Anthony Horowitz’s latest, Marble Hall Murders, is double the value with two complete mysteries in one book. First, there is the real one, unfolding in the present; second, there is the novel being written by one of the characters.
Susan Ryeland is asked to edit one last Atticus Pund mystery, a continuation novel by a new author (familiar characters if you have read Magpie or Moonflower Murders or seen the tv series). Eliot Crace gives her trouble from the start, and when he tells her that his mystery will reveal a murderer from his childhood, she worries that he could be in danger.
Crace lived with a famous grandmother beloved by fans for her charming children’s books. In real life, she was a dragon hated by her family. The grandchildren used to dream up ways to murder her. When Susan’s apartment is broken into and trashed, her cat Hugo almost killed by a knife wound, she realizes the past, and its fictionalized version, have intruded into the present.
Horowitz loves anagrams and he has made this whole book into one. Characters from one story are shuffled around to emerge as different people in the second story. Poison, betrayal, and deception are present in each of them as Susan and a sympathetic detective solve three murders. Thumbs up for both stories.
We Solve Murders, Richard Osman’s newest detective agency, ups the ante on the Thursday Murder Club. These new sleuths are professionals! Fans of the Murder Club mysteries will find the characters, Amy, Steve, and Rosie, just as endearing as the septuagenarian amateurs.
Amy, who works for one of the best security firms, has been hired to protect Rosie, a feisty bestselling author of indeterminate age who has been getting murder threats. Ex-policeman Steve, Amy’s father-in-law, might not be content in his quiet retirement. When Amy’s company is implicated in money laundering and three murders, and she finds herself a target, they get together to unravel the mystery. The trail leads around the world in private jets and five stars hotels.
This is a lighthearted story with little question about who will prevail. But its detailed plot, red herrings, and fast action kept me guessing and eagerly turning pages until the very end. We Solve Murders is a worthy successor to the Thursday Murder Club series.
In the song, the Midnight Hour refers to a lovers’ rendezvous. In the book, The Midnight Hour by Elly Griffiths, the phrase means a time of revenge, a time to pay for a crime.
A retired actor, famous in his day, is found dead in his chair, poisoned. His wife isn’t unhappy. She has put up with his sexual misconduct, affairs, even illegitimate children for a lifetime. Did she finally have enough?
She hires a detective agency run by two women to prove her innocence and find the murderer. The two of them work well with the young woman police officer assigned to the case. Is there anyone who wished the dead man harm? The list, mostly spurned lovers from his past, is very long.
Memories from the old theater days, a music hall, a magician’s act, cold changing rooms, run down hotels, all add to the Brighton, England setting. The three women and delightful toddler Jonathon navigate their personal lives while investigating the crime. The pace is brisk; the plot intricate but not overwhelming to follow. It’s a satisfying read.
Strong women getting the job done despite lack of support makes a statement, but it is seamlessly done – not a preachy word to be read. The playboy getting his just desserts is great wish fulfillment.
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