EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS by Peter Swanson
William Morrow; 3/3/20
CBTB Rating: 5/5
The Verdict: a must-read for crime fiction obsessed bookworms
What makes for the perfect murder? If you’re as crime fiction obsessed as I am, it’s probably a question that’s popped into your head once or twice in the context of the murder mysteries you are devouring. I’ve been a mystery reader since I was a little kid (I owe a debt of gratitude to Carolyn Keene and Nancy Drew for that!), and over the years certain books - and certain murders found in the pages of those books - have stuck out as “perfect.” In Peter Swanson’s EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS, fictional crimes become a blueprint for real-life violence. Following the owner of a mystery-dedicated bookstore in Boston, EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS imagines what happens when a person with a desire to do harm gets his or her hands on a guide to some of the most infallible murders in the crime fiction genre. Will these crimes prove as impossible to solve in the real world as they are on the page? In his newest release, Swanson delivers a shocking, addictive mystery with a classic crime twist. EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS is a love letter to the crime fiction genre. It’s a story steeped in genre history and present-day in-jokes, and it’s one that no crime fiction reader will want to miss. I haven’t had this much fun reading a crime novel in ages. Put on your amateur sleuth hat and join Peter Swanson on this delightfully nostalgic, utterly clever journey through the greatest murders in crime fiction.
Plot Details:
Years ago, bookseller and mystery aficionado Malcolm Kershaw compiled a list of the genre’s most unsolvable murders, those that are almost impossible to crack—which he titled “Eight Perfect Murders”—chosen from among the best of the best including Agatha Christie’s A. B. C. Murders, Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train, Ira Levin’s Death Trap, A. A. Milne's Red House Mystery, Anthony Berkeley Cox's Malice Aforethought, James M. Cain's Double Indemnity, John D. Macdonald's The Drowner, and Donna Tartt's A Secret History.
But no one is more surprised than Mal, now the owner of the Old Devils Bookstore in Boston, when an FBI agent comes knocking on his door one snowy day in February. She’s looking for information about a series of unsolved murders that look eerily similar to the killings on Mal’s old list. And the FBI agent isn’t the only one interested in this bookseller who spends almost every night at home reading. There is killer is out there, watching his every move—a diabolical threat who knows way too much about Mal’s personal history, especially the secrets he’s never told anyone, even his recently deceased wife.
To protect himself, Mal begins looking into possible suspects . . . and sees a killer in everyone around him. But Mal doesn’t count on the investigation leaving a trail of death in its wake. Suddenly, a series of shocking twists leaves more victims dead—and the noose around Mal’s neck grows so tight he might never escape.
One of the main reasons I love the crime fiction genre so much is surprisingly simple: I love this genre because it is fun. I grew up hooked on mysteries, and as I’ve grown into my adult life, these books have remained my passion. The puzzles, intrigue, and suspense found within their pages are exactly the kind of escapism I want, and their entertainment value is one of the key factors that keeps me coming back for more. The same can also be said of Peter Swanson’s thrilling new release EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS. As a reader who unapologetically values the “fun” factor, I found a perfect match in Swanson’s newest release. EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS is, at its core, an absolutely delightful crime novel written precisely for readers like you and me: readers obsessed with the crime genre. This story’s ingredients are promising right from the outset. A bookseller protagonist? Check. A series of crimes inspired by crime novels? Check. A real-world mystery that lets a bookseller (and devoted crime reader) solve crimes? Check. Swanson tees these irresistible elements up beautifully right from this story’s outset, and, most importantly, he delivers on their promise. EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS is clever, witty, twisty, good old fashioned mystery-solving fun.
It’s a plot made in bookworm heaven: a bookseller is tapped by the FBI to provide expert feedback on a series of baffling cases. Years ago, when he was a new bookseller at a crime fiction-dedicated bookstore in Boston, Malcolm Kershaw was asked by his then-boss to begin creating content for the store’s blog. A longtime reader of the genre, Malcolm decided to write a blog post detailing his picks for eight perfect murders in crime fiction, ranging from crimes conceived of by Agatha Christie and Ira Levin to Patricia Highsmith and Donna Tartt. His list went largely unnoticed—but then, he never really expected a bookstore blog to gain much traction online. So imagine Malcolm’s surprise when, years later, on a snowy day in Boston, an FBI agent appears on the doorstep of the bookstore he now co-owns. This FBI agent comes bearing bizarre news: Malcolm’s expertise is needed on an ongoing string of unsolved murders. The FBI agent has a hunch, you see. She believes that a few inexplicable murders that have occurred recently are linked by a strange commonality: they all seem to reflect the “perfect” murders Malcolm highlighted in his blog post years ago. Malcolm is equal parts horrified and intrigued—after all, though these crimes are terrible, is there anything more intriguing to a mystery reader than the opportunity to use their bookish knowledge help solve a real-life crime? Malcolm agrees to help, and begins a journey back into the dark hearts of the books he wrote about years ago… and down the rabbit hole into a twisty, jaw-dropping real-life murder mystery.
A great crime novel needs a great protagonist to give the story heart, and that’s exactly what Swanson gives readers with Malcolm Kershaw. I’m not usually one to recognize myself in a lot of the characters I’m reading (while I may wish I had the mystery-solving prowess of Miss Marple or the tough-as-nails exterior of Lisbeth Salander, let’s be honest… I’m just a girl obsessed with books). Imagine my surprise, then, when I realized that Malcolm Kershaw might just be the most accurate representation of my inner bookworm life I’ve seen in a book in a long time. There is a paragraph in EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS—you’ll know it when you see it—in which Swanson gives readers a glimpse into Malcolm’s inner dialogue as he considers the expectations that a lifelong obsession with the mystery genre has given him, and how these expectations have been met (or not met) by his adult life. They are simple (and often laugh-out-loud funny) observations, but I read this paragraph over and over. I couldn’t believe that someone had captured what it feels like to live your life so steeped in a genre that it colors your expectation of the world around you. I don’t have much in common with the character of Malcolm outside of that inner dialogue, but goodness if I didn’t love that moment of connection to this character. Any reader who feels similarly about crime fiction will adore following Malcolm as he steps outside his bookworm comfort zone and begins a twisty and shocking journey to discover the truth at the heart of a series of inexplicable crimes.
Peter Swanson is a master at crafting gripping suspense novels, and though EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS takes on a more directly “classic-crime” inspired tone than some of his previous books, it is no less gripping or addictive. What begins as a story about crime stories twists and morphs into a genuinely shocking and page-turning thriller. It takes a lot to surprise me as a reader, and EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS did exactly that. While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this book to just anyone looking for a “twisty thriller” (classic crime fiction figures significantly here, and an appreciation of the genre will serve you well in fully enjoying this novel), I can say with absolute sincerity that if the other elements of this story appeal to you, you will love the clever and ever-shifting ways Swanson develops this plot. Better yet: all the twists and turns this story takes are fair play. Swanson drops all the breadcrumbs you need to figure this mystery out, but if you’re anything like me, you’ll never see the final solution coming.
Perhaps my one word of caution here: because EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS delves so deeply into the crimes that take place in each of the eight crime novels on Malcolm’s original blog post, there will be spoilers in this novel for those eight books. If you haven’t read one of the books on Malcolm’s list and are interested in reading it for yourself, I would recommend either reading it before you dive into EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS, or just going into this book knowing that there will be spoilers along the way. Personally, I didn’t have any problem with this—while I haven’t read all eight books on Malcolm’s list, I’ve already read the books from the list that appeal to me on a personal level, and had no issue with reading spoilers of the others through Swanson’s writing.
EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS is simply delightful. This clever, irresistible “whodunit” draws on crime genre nostalgia and present-day in-jokes to deliver a book tailor made for the modern crime reader. If you’re as obsessed with crime fiction as I am, Peter Swanson’s newest is a book you simply cannot miss.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. All opinions my own.
BOOK DETAILS
Series: Malcolm Kershaw
Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: William Morrow (March 3, 2020)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062838202
ISBN-13: 978-0062838209
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