Featuring his famous literary detective Atticus Pund and Susan Ryeland, hero of the worldwide bestseller Magpie Murders, a brilliantly complex literary thriller with echoes of Agatha Christie from New York Times bestselling author Anthony Horowitz.Retired publisher Susan Ryeland is living the good life. She is running a small hotel on a Greek island with her long-term boyfriend Andreas. It should … with her long-term boyfriend Andreas. It should be everything she’s always wanted. But is it? She’s exhausted with the responsibilities of making everything work on an island where nothing ever does, and truth be told she’s beginning to miss London.
And then the Trehearnes come to stay. The strange and mysterious story they tell, about an unfortunate murder that took place on the same day and in the same hotel in which their daughter was married—a picturesque inn on the Suffolk coast named Farlingaye Hall—fascinates Susan and piques her editor’s instincts.
One of her former writers, the late Alan Conway, author of the fictional Magpie Murders, knew the murder victim—an advertising executive named Frank Parris—and once visited Farlingaye Hall. Conway based the third book in his detective series, Atticus Pund Takes the Cake, on that very crime.
The Trehearne’s, daughter, Cecily, read Conway’s mystery and believed the book proves that the man convicted of Parris’s murder—a Romanian immigrant who was the hotel’s handyman—is innocent. When the Trehearnes reveal that Cecily is now missing, Susan knows that she must return to England and find out what really happened.
Brilliantly clever, relentlessly suspenseful, full of twists that will keep readers guessing with each revelation and clue, Moonflower Murders is a deviously dark take on vintage English crime fiction from one of its greatest masterminds, Anthony Horowitz.
more
I enjoyed this rather complicated murder mystery, especially because the sleuth is an editor who must search for clues to a murder in a mystery she had edited. There’s a book within a book and a long list of possible suspects. What fun!
meh.
Waste of time
An homage to detective stories, and you get two in one! A fun read!
I received an ARC copy of this book from Cornerstone (Random House UK) through NetGalley that I freely chose to review. I thank them for this opportunity.
Yes, oh, yes, I’d heard of Anthony Horowitz (I love his biography!), and I’ve watched adaptations (and episodes, I’m sure) of his work on TV but had never read any of his novels. When I came across this one on NetGalley I thought the time had come. I love owls, and although the final cover doesn’t have an owl on it (if they don’t change it, the cover of the audio version does), the ARC copy did, and that was another good reason. (There is an owl in the book, yes. Well, sort of). And now I know why he is so popular. This is the second novel featuring Susan Ryeland and although I can’t compare them because I haven’t read the first one, Magpie Murders, I can confirm that this novel can be read as a standalone, although there are plenty of references to the first one.
I didn’t know what to expect, not having read the first novel, and although the initial premise of how Susan gets involved in the investigation is a bit thin, once you accept it (and any of us who are interested in books, as readers, writers, editors, collectors… will be quite intrigued by the concept), you are in for a pretty amusing ride. There is a book within a book, and you get two mystery novels for the price of one. And both are pretty good. The book at the centre of Susan’s inquiry, Atticus Pünd Takes the Case, is a classic mystery set in the 1950s in the UK (in Dorset), written by one of Susan’s clients, Alan Conway, who was also, it seems, central to the previous novel. Although we start by getting to know the characters of the current case (the main story is set in contemporary times although it goes back a few years to a murder committed at the hotel that takes centre stage in the plot), at some point, Susan starts reading Alan’s novel, as it seems to contain a crucial clue to the disappearance of Cecily, the young woman who has gone missing. And we get the novel in full, so we are in the same position as Susan, or almost, as she was the editor of the story and knew the writer quite well (although perhaps not as well as she imagined). She knew of his delight in creating puzzles, including all kinds of anagrams and secret clues inside of his books, where “everything” might have a hidden meaning. In some ways, it is as if we were reading over her shoulder, in the same way as we follow her around during her investigation.
One of the main achievements of the book is that both mysteries are engaging and work well in their own right. Atticus Pünd Takes the Case is written in the third person, mostly from the investigator’s point of view but not exclusively, and readers of classic mysteries will soon recognise many features and make comparisons with other well-known detectives (he is a foreigner, in this case German, he is very intelligent although not overbearing, and we get a good sample of a variety of characters, red herrings, motives, secrets, twists and turns). The main case, which frames the classic mystery, is written in the first person by Susan, whom we meet at a difficult time in her life, when she’s been living in Crete long enough for it to lose some of its shine, and she is wondering if she made the right decision leaving her life in the UK behind, so she jumps at the chance of going back to England and making some money. As you will imagine, she gets more than she bargained for.
I won’t go into detail about the ins and outs of both plots. There are also too many characters to go through, but one of the joys is that Alan Conway used some of the real people as inspiration for the characters in his book, so it’s impossible not to keep looking for similarities and differences as we read. I liked Susan. She is not a typical detective, and she keeps questioning herself as to why she is doing what she is doing. She does suffer badly from impostor syndrome, and a bit like Pünd himself, she wonders if she has not caused more harm than good with her intervention. As I mentioned before, readers, writers, and anybody who has ever edited or corrected a book will particularly enjoy this novel, as there is plenty of discussion as to the process of publishing a book, what is involved, the decisions people make, and how obsessed one can become with what seem to be minor details (but are fundamental to this genre). This is metafiction in action, and I enjoyed it immensely. And I liked Pünd as well. Although we don’t get to know him as closely as we do Susan, there are glimpses of the man behind the brain, and it is a fully-fleshed character.
Regarding the motives and themes featured in the novels there is nothing terribly original or unexpected here, and there is a familiarity that readers of the genre will appreciate. It’s well done, that’s for sure, but there is nothing there that will keep any of us awake at night or will bring a new insight into any important subjects. That is not the book’s aim, either, and, as I said, it provides good solid entertainment, although it won’t work for people looking for hard-edge crime stories or police procedurals heavy on the scientific side of things. On the other hand, I can easily imagine it as a good TV series, and I would be more than happy to watch it.
The writing is fluid, with enough details of the settings and characters to allow us to get a clear picture in our minds without getting in the way of the story. There are stylistic differences between the two novels that make it easy to know what we are reading, although I recommend readers to try to set aside a good chunk of time to read it, as otherwise due to the share number of them, the characters and details of both cases can easily get confused. And, keep your wits about you and pay attention as you read. The pace is not frantic, and you do get time to think, but the clues keep coming and there are enough twist and turns to get one’s head spinning.
Both endings are good and they mirror each other in a pretty satisfying way. Did I guess? I guessed the solution to one of the cases, more or less, (I won’t say which one), but there are so many things to pick on and so many clues to analyse, that it can keep readers busy for quite a while.
My first read of one of Horowitz’s books was very enjoyable. He has many fans, and although some preferred the first one in this series (that I now feel quite curious about, and although there are plenty of references to it in this book, I expect to enjoy nonetheless), others thought this one was better. I recommend it to people who love mysteries, in particular classic mysteries, and although some of the subtext and side-themes are slightly dark, the book is not explicit or violent either (there is a bloody nose and some scary moments, but not much else), so I think it will suit most readers of the genre. If you want two mysteries for the price of one and a book that will keep you engaged and entertained and help you forget about 2020, I recommend it. A great read.
Anthony Horowitz once again displays his admirable talents and razor-sharp wit with Mayflower Murders, the second of his Susan Ryeland/Atticus Pund Mysteries. As in the first of the series, Magpie Murders, Horowitz generously offers two mysteries in one in this sequel. This outing reintroduces Susan Ryeland, a former book editor who worked with famous author Alan Conway, now serving as a small hotel owner in Crete. She is exhausted by the daily grind of her new life and uncertain about her future relationship with co-owner and lover Andreas. As she is pondering her options and regretting leaving the publishing world, she is approached by a couple with an intriguing proposition. The Trehearnes are looking for their missing daughter, whose last known activities included discovering something revelatory in one of Conway’s books. Apparently, Conway’s “Atticus Pund Takes the Cake” is a mystery heavily influenced by a true crime that took place eight years ago at their hotel, Farlingaye Hall. Their daughter, Cecily, was married on the same day as a murder took place on the property in Suffolk. The case was quickly closed with the arrest of an immigrant employee. Cecily hinted that she was researching something she found in the fictional story that convinced her that it was a wrongful conviction. She disappeared before she could tell anyone what she had discovered. Since Conway is deceased, the Trehearnes hope that Susan might be able to help them uncover what Cecily may have deduced from the Pund novel. Her curiosity piqued, Susan views this timely invitation as way to take some time to re-evaluate her choices, make some much-needed cash, and learn a bit more about her former irascible author. She is also moved by Cecily’s story and wants to help find out what has happened to the young woman. Upon arriving at Farligaye Hall, Susan feels distinctly unwelcome. As she digs into the history of the true crime, she also begins poring through the Atticus Pund novel searching for clues. At this point, Horowitz inserts the Pund novel in its entirety. The fictional tale seems at first glance to offer little connection to the other storyline, but through Susan’s eyes the reader shares in her revelation about what is hidden there. Written in the mode of the best of Agatha Christie’s works, Moonflower Murders updates the humor and allusions for a modern audience. Both mysteries are captivating and satisfyingly complex, and the Susan Ryeland character is well-portrayed and realistic. This series would be perfect for lovers of the golden age mysteries, and those familiar with that genre will be rewarded with many winks and easter eggs. Horowitz certainly seems like he was having fun writing these books, and his fans will share in this enjoyment when they pick up these titles.
Thanks to the author, Harper and Edelweiss for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
Wonderful – you get 2 stories in one very well put together plot.
Eight years previously at their daughter Cecily Treharnes wedding, Frank Parris, 53, was murdered. Maintenance man Stefan Codrescu, 22, was arrested and imprisoned for the murder. Having recently read Alan Conway’s book entitled ‘Atticus Pund Takes the Case’ which is set in the 1950s and based on the case, Cecily states she knows who the murderer is, but she promptly disappears. Parents Lawrence and Pauline Trehearne of Branlow Hall ask amateur detective Susan Ryeland to investigate, as she was the previous editor of Conway’s books and might understand the clues.
An interesting and entertaining well-written mystery with a cast of varied characters.
I am in total of awe of the mastery of Anthony Horowitz and the Moonflower Murders.
The sequel to the Magpie Murders is just as good if not better .
It is book within a book and it works so well.
Susan Ryeland is back and having heard of a murder that she was told is similar to a Atticus Pund novel that she previously edited, she is heads out to for a fee try and solve the case.
Anthony Horowitz does a remarkable tribute to the Agatha Christie style stories, old movies and so much more.
I was not smart enough to solve Moonflower Murders, the clues were cleverly there but I am no Atticus Pund.
I hated to the book to end and the pages literally turned themselves.
This book will stay with me for a very long time and can’t wait to buy my hard copy to join The Magpie Murders on my shelf.
It was my privilege to read and review Moonflower Murders and I thank NetGalley and Harper Collins Canada, Harper Collins Publisher for the opportunity