Magpie Murders

What an absolute thrill.

Although familiar with the name Anthony Horowitz since childhood, it was only now that I had the privilege of reading one of his works. Magpie Murders was exactly what I needed. It was expertly written, with two different writing styles embedded in one novel, due to the ingenious “book within a book”.

There are few that would be able to master such a difficult task without leaving at least a few gaping plot holes. Of course, the book is all about the plot, as are most writings of the genre. But both protagonists are beautifully drawn up-- characters that are relatable, isolated and making their way. The contrast between the author of the internal Atticus Pund series, Alan Conway, and the impenetrable

[Photo Credit: NPR Books]

fantasy of the fictitious series itself is remarkable. Horowitz’s ability to make us hate the author of the fake book, but love the characters he created, and then also maintain an emotional investment in the greater storyline following Editor Susan Ryeland of Cloverleaf books-- it seems as though its all one confusing, jumbled mess, and yet it flows like water from the tap. Smooth, unending, uninterrupted.

There is little I can say without giving away the plot of the story entirely, but let’s just say that every detail matters, and it’ll be hard to put this riveting story down for even the shortest of breaks.