Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers, Jesse Sutanto, 2023

Rating: 3/5

I picked up Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers as a palate cleanser after some heavier, more intense reads. The quirky title and promise of a cozy mystery with a dash of humour caught my attention. I was intrigued by the premise: an elderly Chinese tea shop owner stumbling upon a dead body and taking it upon herself to solve the crime. It seemed refreshingly different from the books I’d recently read — a lighter, more playful take on the murder mystery genre. Plus, the idea of a sassy, meddling senior citizen acting as an amateur sleuth sounded like a fun twist.

One of the book’s biggest strengths is its charming protagonist. Vera Wong is a delightful character—nosy, opinionated, and utterly endearing. Her habit of dispensing unfiltered, maternal advice (and food and tea) to everyone she meets is both amusing and oddly heartwarming. The novel also shines in its depiction of found family. As Vera cozies up to the suspects — Riki, Oliver, Julia, and Sana — what begins as suspicion gradually transforms into friendship. The group’s growing bond adds warmth , making the story feel more like a character-driven drama than a whodunit. The book also offers gentle but thoughtful commentary on loneliness, immigrant experiences, and generational disconnect.

However, despite these positives, the book ultimately fell a bit flat for me, warranting a 3/5 rating. While the mystery element is what drew me in, it ended up feeling secondary to the relationships and tea-time bonding. The investigation itself is simplistic and lacks the tension or twists that make a mystery gripping. Vera’s sleuthing relies more on charm and intuition than genuine detective work, making the “solving” of the crime feel almost incidental. Additionally, the writing style, while breezy and accessible, often veers into being overly sweet and sentimental. The characters’ emotional arcs, though touching, felt predictable and saccharine, with conflicts tied up too neatly.

That said, Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers will likely appeal to many readers, especially those looking for a cozy, heartwarming read with a sprinkle of mystery. Fans of character-driven stories, particularly ones featuring quirky older protagonists, will enjoy Vera’s antics and her lovable meddling. The book’s themes of loneliness, redemption, and human connection give it a relatable emotional core. While I found the book a bit too sugary and simplistic for my taste, still, it offers a pleasant escape — like a cup of sweet, milky tea on a rainy afternoon: comforting, but not particularly memorable.

Pros: Charming protagonist, heartwarming, and gentle commentary on loneliness and connection

Cons: Simplistic mystery, predictable emotional arcs, and overly saccharine tone

Sea of Tranquility, Emily St. John Mandel, 2022

Rating: 5/5

What struck me the most after finishing Sea of Tranquility was how much it covered in just 200 pages — spanning centuries, multiple storylines, and several themes — without ever feeling rushed or overly complex. Despite its brevity, the novel takes its time with each of its main characters, immersing the reader in their lives making their journeys feel intimate.

It is difficult to write about the book’s premise without spoiling it for readers. Suffice to say, Sea of Tranquility is a beautifully written novel that blends science fiction with human themes. The book follows multiple characters across different timelines. In 1912, Edwin St. Andrew, a young English aristocrat, is banished to Canada and stumbles upon a mysterious anomaly in the forest. In the 2200s, Olive Llewellyn, a bestselling author from a lunar colony, embarks on an Earth book tour, unaware of the eerie parallels between her novel and reality. In 2401, Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a detective from the Night City on the Moon, is assigned to investigate a strange pattern in time that links these characters. Mandel moves fluidly between the various narratives, keeping the story brisk yet immersive, allowing readers to absorb its multiple layers without feeling overwhelmed. The novel ends satisfyingly, tying the threads of its intricate plot together — a feat that is often difficult in stories of this genre.

The book’s structure reminded me somewhat of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, another book that I love. Like that book, Sea of Tranquility weaves together multiple timelines and perspectives, exploring the interconnectedness of human lives across centuries. However, Cloud Atlas leans more heavily on stylistic shifts between its narratives, whereas Sea of Tranquility maintains a more uniform tone. Readers who appreciate the philosophical underpinnings of Cloud Atlas but prefer a more straightforward, emotionally resonant narrative with a dash of science fiction will likely find Sea of Tranquility particularly compelling.

Pros: Elegant writing, interesting themes, easily devoured in one sitting

Cons: Light on the sci-fi mechanics

The Last Murder at the End of the World, Stuart Turton, 2024

Rating: 5/5 

Stuart Turton's willingness to reinvent his approach with each book is bold and compelling—one of the reasons I eagerly anticipate his every release. His earlier works, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and The Devil and the Dark Water, showcased his range: the first a whodunit with a Groundhog Day-like twist, the second a dark tale of superstition and conspiracy aboard a 17th-century ship. Now he ventures into new territory with a sci-fi apocalypse whodunit, as the title aptly suggests.

Set in a post-apocalyptic future, The Last Murder at the End of the World unfolds on a small Greek island where a deadly fog has decimated humanity. The survivors—122 villagers and three scientists—live under strict rules enforced by an AI voice embedded in their consciousness. When a murder occurs, the islanders must solve the crime before their protective systems fail and the fog consumes them all. As time runs out, the story weaves a gripping tale of survival, community, and hidden truths in a world on the brink of oblivion.

The book's greatest strength, as with Turton's previous works, is its seamless blend of genres. He masterfully combines a classic locked-room mystery with a post-apocalyptic setting and speculative science fiction, creating something remarkably fresh. However, the book's ambitious scope, paired with its relatively short length, occasionally leads to superficial treatment of certain elements. This is particularly evident in the whodunit aspect—the numerous subplots make it challenging to remain invested in the murder mystery. Yet Turton's skilled world-building and talent for crafting intricate puzzles make the story captivating from beginning to end.

Pros: Inventive genre-blending, unique world-building, and an engrossing plot.

Cons: An underdeveloped whodunit element

Close to Death, Anthony Horowitz, 2024

Rating: 3/5

In the world of murder mysteries, Anthony Horowitz stands out for his diverse approach. His books defy convention, and “Close to Death” is no exception. I have read four previous Hawthorne books—the first two were Susan Ryeland mysteries, structured as books within books. One even featured Sherlock Holmes. The fourth book saw the author playing sidekick to investigator Daniel Hawthorne in a true crime novel. Now, in “Close to Death,” Horowitz revisits an unsolved case from years ago, getting involved with Hawthorne long after the crime occurred. However, this desire to be unconventional did not work for me this time, but more about that later.

Detective Hawthorne tackles an unsolvable murder in Riverside Close, an idyllic gated and wealthy community. The entire set-up is very Agatha Christie-like, an obvious inspiration for Horowitz in many of his books. The Close consists of six houses occupied by a hedge fund manager and his wife, a chess expert and his Asian wife, a dentist and his invalid wife, a conscientious doctor-designer couple, a widowed lawyer, and two ex-nuns. The least liked person is killed, and everyone else seemingly has a motive, however trivial it may be. Horowitz uses this murder, committed several years ago, as the basis for his new book.

Once again, Horowitz blends reality and fiction, keeping himself as a character alongside Hawthorne. Juggling multiple timelines, Horowitz keeps readers engaged and guessing. The supposed murderer is revealed exactly midway through the book, and it’s left to Horowitz to piece together the real story behind the murder. While this eventually justifies the “meta” structure of the book, it is distracting and weary during the first half. On the plot itself (which is the most important part of any murder mystery), the eventual resolution is far from satisfying—while the author has scattered a few clues throughout the book, it could have been resolved in so many different ways, and I don’t think it is possible for readers to work it out themselves.

While Horowitz’s ambition is admirable, it occasionally hampers the book’s flow. Eventually, I felt that Horowitz’s desire to be unconventional sometimes overshadowed the plot.

A bonus: Horowitz rants about his dislike for locked-room mysteries in the middle of the book but helpfully suggests a couple of good ones for lovers of that genre: “Murder in the Crooked House” by Soji Shimada, and “The Honjin Murders” by Seishi Yokomizo.

Pros: Engaging, Agatha Christie-like setting

Cons: Weary meta structure at times

Troubled Blood, Robert Galbraith, 2020

Rating: 4/5

To start off with, Galbraith’s (JK Rowling’s pseudonym) “Troubled Blood” has an interesting premise — a woman, Anna, hires protagonists Cormoran Strike and his business partner Robin Ellacott, to investigate the disappearance of her mother, Margot Bamborough, a London-based GP. The interesting part is that Margot disappeared 40 years earlier and we have Strike and Ellacott revisit the lives and motivations of several possible suspects, some of who are dead, including an incarcerated serial killer, Margot’s husband at that time, her medical colleagues, patients and friends. And in between trying to solve this case, Strike and Ellacott must grapple with other cases and personal issues such as his terminally ill aunt, his suicidal ex-girlfriend, Robin’s PTSD from an earlier incident and her messy divorce. That gives enough material for Rowling to make this a 900+ page book, without it dragging at most times!

The mystery is of a high quality. The various characters are fleshed out well and the reader is privy to most developments through the book. Astrological clues are also neatly woven in the narrative, in the form of the scribblings of the initial investigator who slowly lost his mind. For a change, at least in my view, Rowling has handled the emotional elements, especially the potentially romantic track between Strike and Ellacott, quite well. I always thought that romance was the weakest part of the Harry Potter books and the Strike-Ellacott relationship was handled awkwardly in the earlier books in the Cormoran Strike series. This time however, there is far more maturity (and far less cringe)!

Rowling has borrowed the title of the book from Edmund Spenser’s epic poem, “The Faerie Queene”, and has a verse from the poem as an epigraph to each chapter. The epigraphs, very cleverly, appear to have clues to the direction of the story. Given my unfamiliarity with the poem, these allusions escaped me but (important: the following link has major spoilers) http://strikefans.com/the-faerie-queene-epigraphs/ is a very good source to understand the linkages between the poem and the book. 

The missing star in the rating is for the excessive length. While, as mentioned above, the book does not drag for most of its length, the reader tends to lose the plot and forget the characters if they take a long time to finish the book (for example, it took me a month and half to complete this book due to a lack of time to read). Rowling seems to be going the way of the Harry Potter series with the Strike books — the first two books were about 450 pages long, the next two were 500 and 650 respectively, “Troubled Blood” (the fifth of the series) is almost 950 pages long and “The Ink Black Heart”, which has just released has crossed the 1,000-page mark!

Pros: Interesting premise, fast-paced towards the end, relatively better handling of the emotional parts

Cons: Excessive length

Hickory Dickory Dock, Agatha Christie, 1955

Rating: 3/5

It’s rare for an Agatha Christie-Hercule Poirot novel to disappoint me but Hickory Dickory Dock is one of those. The book starts off with a series of thefts of mainly minor items (such as a stethoscope, lightbulbs, and boracic powder) and some trivial but vicious acts (such as a slashed rucksack and spilt green ink on someone’s notes) at a youth hostel located on Hickory Road run by the sister of Poirot’s secretary. Poirot gets attracted to the case due to its ordinary yet seemingly perplexing nature. Soon thereafter, there is a murder and events unfold true to the nature of a Christie novel.

There are a few things to like about the book. It is short and a page-turner, there are several characters that have interesting back stories and who could be the killer, and the unconnected events are neatly untangled at the end.

However, as I mentioned at the outset, the book does disappoint on various counts. First, while the title is a continuation of Christie’s practice of using nursery rhymes, the connection is extremely tenuous in this case. The hostel is located on Hickory Road and there is some brief reference to people “being in the dock” but that’s about all the connection there is. Second, when I re-read Christie’s books, I can’t help but notice the racist treatment of some characters in some of the novels. Well, it was written 67 years ago, so perhaps we can ignore it. Third, it is not clear how Poirot arrived at some of the conclusions that helps him solve the crime. There is no way in which readers can solve this themselves and that feels a bit unfair. Fourth, and this is perhaps a minor thing, I enjoy the dynamics between the investigating officers and Poirot is many of the books — the police holding Poirot’s views in contempt initially and then recognising his abilities eventually. Finally, and importantly, the best part of the Poirot books for me is the eventual denouement where Poirot gathers all the characters in one place and explains how he solved the case. That is sadly missing in this book. So, this is not a book that I intent to re-read ever!

Pros: Page-turner, unconnected events that neatly fit together at the end

Cons: No final denouement, all the steps behind Poirot’s solution are unclear, disappointing title

The House of Silk, Anthony Horowitz, 2011

Rating: 5/5

Arthur Conan Doyle would have been proud of this book. When I think of Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes mysteries, three features stand out: the mystery itself and the process of its resolution, the warm dynamics of the Holmes-Watson relationship and the captivatingly captured atmosphere of late-19th century London. Horowitz’s Sherlock Holmes adventure, commissioned by Doyle’s estate, is a wonderful tribute on all three counts.

The book opens with an art dealer visiting Holmes due to his fears of being followed by an American gang leader. Holmes’ investigations result in the disappearance of a street urchin which in turn segues into a seemingly different mystery involving influential personages and the eponymous House of Silk and with a cliffhanger of an ending where the two different mysteries are neatly resolved. Horowitz often structures his detective novels in unique ways, such as the book within a book structure in Magpie Murders, and this book is no different. As Watson refers to it in the preface, this book is actually two mysteries — The Man in the Flat Cap, and The House of Silk — with a tenuous link between the two. The fact that Horowitz manages to make this look largely like Doyle’s book despite this is testament to his writing prowess.

The House of Silk will not disappoint Doyle fans. The mystery is top-notch, the resolution satisfying and there are enough clues strewn in the book that will make readers kick themselves at the end for not having figured it out earlier. Horowitz also manages to include some important characters from Holmes’ earlier adventures seamlessly into the narrative. There are a couple of incidents of Holmes showing off his detection skills as well, in that partly impressive and partly irritating manner of his that we have grown to love. This story does deviate from Doyle’s works in a couple of ways though — it turns out to be far darker than what Coyle has ever attempted and the end of the book includes more action than what we are used to in a typical Sherlock Homes adventure. The latter was probably directed towards “any circling Hollywood producers” as Horowitz cheekily mentions in the book’s epilogue.

An added bonus: The epilogue where Horowitz details the conception of the book and the rules that he followed while writing it is a nice little read by itself.

Pros: Great mystery, true to Doyle’s writing

Cons: A bit darker than what Holmes fans are used to

The Word is Murder, Anthony Horowitz, 2017

Rating: 3/5

Horowitz has mastered the art of crafting detective stories differently, in a meta format. For example, in Magpie Murders, the clues to the mystery reside in another book that’s embedded within the main story. The Word is Murder is structured in the form of a true crime novel where Horowitz himself plays a role as the biographer of fictional detective Daniel Hawthorne during the process of solving a murder. Diana Cowper is found strangled a few hours after she visits a funeral parlour to plan her own funeral. Key characters in the mystery include her son and his girlfriend, her maid, a producer friend, and a family who was hurt in a car accident caused by Diana. Daniel Hawthorne, a detective, contacts Horowitz to write a book about himself and offers him a role in investigating Cowper’s death. 

True to his style, Horowitz structures his detective story interestingly — he intersperses actual events in his life (such as the publication of his novels and involvement with TV and movies) with the fictional role that he plays in the murder mystery. After a while, it’s difficult to separate fact from fiction and Horowitz uses this style to dwell on the process and challenges of writing novels. You can imagine him having a quiet chuckle when his fictional self writes about how he accepts Hawthorne’s offer as a shortcut to write a new murder mystery, without doing much research. Or when that fictional self talks about his insecurities around missing out on opportunities that could possibly be life-changing or of saying the wrong things in a literary event with journalists present. This does have its jarring moments though. At one point, there is an entire chapter on a tangential narrative of his involvement with Spielberg’s Tintin movies (which is part real and part fiction), which has no bearing on the story. But there are the parts that makes one think too, like the time when he was trying to make television viewers try to understand the turning away of a gay couple from a hotel from the homophobic owner’s point of view but got pilloried — “we need to tolerate intolerance” as he puts it.

The build-up is top-notch and makes this book a page-turner — Horowitz throws lines early in the book, such as one where he indicates that the first chapter includes a clue that quite clearly identifies the killer or the one where he regrets getting involved because of what happens later, that hooks the reader completely and builds anticipation. And like all good novels, there are enough clues strewn about that would make the reader feel that they could have solved the mystery. 

But eventually, I will not rate this among the finest murder mysteries that I have read. Unlike Agatha Christie’s Poirot or Arthur Conan Doyle’s Holmes, Hawthorne is an extremely unlikeable person. Even the more recent Strike from Robert Galbraith’s (JK Rowling) books tends to be brusque, but you can still root for him. And you need a protagonist that you can root for! Hawthorne’s homophobia is also quite apparent early in the book and while Horowitz’s character expresses his displeasure at it, he continues working with Hawthorne and this apparent conflict remains unresolved even at the end. Also, while a Dr. Watson or a Dr. Hastings come across as nincompoops occasionally, it’s easy to empathise with them and their relationships with the main detectives are endearing. Horowitz, on the other hand, comes across as a weak person, a poor foil to Hawthorne, has no chemistry with the detective and for a successful writer, some of his actions are inexplicable. So, for me, this book gets full marks for the writing style but is an average detective story otherwise.

Pros: Clever structure, page turner

Cons: Unlikeable protagonists

The ABC Murders, Agatha Christie, 1936

Rating: 5/5

I rate this as one of Christie’s three best Poirot books, along with “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” and “Then There were None”. 

The story follows a series of murders with the towns in which they are committed and the victims’ names following an alphabetical sequence. For good measure, the killer leaves a ABC rail guide at the scenes of the crime. Early in the story, we are exposed to Alexander Bonaparte Cust who seems to have a close link with the killings. The structure is that of a typical Poirot book — the initial crime, the follow-up crimes, assorted characters related to the victims, a prime suspect, some romantic entanglements, and Poirot’s dénouement at the end in a room full of people. Poirot’s actions, just before the dénouement, are usually strange — in this book, they are even more inexplicable than usual.

A hallmark of a good detective novel, in my view, is its ability to give the reader a sporting chance to solve the mystery while at the same time being clever enough to make it very difficult. “The ABC Murders” scores on that front — the challenge here is to figure out the underlying thread of the story rather than the killer themselves. The only grouse I had it with the book was that certain aspects of the story seemed a bit far-fetched. And like most Christie books, this one is a page-turner!

As a side note, When I re-read the Poirot books, I am struck by how naive Christie has made Hastings out to be — early in the book for example, Hastings believes that Poirot’s grey hair is turning black. While Christie means Hastings to be a perfect foil for Poirot, a sort of Dr. Watson to Sherlock Holmes, she does do a disservice to him! :-)

Pros: Page-turner, clever plot, satisfying end

Cons: Some elements of the story seem far-fetched

Moonflower Murders, Anthony Horowitz, 2020

Rating: 4/5

I rarely read sequels back-to-back — I find that doing so diminishes the charm of the first book for me and I prefer revisiting a story after a period of time. But Magpie Murders was such delightful reading that I couldn’t resist jumping into Moonflower Murders right away.

The structure of this book is similar to that of Magpie Murders, i.e., the book consists of two complete stories which are separate yet linked, with one story embedded in the other. However, unlike Magpie, the main story here is neatly cleaved into two and bookends the embedded one. This also makes the book a bit more difficult to follow given that there are several characters in each of them and there seems to be some correlation between the two sets.

Like in the earlier book, the Atticus Pünd story titled “Atticus Pünd Takes The Case” is a pacy one — detective Pünd has been called to investigate the murder of a famous actress at Tawleigh-on-the-water, and the cast of suspects include her husband, household help, hotel staff, people that live in the village as well as some outsiders. In the main story, the parents of a missing woman hire Susan Ryeland to find their daughter — she has gone missing after spotting a clue while reading APTTC that could solve a previous murder and Susan had edited and published the book.

Horowitz, as in his earlier book, devotes a lot of attention to both the stories and neatly fits all the pieces of the puzzle by the end. Having said that, I did enjoy this book slightly lesser than its precursor. Perhaps, it was the back-to-back reading that reduced my enjoyment or perhaps it was the fact that Horowitz appears to try too hard to be clever to live up to the expectations of this book. Either way, I would definitely recommend a reading of this book, but not immediately after the previous one!

Pros: Two interesting mysteries in one cleverly combined

Cons: A tad too clever perhaps, too many characters

Magpie Murders, Anthony Horowitz, 2016

Rating: 5/5

“A bottle of wine. A family-sized packet of Nacho Cheese Flavoured Tortilla Chips and a jar of hot salsa dip. A packet of cigarettes on the side (I know, I know). The rain hammering against the windows. And a book.” This is how Magpie Murders begins and this is exactly the way this book needs to be enjoyed (minus the cigarettes, of course)! 

The structure of the novel right at the outset — a book within a book and meta fiction of sorts — clearly signals that this novel is not just another mystery where the murderer will be unveiled in the final act. In the first mystery, which is embedded within the main story, detective Atticus Pünd is exploring a murder or murders in the charming village of Saxby-on-Avon. This seems to have been clearly (and intentionally) inspired by Agatha Christie with the village settings and the multitude of characters — there is even an allusion to a nursery rhyme early into the story. This mystery is written by a writer called Alan Conway and in this universe, this is the ninth book featuring Pünd. And even as a standalone story, this ranks with many of the best Agatha Christie mysteries.

But this is just a part of Horowitz’s book. In the main story, Susan Ryeland is an editor at Cloverleaf Books and is going over Conway’s manuscript (which is the embedded story). As she lays out in the first three pages of the book, the manuscript will upend her life eventually and this main narrative present another mystery.

Horowitz has paid careful attention to both the stories in the book. And his writing style makes this a page-turner and keeps the reader guessing until the end. At its simplest, this book is two interesting mysteries for the price of one. But in reality, it is an extremely clever derivative of the typical whodunnit — well-structured and cleverly plotted! I can’t wait to read the sequel, “Moonflower Murders”.

Pros: Agatha Christie and more, clever plot, page-turner

Cons: None really

The Devil and the Dark Water, Stuart Turton, 2020

Rating: 5/5

I had been looking forward to read this book ever since Turton announced it, given how delightful his first book, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (7 Deaths Review), was! While The Devil and the Deep Water is not as complex and jaw-dropping as his first book, it’s still a surprising story, is a page turner from the first page to the last and ends satisfyingly!

The story is set on a ship, the Sardaam, which is transporting cargo from Batavia to Amsterdam for the United East India Company. Governor General Jan Haan is the senior-most official on board and is also carrying some personal secret consignments. He is accompanied by his wife, Sara Wessels, his daughter, Lia, and his mistress Creesjie Jens – all of them accomplished women but forced to hide behind a veil of mediocrity in keeping with the times. A famous investigator, Samuel Pipps, is a prisoner on board and his journey from being a hero a short while ago to a prisoner is shrouded in mystery. Arent Hayes is his bodyguard and sidekick and in the absence of Pipps’ freedom, takes on a more central role in the proceedings.

The mysteries begin from the end of the first chapter itself. And as the story moves forward, tales of fear, greed, betrayal and revenge emerge, framed in the backdrop of a devil called Old Tom, as various characters get killed off. The “dark water” of the title could refer to the sea around the ship or could refer to the evil in the souls of men. Besides the mysteries of the various protagonists, there is a strong supernatural element through the book and after the experience with Turton’s first book, it is impossible to decide whether this element is imaginary or not.

Like all good mystery novels, this one is a page turner right until the end. And has a big surprise towards the end. And ties up all the loose ends and the questions raised through the book, neatly. There are several references to the period in which the story is based but as Turton pens in an “apology” at the end, he has sacrificed some of the historical realism to befit the narrative.

The absolute ending is perhaps a trifle glib and convenient. And this book is nowhere as jaw-dropping as his first book. But that does not take away from the fact that this is an extremely enjoyable book.  I now can’t wait for his third book!

Pros: Page-turner, satisfying and surprising denouement, well-written

Cons: A trifle convenient ending perhaps

Various Hercule Poirot mysteries, Agatha Christie, 1920 to 1933

Rating: 5/5

It had been a while since I had read an Agatha Christie and with some trepidation (often, I've had bad experiences while revisiting things that I had enjoyed when much younger), I picked up the first of the Hercule Poirot (for me, Agatha Christie equates to Hercule Poirot) books, The Mysterious Affair at Styles. To my great surprise, I found that the joy of reading a Christie remains unabated -- I still find her books well-written, the plots well-fleshed out, Hercule Poirot still as clever as ever and overall, her books remain page-turners. I ended up reading three more of Poirot's early mysteries -- The Murder on the Links (#2), Peril at End House (#8), and Lord Edgware Dies (#9), all within a span of 12 days.

If I had to rank these four books in order, it would be Styles, Edgware, Links and End House. I have a fondness for Styles for it introduces Poirot. In this, he investigates the murder of an old, rich, and autocratic woman, who recently married a man 20 years her junior. In Edgware, a beautiful actress wants to get rid of her husband so that she can marry another, and sure enough, he is found dead. Links has the usual elements of a Poirot story -- a dead millionaire and several suspects including his wife, son and a mistress. An added bonus is that Hastings (the Watson to Poirot's Holmes) meets his future wife in this book. End House is slightly different in the sense that Poirot is trying to prevent the murder of a young girl who has had some close shaves in the recent path. For me, this was the most predictable of the four books.

An element of the Poirot books that I really love is the end denouement in which Poirot gathers all the characters of the story and reveals the identity of the murderer, after detailing out his thought process. Not all his books have this, and I prefer those that do. This style of denoument was actually an act of serendipity. In Styles, Christie had initially written a different climatic scene where Poirot reveals the murderer's identity in a courtroom. Her publisher protested that such an event was implausible, forcing Christie to rewrite the end. The legions of Poirot fans should be grateful to this publisher! As a bonus in the Styles edition that I read, the original courtroom climax is included as an appendix. Besides this aspect, all the Poirot books are cleverly plotted, have multiple suspects, enough red herrings and directs the reader's suspicions from one character to another through the book.   

The only complaint, if any, is that Christie keeps some important plot elements from the reader and only Hercule Poirot is aware of those. But then I am okay with this -- when I read the books, I enjoy the flow of the plot and do not necessarily attempt to play detective.

Pros: Cleverly plotted, page-turner, the usual denouement and of course, the inimitable Hercule Poirot

Cons: Some important plot elements are kept from the reader

The Guest List, Lucy Foley, 2020

Rating: 5/5

While choosing this book, I came across a few descriptions that compared this book to those by Agatha Christie. This book, however, is no classic murder mystery; in fact, the identity of the victim is revealed only 90% into the book. What this book is, though, is a very good psychological thriller!

A reality show star, Will, and an online publishing celebrity, Jules, host their wedding on a remote Irish island that is beautiful and eerie in turn. The presence of the cormorant birds on the island, a harbinger of evil and death as per folklore, quickly indicate the direction that the book will take. The main cast of characters also include Will's best man Johnno, Jules' best friend Charles and his wife Hannah, Jules' half-sister Olivia, the event manager Aoife and her husband Freddy, and an assortment of family and friends. As the book progresses, it becomes clear that most of the characters harbour dark secrets, and these are revealed slowly, layer by layer, leading to the climatic revelations.

I do not consider most murder mysteries, including those of Agatha Christie, as particularly well-written -- after all, the focus is on the mystery rather than on the writing. However, The Guest List is a notable exception. Foley writes very well and has a nice turn of phrase. At the same time, her writing is very easy to follow so that the reader can spend her energy in thinking about the various characters and their secrets, rather than in keeping pace with the story. The construct of the book is interesting with the events of the wedding evening narrated in the third person interspersed with those of earlier in the day and of the preceding evening narrated in the first person by Aoife, Hannah, Jules, Johnno, and Olivia. The story is told in the present tense throughout, and this along with the vivid descriptions, makes it extremely immersive for the reader.

The pace is languid but at no time will the reader's interest flag -- the slow peeling of the finer details and the interesting psychological studies of the various characters ensure that. The only fault to find, if any, is that some of the standard tropes of a murder mystery have been used, enabling us to guess the identity of the victim and the perpetrator as we progress through the book. But that does not detract from the enjoyment of reading it one bit!

Pros: Extremely well written, interesting construct, unputdownable

Cons: Somewhat predictable before the end

The Silent Patient, Alex Michaelides, 2019

Rating: 4/5

The Silent Patient belongs to the genre of mystery/thrillers that's constructed cleverly, is a page-turner, has a big reveal at the end, and which can be kept aside and forgotten once it is read. And for that genre, the book delivers!

The book is centred around two key characters. The first is Alicia Berenson, who appears to have shot her husband, Gabriel, five times in the face and who refuses to speak after the incident (and hence the title of the book). The second is Theo Faber, a criminal psychotherapist, who is extremely keen to work with Alicia, strangely even at the cost of his career.

The book peels off layer after layer of the mystery at a rapid pace with Theo as the narrator, exploring Theo's motivations and the mystery of Gabriel's death through their backstories (Alicia's diary in her case). One interesting aspect of the book is the usage of Alcestis as a trope - a Greek heroine who sacrificed her life to bring back her husband from death and also the title given by Alicia to a self-potrait painted after her husband's murder.

Standard elements of this genre have been liberally used. For example, there are the usual red herrings on the way. And I felt just a little bit cheated by the aid used for the plot twist at the end. But nevertheless, the end is quite satisfying and most of the motivations of the various characters are explained by the time we finish the book. This is Michaelides' debut novel and is quite impressive for that.

Pros: Page-turner, clever plot, a fairly satisfying end

Cons: A read-and-forget type of book

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, Stuart Turnton, 2018

Rating: 5/5

In hindsight, I was really lucky that I walked into this book blind, with no significant knowledge of the plot. And about 70 pages later, with the first major plot twist, my enjoyment of this book was greatly enhanced. I would strongly recommend everyone to do the same if possible.

At its heart, this book is a mind-bending murder mystery. But it is also about the myriad interesting characters populating this book. And eventually, it is about redemption. So that's what makes this book doubly delicious ‒ as the mystery unfolds page by page, we are treated to some fascinating characters through the course of the book, many of who are neither black nor white, as we are initially led to believe.

Like all books or movies of this genre, there are inherent flaws to the "circular logic" used. I cannot explain this further without revealing some spoilers, but this book overcomes most of the flaws. I re-read the book, noting down questions that needed answers as the book progressed, and it was immensely satisfying to see that practically all the questions had been answered by the end. That make this one of the cleverest books that I have read. And finally, I'm a sucker for interesting trivia. The fact that this book was published in the US as The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle to prevent a conflict with another title was, by itself, worth half a rating point!

His next book, The Devil and the Dark Water, is expected later this year. I can't wait for it to be published!

Pros: Gripping from start to finish, an extremely clever plot

Cons: An extremely convoluted plot too (which may not work for everyone)

PS: I'm reactivating this blog after over 10 years, and am also moving to a simpler 1-5 rating system. 3 would mean that the book is just about readable, 1 or 2 would mean that the book deserves to be binned, while 4 or 5 would imply different degrees of a very good book.