By Peter Swanson
I was ready to love this book. It has the best premise – a bookstore owner creates a list of the top eight perfect murders in literature (as in they could not be proven, the killer “got away with it”). Suddenly, someone starts murdering people according to the books on the list – brilliant! Who doesn’t love the classic whodunits of Agatha Christie and her ilk? Nobody! Nobody doesn’t like Agatha Christie who reads mysteries!
This book was unfortunately a bit of a disappointment for me. It was good. I didn’t pick the murderer by the end, but I felt I was never afforded the chance. I relish the chance to compete with the author.
Instead I was treated to the main character’s inner angst for the majority of the book. He even addresses us, the reader, and informs us he is unreliable, as is “the rage” with mystery writers now. We are supposed to suspect him, but instead I tired of him. He came off as whiny and proclaiming himself as a victim rather than the stalwart character we are supposed to give him credit for by the end. I also don’t think he is a good person, and it is hard for me to champion characters I don’t like.
Pros & Cons & Potential Spoilers
Pros
- Literature references
- Good suspense – we keep thinking something else is about to be revealed
- Back story – when we finally get it – of the narrator
Cons
- Heavy on the emotional turmoil of the narrator
- I also didn’t like FBI Agent Gwen
- I felt there were no clues for us, the reader, to follow to try and figure it out along the way