From the New York Times bestselling author of Moriarty and Trigger Mortis, this fiendishly brilliant, riveting thriller weaves a classic whodunit worthy of Agatha Christie into a chilling, ingeniously original modern-day mystery.
When editor Susan Ryeland is given the manuscript of Alan Conway's latest novel, she has no reason to think it will be much different from any of his others. After working with the bestselling crime writer for years, she's intimately familiar with his detective, Atticus Pünd, who solves mysteries disturbing sleepy English villages. An homage to queens of classic British crime such as Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers, Alan's traditional formula has proved hugely successful. So successful that Susan must continue to put up with his troubling behavior if she wants to keep her job.
Conway's latest tale has Atticus Pünd investigating a murder at Pye Hall, a local manor house. Yes, there are dead bodies and a host of intriguing suspects, but the more Susan reads, the more she's convinced that there is another story hidden in the pages of the manuscript: one of real-life jealousy, greed, ruthless ambition, and murder.
Masterful, clever, and relentlessly suspenseful, Magpie Murders is a deviously dark take on vintage English crime fiction in which the reader becomes the detective.
"Starred Review. A treat for fans of golden age mysteries
[A] tour de force
Horowitz throws in several wicked twists
Highly satisfying." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Fans who still mourn the passing of Agatha Christie
will welcome this wildly inventive homage
as the most fiendishly clever puzzle - make that two puzzles - of the year." - Kirkus
"Starred Review. Both stories might stand alone, but combined, they result in a delightful puzzle. Fans of Agatha Christie and the BBC's Midsomer Murders and Foyle's War (both written by Horowitz) will relish this double mystery." - Library Journal
"While the first story is more enjoyable than the second, which drags a little, this is overall a very entertaining set of tales, and readers will enjoy finding clues in the whodunit that will help solve the mystery in the latter tale." - Booklist
"An ingenious novel-within-a-novel... part crime novel, part pastiche, this magnificent piece of crime fiction plays with the genre while also taking it seriously."- The Sunday Times (UK)
"There's much to enjoy in Anthony Horowitz's spry, sardonic Magpie Murders." - The Guardian (UK)
"Superbly written, with great suspects, a perfect period feel, and a cracking reveal at the end." - The Spectator (UK)
"Anthony Horowitz has devised a fiendish mystery within a mystery that will have you hooked from page one. We loved this Agatha Christie-esque crime novel." - Good Housekeeping (UK)
"A stylish, multi-layered thriller - playful, ingenious and wonderfully entertaining." - The Sunday Mirror (UK)
"This can only be described as incredibly clever - but what else would you expect from Horowitz?" - The Herald (UK)
"A compendium of dark delights ... A brilliant pastiche of the English village mystery and a hugely enjoyable tale of avarice and skullduggery in the world of publishing." - Irish Times
"Brilliant. Really, really brilliant. I loved it." - Sophie Hannah, author of The Monogram Murders
"An extravagant circus of a novel, part high-wire act, part funhouse mirror. Intricate, bold, stone-cold clever - both comfortably old-fashioned and thrillingly new." - A.J. Finn, author of The Woman in the Window
This information about Magpie Murders was first featured
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Anthony Horowitz is one of the most prolific and successful writers working in the UK – and is unique for working across so many media. Anthony is a born polymath; juggling writing books, TV series, films, plays and journalism.
Anthony has written over 40 books including the bestselling teen spy series Alex Rider, which he adapted into a movie that was released worldwide in 2006. The Alex Rider series is estimated to have sold 19 million copies worldwide. His highly anticipated novel, Oblivion, the epic conclusion to the Power of Five series, was published in October 2012. Anthony is also an acclaimed writer for adults and was commissioned by the Conan Doyle Estate and Orion Books to write two new Sherlock Holmes novels. The House of Silk was published in November 2011 and was ...
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