Magpie Murders

Another Horowitz mystery novel which I liked.
I'm not going to tell you again I'm not a big fan of the mystery novel or of the classic whodunnit's for a myriad of reasons, but I must admit that Anthony Horowitz seems the exception to this.

I've read Moriarty by him and thought is was very well-written and was able to hold my attention sufficiently.

Magpie Murders shared these feelings. It's actually two whodunnit's in one, which might be too much of a mediocre thing, but it worked very well because of the author's input why he liked this genre so much.
I always like input of the author, the raison d'être of a novel, which the format of this novel lend itself beautifully.
Susan, the narrator of our story, feels like the voice of Anthony himself and I like the way in which he even finds time to ridicule the established society of book publishers and their editors. (It must have been a joy proof reading this. I hope his editor had enough of a sense of humor)

The story revolves around another story and its author, Alan Conway. It's a fictive character who has written a fictive story which is actually contained in the first half of Magpie Murders. 
The introduction to his story leaves you interested at how the story will unfold. Also, when you briefly thumb down, you immediately notice the change in font and that as soon as the manuscript of Alan Conway is finished, the page numbers start from 1 again.
My interest was piqued and it helped that the manuscript was written well enough.
As we follow Atticus Pünd, the detective in the manuscript, trying to decipher the murder of Magnus Pye, we follow his actions as we would when watching a detective show on television. We watch event unfold, but we never get a glimpse of how the mind of this detective works.

At the end of the manuscript it quickly becomes clear that the author Alan Conway has been murdered, which sets an entirely other 'detective' in motion from who we do get a sense in which direction the investigation is taken. It's an entirely different approach to a classic whodunnit, an approach I like much better because of the emotional investment it requires of you. Instead of being a mere witnesser, you get to take part in the investigation and even if you don't agree with how things are unfolding it's still more interesting that the former.

And to think that I've been reading his novels since I was little. I'm glad he begun to write to cater to his 'past audience'.

Moriarty (A Review)

Anthony Horowitz has been a childhood hero for me.
I've always been an avid reader and since I was very young I had a knack for the weird and scary tales.

Horowitz was one of my favourite writers because he wrote a different kind of novels. The Sinister Secret of Frederick K. Bower, Groosham Grange, The Falcon's Malteser, Public Enemy Number Two to name a few of those children's novels who enticed my thirst for the mystic and unknown.

When I saw his name appear in the 'New Books' case at my local library, I was thrilled.
Reading the back cover I was a little disappointed. It was going to be a detective novel, which I can honestly say isn't my cup of tea.
But still, it was Horowitz. I had to give my hero the benefit of the doubt.

Moriarty, is actually a follow-up novel, but can be read as a standalone. Probably a spoiler or two for the first one (The House of Silk), but I didn't mind.

We follow two detectives, one employed by Scotland Yard and the other employed by Pinkerton's, a detective agency located in America.
The two fella's meet because of the same mastermind criminal, professor Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes' nemesis.
Yes, this is a tribute to Sherlock Holmes, but the idiot savante himself isn't participating in this story.
Instead we get to follow a Holmes wannabe try to solve the rise of a new criminal mastermind, Clarence Devereux.

Most of the wonderful deduction that makes Sherlock Holmes a legend, is present in this novel, be it a little tuned down.
But it has the most astonishing ending.
I loved it. It was like a punch to the face. Very unexpected.
It's a detective novel that doesn't read like one and I enjoyed it a lot.

I'm going to try The House of Silk when I can get my hands on it and I've read he's going to write the next James Bond novel as well Trigger Mortis. 
Already loving the title ^^

Horowitz, you delivered again, although I would like to see you try out the obscure and mystic once again. I bet it would be to die for.