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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.5 ⭐
Not my favorite Hawthorne mystery but I did enjoy the third installment in the series! Horowitz's nod to Agatha Christie style murders mysteries never gets old and much like always, I didn't know who the murderer was until the very end!
Not my favorite Hawthorne mystery but I did enjoy the third installment in the series! Horowitz's nod to Agatha Christie style murders mysteries never gets old and much like always, I didn't know who the murderer was until the very end!
As always Horowitz constructs a gripping mystery. The device of inserting himself into the story works well and it adds a fun blend of reality to the fiction. My only issue would be that the finale seemed rather rushed and was wrapped up very quickly
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.4
I want a murder book that is entertaining and without any plot holes. problem is that all i can find are frida mcfadden (don’t get me wrong, i love her stuff, just not realistic enough to scratch my brain) or books for old british farts. this book was for old british farts. i liked the book and really liked the author inserting himself in the story, but it still is not 100% my cup of tea
I want a murder book that is entertaining and without any plot holes. problem is that all i can find are frida mcfadden (don’t get me wrong, i love her stuff, just not realistic enough to scratch my brain) or books for old british farts. this book was for old british farts. i liked the book and really liked the author inserting himself in the story, but it still is not 100% my cup of tea
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
I'd like to start by saying I enjoyed this book. Mystery novels are my absolute favorites, so my reviews may be a bit biased, but hey, we like what we like.
This is the third outing with author Anthony Horowitz and detective Daniel Hawthorne. The style of the book is engaging - Horowitz is writing the book you're reading. Such an interesting perspective. In this novel, he is currently on a book tour for the first book in the series that we were reading as he was writing in Book #1: The Word is Murder. The formula still works here. Without giving too much away, Horowitz even comments that circumstances of the murder we're reading about don't lend will to audience enjoyment. "How can the audience be satisfied if the murderer is a thoroughly unlikeable person!" (Or something to that effect, I'm paraphrasing).
I gave this book only 4/5 stars, because by the time we were halfway through I already had an idea of who the murderer was. Also, I was getting annoyed with both Horowitz and Hawthorne. The latter was as crotchety and secretive as ever, and the former was being very whiney about the situation. I was getting tired of him complaining about Hawthorne just being who he is - especially since he was making an effort to open up a little bit. The second half of the book picked up once the clues started to resolve into answers, and we realized what all the characters were up to. Horowitz (the character) stopped whining and feeling sorry for himself so much.
The ending tied up neatly in a bow, even if I saw it coming. Not exactly how the murderer did it, but I figured out that they would be the culprit based on how....neatly....another suspect was set up to take the fall.
All in all, I enjoyed it and will be reading the next book in the series - if only to find out more about Hawthornes backstory.
This is the third outing with author Anthony Horowitz and detective Daniel Hawthorne. The style of the book is engaging - Horowitz is writing the book you're reading. Such an interesting perspective. In this novel, he is currently on a book tour for the first book in the series that we were reading as he was writing in Book #1: The Word is Murder. The formula still works here. Without giving too much away, Horowitz even comments that circumstances of the murder we're reading about don't lend will to audience enjoyment. "How can the audience be satisfied if the murderer is a thoroughly unlikeable person!" (Or something to that effect, I'm paraphrasing).
I gave this book only 4/5 stars, because by the time we were halfway through I already had an idea of who the murderer was. Also, I was getting annoyed with both Horowitz and Hawthorne. The latter was as crotchety and secretive as ever, and the former was being very whiney about the situation. I was getting tired of him complaining about Hawthorne just being who he is - especially since he was making an effort to open up a little bit. The second half of the book picked up once the clues started to resolve into answers, and we realized what all the characters were up to. Horowitz (the character) stopped whining and feeling sorry for himself so much.
The ending tied up neatly in a bow, even if I saw it coming. Not exactly how the murderer did it, but I figured out that they would be the culprit based on how....neatly....another suspect was set up to take the fall.
All in all, I enjoyed it and will be reading the next book in the series - if only to find out more about Hawthornes backstory.