the Serial Killer and The Maid—that follows a wife and mother with a deadly secret that she must suppress if she wants to maintain her picture-perfect façade.

Meet Lalla Rook. Lalla has a lot on her plate: She needs to guarantee her husband makes partner, secure her dream house in Hampstead, and get her daughter into a prestigious prep school. And on the afternoon she stabs a stranger seven times after he breaks into her living room, she has a four-year-old’s birthday party to host.

With an unambitious partner, two demanding children, and a barely adequate large house in a nice (if not quite fashionable) part of town, Lalla’s life isn’t quite perfect yet. And she can’t pretend she hasn’t missed the adrenaline rush that comes with transgressing. Besides, as a wife and mother, she’s already an expert multi-tasker. So, disposing of a body, framing a friend, and being the world’s best mother can easily be managed alongside the usual domestic minutiae.

It’s just that her husband Stephen seems distracted, her daughter’s drowning of the class hamster is affecting her academic future, and then there is the unexpected intruder. Who is this man and what does he want from her? Because Lalla has a past she’d rather keep hidden—and the sudden appearance of the police means that avoiding them will be yet another task to cross off her to-do list.

Funny, calculating, hyper-competent, and ambitious, Lalla is your next favorite anti-heroine. Just don’t mention it to her mother-in-law.

~ ~ ~

This is a great fun read with a protagonist who will stop at nothing to maintain the perfect facade of her life and the ensure the pathway to her future life poses no obstacles.

You cannot but help like Lalla - afterall, if we are honest, we all have a little of the sociopath in us. Author Oliver provides the reader with a quirky and irreverant look at life in suburbia - at bit like "Desperate Housewives" meets "Housewives Of ...." meets "Stepford Wives". The short snappy chapters keep the narrative flowing like a well-oiled machine. And love the "to do" lists at the end of each chapter. 

This tome does not take itself too seriously - and neither should the reader. Lalla aspires to what we all want in life - happy family, comfortable lifestyle, good friends, good job with promotion, good schools for the kids - she just has a slightly different way of achieving it - and being the sociopath that she is, will let nothing get in her way and stop her from getting it - not family, not friends, and certainly not a little murder or two or three!.

As Lalla muses ... "... the past will come back to haunt you if you don't smother it with a pillow ..." - and her most assuredly does! Will she let that get in the way of her ambitions - certainly not! Though at times we do worry that she may not have the full control over events that she thinks she has ..... but this is Lalla, our narrator, our BFF, our anti-heroine. Of course she will triumph!

Oh, and to those "reviewers" who didn't like the book because it "... was down to a male author putting on a female narrative voice... " - get over yourselves you nufties!  Are you implying men are not ever permitted to write female characters - and vice versa. If so, where would we be without some of the great literary pieces we have today. I would take their reviews with a pinch of salt or better yet, ignore completely.

Review: Murder at the Black Cat Cafe by Seishi Yokomizo

Synopsis: Tokyo, 1947. The Pink Labyrinth is one of the bomb-scarred city's most shady neighbourhoods. There, in the dead of night a patrolling policeman catches a young Buddhist monk digging in the back yard of The Black Cat Cafe, a notorious brothel. In the shallow grave at his feet lie the dead body of a woman, her face disfigured beyond recognition, and the corpse of a black cat.

Who is the murdered woman, and how was she connected to the infamous establishment? And where did the dead cat come from, given that the cafe's feline mascot seems to be alive and well? The brilliant sleuth Kosuke Kindaichi investigates, but as he draws closer to the truth, he finds himself in grave danger...

~ ~ ~

Murder at the Black Cat Cafe is a short story with an additional short story, Why Did the Well Wheel Creak?, included.

Kosuke Kindaichi, plays a prominent role in the first story - set in urban Tokyo - but has a almost secondary role in the subsequent mystery - set in familiar territory of rural Japan - appearing towards the end for the denouement.

Both stories feature a similar theme of mistaken or assumed identity, family drama, murder, greed, jealousy and rivalry, revenge, love and lust. The first is a "straight" Yokomizo mystery with Kindaichi investigating and the "author" retelling the tale after receiving a series of documents from him. The second is set out through a series of letters written by a sister to her brother, recounting daily events (and her suspicions) whilst he convalesces in a sanatorium.

Both are engaging mysteries, however, I found myself drawn more to the second one possibly as each letter comes with a greater sense or urgency or impending danger, building up the intensity of the narration.

Review: Murder in the House of Omari by Taku Ashibe

Synopsis: Osaka, 1943: as the Second World War rages and American bombers rain death down upon the city, the once prosperous Omari family is already in decline, financially ruined by the terrible conflict. Then the household is struck by a series of gruesome murders.

Can anyone solve the mystery of these baffling slayings before the Omari line is extinguished entirely? To do so, and unravel the killer's fiendish plot, they will have to delve into the family's past, where a dark and deadly secret has been festering for decades...

~ ~ ~

To be perfectly honest I was not a fan of this one. I had to have a serious think about this one before putting pen to paper a it were.

Even for Japanese crime fiction, this book was excrutiatingly long winded with a snaking narrative that when it finally gets to the point, doubles back on itself, becoming long winded and snaking yet again.

I did enjoy facets of the book - the family dynamics and historical content, but felt my interest waning as the pathway to the conclusion became lost.

I am sure many other will enjoy this - and I will continue to champion Japanese crime fiction as I have grown to love it.

Review: The Spiral Staircase by Ethel Lina White

Synopsis: Helen Capel is hired as a live-in lady-help to the Warren family in the countryside. She enjoys the eccentric household and her duties, but her peaceful and simple life is soon disturbed by a series of mysterious murders in the isolated community.

As Helen’s employer, Professor Sebastian Warren, battens down the hatches and locks all the doors of their remote country house, the eight residents begin to feel safe. But somewhere out there lurks a murderer of young girls. As the murders crawl closer to home, Helen starts to wonder if there really is safety in numbers—and what happens when those numbers start to dwindle?

~ ~ ~

The premise evolves around a young maid, employed in a remote country house, where not all of the members of the household are what they seem; the setting is suitably gothic and claustrophobic; a murderer is on the loose and closing in.

I am in two minds - I love classic crime fiction, which is what this is; on the other hand, it was rather tedious in the initial set up, which I found distracting. The ending was rather curious and not all-together ..... well, believable. However, as this is fiction, the author has provided the reader with a fairly decent psychological drama.

First published in 1933 as "Some Must Watch"

PD Lennon — The Case of the Mad Doctor

Inspired by the true story of Jamaica’s first serial killer.

Jamaica, 1772. Caribbean jewel, or a killer’s playground?

On the island of Jamaica, people have started disappearing without trace. Have they run away, trying to start new lives in the British colony under assumed names, or is something darker afoot?

Some of the missing had taken out large life insurance policies before leaving England, and so word of the vanishings reaches Bristol when relatives try to collect their payouts.

With suspicion of a grand fraud in the air, ambitious Black barrister’s clerk Isaiah Ollenu is thrown together with pious insurance agent Ruben Ashby, and together they are ordered to the Caribbean to investigate.

But, confronted by prejudice, untoward characters and vengeful spirits, the task may cost this unlikely duo more than either man is willing to pay…

A searing snapshot of the British Empire at the threshold of emancipation, and a chilling historical adventure.

Jack the Ripper and the Case for Scotland Yard's Prime Suspect

An investigation into the man Scotland Yard thought (but couldn't prove) was Jack the Ripper. Dozens of theories have attempted to resolve the mystery of the identity of Jack the Ripper, the world's most famous serial killer. Ripperologist Robert House contends that we may have known the answer all along. The head of Scotland Yard's Criminal Investigation Department at the time of the murders thought Aaron Kozminski was guilty, but he lacked the legal proof to convict him. By exploring Kozminski's life, House builds a strong circumstantial case against him, showing not only that he had means, motive, and opportunity, but also that he fit the general profile of a serial killer as defined by the FBI today.

The first book to explore the life of Aaron Kozminski, one of Scotland Yard's top suspects in the quest to identify Jack the Ripper, combines historical research and contemporary criminal profiling techniques to solve one of the most vexing criminal mysteries of all time. The book draws on a decade of research by the author, including trips to Poland and England to uncover Kozminski's past and details of the case. Includes a Foreword by Roy Hazelwood, a former FBI profiler and pioneer of profiling sexual predators. Features dozens of photographs and illustrations. Building a thorough and convincing case that completes the work begun by Scotland Yard more than a century ago, this book is essential reading for anyone who wants to know who really committed Jack the Ripper's heinous and unforgettable crimes.

Review: Buried Above Ground by Mike Ripley

Synopsis: An original spin on the crime novel in which the race to gain the rights to an author’s backlist proves to be more head-scratching – and deadly! – than the plots in his books.

The Librarian

It’s been two decades since mystery writer Duncan Torrens was last published. I should know, I was his editor. So why a blogger would turn up asking questions about the rights to his books is beyond me . . .

The Reader

That librarian Roly is a bit odd. You’d think he’d be happy with my blog’s research into a largely forgotten author, but he’s . . . resistant. If I can get into Duncan’s home – and his mysterious garden shed – I know I’ll find what I’m looking for . . .

The Publisher

Torrens’ books are crying out for a revival. I just need that blogger, Jacon, to work out who holds the rights to his backlist. Then I can acquire them before Duncan’s old publishing house realises they’ve missed a trick!

The Editor

I never worked directly with Duncan before he died, but if someone is sniffing round, there must be money involved. I just need to find out what’s happened to the rights before they do . . .

The Writer

After twenty years, will the sudden interest in this author’s forgotten mysteries reveal a dark – and deadly – twist?

Told from the point of view of five unreliable narrators, none of whom can be trusted – The Librarian, The Reader, The Publisher, The Editor and The Writer – this amusing and darkly intriguing novel is a refreshingly fun, subversive take on the crime fiction genre.

~ ~ ~

Five unreliable narrators (Roland / Roly Wilkes, Jacon Archer, Stephen Crow, Robina Robinson, and Duncan Torrens) take the reader into the heart of modern-day publishing, where only the bottom-line matters and making a buck off an author, dead or alive, however they can, has nothing to do with ethical considerations or authorial proprietorship.

The tale progress as each of these seemingly unconnected  narrators adds a little bit more to the overall plot-line, which is in no way broken or disjointed for doing so - these narratives compliment each other. However, as both we and our narrators near ever closer to the truth, things turn a little deadly, as long buried secrets (and the body count) are starting to rise.

A skillfully plotted mystery that at times leads the reader astray, yet the clues are there to be pieced together, revealing an surprising twist.

Review: French Windows by Antoine Laurain

Synopsis: Nathalia, a young photographer, has been seeing a therapist. Having accidentally photographed a murder, she finds that she can no longer do her job. Instead, Doctor Faber suggests that she write about the neighbours she idly observes in the building across the street. But as these written snapshots become increasingly detailed, he starts to wonder how she can possibly know so much about them.

With each session, Doctor Faber and his mysterious patient will get closer and closer to the truth. But are the stories Nathalia submits each week as she claims...

Bestselling author Antoine Laurain serves up a dose of suspense and intrigue in Rear Window with a Parisian heart.

~ ~ ~

After having photographed a murder and unable to pursue her passion of photography, Nathalia seeks out a therapist. To reignite her passion, therapist (and our narrator) Faber suggests writing a little story on one of the occupants on each of the floors of the building she lives in. Nathalia herself admits that she "watches the people opposite" and "feels like an eye", and though detached from life, she is not so from the act of looking.

One by one, Nathalia brings/ delivers her stories to Faber, starting with Alice, the personal coach on the ground floor, to the hypnotist on the fifth floor. All the while, Faber wonders if the stories are complete fabrications or if there is an element of truth. Only as the reader progresses do they discover the truth behind the stories and a secret that Nathalia has been concealing.

The ending .... superb!  This has to be one of my favourites from this author.

Review: The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain

Synopsis: In this bestselling novel, a bookseller pursues a mystery woman—known only through the jottings in her red notebook—through the streets of Paris.

Bookseller Laurent Letellier comes across an abandoned handbag on a Parisian street, and feels compelled to return it to its owner. Quickly ruling out the police station, which is always best avoided, he turns the contents out onto his kitchen table to see if they hold a clue. The bag contains no money, phone or contact information. But it does yield a small red notebook, full of handwritten thoughts and jottings that reveal someone Laurent would very much like to meet. From the lists of likes and dislikes, things noticed and things felt, emerges the portrait of a woman who might just be his soulmate.

But without even a name to go on, and only a few of her possessions to help him, how is he to find one woman in a city of millions? He’ll have to turn to his daughter, who helps him decode the possessions and sends him on a madcap journey around the French capital.

Meanwhile, in an anonymous hospital room, fragmentary thoughts float through the mind of a woman in a coma. She thinks she’s called Laure, and she has some strong opinions and painful memories – but will she ever wake up and get a fresh chance at life?

Soaked in Parisian atmosphere, this lovely, clever, funny novel is the perfect French holiday read!

~ ~ ~

The story is very simple - a bookseller finds an abandoned handbag in the street and decides to find and return it to its owner. He does so by inspecting and working with the items left in the handbag, including one red notebook. Along the way the reader discovers more about the bookseller and the owner of the bag - the question remains - will they ever meet?

A little bit stalkerish - quite possibly; but Laurain turns this narrative into a charming romantic mystery. A nice little read.

Review: The Mystery of the Crooked Many by Tom Spencer

Synopsis: A distinctive murder mystery with an unforgettably spiky protagonist, for fans of The Twyford Code, Magpie Murders and Can You Ever Forgive Me?

Meet Agatha Dorn, cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green, the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist. She becomes an overnight sensation, basking in the limelight of literary stardom.

But Agatha's newfound fame takes a nosedive when the 'rediscovered' novel is exposed as a hoax. And when her ex-lover turns up dead, with a scrap of the manuscript by her side, Agatha suspects foul play.

Cancelled, ostracised and severely ticked off, Agatha turns detective to uncover the sinister truth that connects the murder and the fraudulent manuscript. But can she stay sober long enough to catch the murderer, or will Agatha become a whodunit herself?

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Unfortunately, I was not really a fan of this one. I did persevere to the very end, but even that left me feeling flat and slightly disappointed.

I had no connection to / with / for the protagonist, Agatha Dorn; the story line was like a tangled ball of wool where neither end provided any narrative lifeline; the multiple references to Agatha Christie and her works bordered on ad nauseam (and smacked of laziness in the creativity department).

A homage or pastiche to Agatha - not from where I was sitting in my reading chair.

Review: Ink Ribbon Red by Alex Pavesi

Synopsis: Knives Out meets Saltburn in this wickedly plotted thriller where a group of friends play a deadly game that unwraps a motive for murder, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and Alex Michaelides.

Anatol invites five of his oldest friends to his family home in the Wiltshire countryside to celebrate his thirtieth birthday. At his request, they play a game of his invention: Motive Method Death. The rules are simple: everyone chooses two players at random and imagines a scenario where one kills the other, then writes it down as a short story.

Points are given for making the murders feel real, as Anatol explains to the group. Of course, when given this assignment, it’s only natural to use what you know. Secrets. Grudges. Affairs. But once you’ve put it in a story, that secret is out. It’s not long before the game has reawakened old resentments and brought private matters into the light of day. So with each fictional murder, someone new gets a very real motive.

Ink Ribbon Red ultimately asks: When a real murder is headed your way, will you be able to spot it in time?

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You really need to read this as a physical copy, because as the author states, this is ... " a mystery novel that builds its central mystery on the reader’s inability to tell story from story within story ..." and boy does the author achieve that in spades!

OMG .... talk about being led down the proverbial rabbit hole over and over again before some faint glimpse of reality presents itself ... the unreliable narratives (yes plural) ... the red herrings ... the back and forth between past and present ... this is definitely one book that needs to be savoured slowly, not rushed, and definitely read again ... and again!

Many will take umbrage at the narrative style and story format (even I was sceptical) but it really does work!

Highly recommended.

Review: A Prentender's Murder by Christopher Huang

Synopsis: The year is 1925. A labyrinth of roads and rails spirals out from the bones of a nearly forgotten settlement. Londinium. Once the far-flung edge of the vast Roman Empire, it is now the seat of a greater one.

Few have given more for the Empire than Colonel Hadrian Russell. Robbed of his four sons by the Great War, he now holds court as the acting president of the Britannia, a prestigious soldiers-only club in London. But when the Colonel is shot and thrown out the club’s front window, it seems the shadows of the Great War may extend further than previously thought.

Lieutenant Eric Peterkin, newly installed secretary at the Britannia, finds himself thrust into the role of detective after Scotland Yard points fingers at friends he knows are innocent. But is the true murderer an unknown spy? Or a recently resurfaced friend of the Colonel’s dead sons? Or is it one of the Colonel’s four widowed daughters-in-law, who by all appearances paid him complete devotion?

Accusations from personal betrayal to wartime espionage mount among the suspects as Eric's investigation draws him back to scenes and sites of a war he’s sought to leave behind. From the greening fields of Flanders and the springtime streets of Paris to the sterile wards of a Swiss sanatorium, and back to the Britannia itself, Eric finds that even myths leave behind bones.

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Having read the first in the series - A Gentleman's Murder - I was eagerly awaiting the second, so was glad of an opportunity to finally read this.

This second book, follows on from the first - and there are a number of references made throughout this one so I do suggest reading "A Genteman's Murder" first. 

Set in the years immediately following WWI, the scene is again set in the Britannia Club, a club for returned soldiers only in London, where we find Peterkin is now Secretary. Against a backdrop of post traumatic stress and the horrors of the Great War", social change, identity and the emancipation of women, murder is once again committed within these hallowed walls.

Returning from Hong Kong and now seconded to Scotland Yard, Inspector Benedict Crane investigates - whilst Peterkin himself conducts his own postmortem of events and interviews those close to the victim, many of who are hiding their own secrets.

As an exploration into the effects of war on those who survived and returned, this is very empathically done - in addition to taking into account the impact of those who remained at the home front and suffered trauma and loss of a different kind.

The mystery of who and why the Colonel was killed was well-crafted, with witnesses and suspects alike coming under the scrutiny of both Peterkin and the Inspector - with both gaining a little more than their counterpart based on the interpersonal relationships. Peterkin is aided in his investigation by his sister Penny and best friend Avery, with a host of other characters providing their perspective (at times I found myself questioning their relevance).

But the past has a way of rearing its head, old secrets long forgotten or buried are coming to the fore ... but at what cost?

"... you do not want to be so lost in the past that you lose your present ..."

Where this lost me a little bit was the need to go "off site" - that is to France and Switzerland" where answers were not forthcoming - and to me this was really was merely an unnecessary diversion for the reader. In addition, in order to portray the societal changes and struggles, I felt the narrative went on a bit too long as there are a number of different elements to be explored before all are brought together.

All in all, another decent novel from Huang.