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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoy this series. Easy to read, plenty of twists, fast paced. Did not see the ending coming at all. Horowitz is a great writer
Anthony Horowitz is the author of a popular teen spy series, adult mysteries, and a number of beloved TV series. In his Hawthorne and Horowitz series, the author inserts himself, as himself, as a character into the stories, which is kind of bizarre but also fun. The fictional Anthony Horwitz comes off as a bit of a clueless dolt. He was approached in the first book by a disgraced detective hoping to get some money by contributing to a nonfiction crime series written by the fictional Anthony Horowitz.
Got that? It’s a bit of a mind twister, but as I already mentioned, a lot of fun. The series is a love letter to classic murder mysteries and detective stories. Hawthorne is clearly the brains of the pair, but also deeply mysterious and often unlikable. Still, he has the charisma, and the author gets ignored when Hawthorne is present. This causes a strain between the duo, even while fictional Horowitz admires Hawthorne’s detecting skills.
The plot of A Line to Kill gives us a chance to meet a bunch of quirky writers at a small literary festival. I had to wonder as a reader if any of them are based on writers Horowitz knows. He also pokes fun at himself and his own reputation as a writer, and he seems to be having a joyful time doing it. The author drops clues right and left, leaving the reader to wonder – is that important? Is that a red herring? And Hawthorne slowly puts it all together as the rest of us scratch our heads.
I love Horowitz’s subtle humor and phrasing, as in this passage when a séance takes place: “So at ten o’clock, I made my way down to the hotel’s screening room, which was certainly not the sort of place Noel Coward would have chosen to set a séance.” (ch. 20 of the advance reader copy) Also this passage, when a body is discovered at the seaside: “Even before we got out of the car, we could tell something was wrong. A small crowd had gathered on the very edge of the grass, all of them looking out to sea, and there was something about their body language, the way they stood, that warned us that although they might be birdwatchers, they were not now watching birds.” (ch. 22)
If you like very English detective bromances where the bros don’t really seem to like each other, and detective stories that overwhelm you with characters and plot devices, you might enjoy this series.
I read an advance reader copy of A Line to Kill from Netgalley.
1/27/22 note: I just listened to the truly excellent audiobook narrated by Rory Kinnear. Now that Simon Prebble has apparently stopped recording audiobooks, I hope to hear more from Rory Kinnear.
Got that? It’s a bit of a mind twister, but as I already mentioned, a lot of fun. The series is a love letter to classic murder mysteries and detective stories. Hawthorne is clearly the brains of the pair, but also deeply mysterious and often unlikable. Still, he has the charisma, and the author gets ignored when Hawthorne is present. This causes a strain between the duo, even while fictional Horowitz admires Hawthorne’s detecting skills.
The plot of A Line to Kill gives us a chance to meet a bunch of quirky writers at a small literary festival. I had to wonder as a reader if any of them are based on writers Horowitz knows. He also pokes fun at himself and his own reputation as a writer, and he seems to be having a joyful time doing it. The author drops clues right and left, leaving the reader to wonder – is that important? Is that a red herring? And Hawthorne slowly puts it all together as the rest of us scratch our heads.
I love Horowitz’s subtle humor and phrasing, as in this passage when a séance takes place: “So at ten o’clock, I made my way down to the hotel’s screening room, which was certainly not the sort of place Noel Coward would have chosen to set a séance.” (ch. 20 of the advance reader copy) Also this passage, when a body is discovered at the seaside: “Even before we got out of the car, we could tell something was wrong. A small crowd had gathered on the very edge of the grass, all of them looking out to sea, and there was something about their body language, the way they stood, that warned us that although they might be birdwatchers, they were not now watching birds.” (ch. 22)
If you like very English detective bromances where the bros don’t really seem to like each other, and detective stories that overwhelm you with characters and plot devices, you might enjoy this series.
I read an advance reader copy of A Line to Kill from Netgalley.
1/27/22 note: I just listened to the truly excellent audiobook narrated by Rory Kinnear. Now that Simon Prebble has apparently stopped recording audiobooks, I hope to hear more from Rory Kinnear.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
fast-paced
Blah. I read one in this series years ago and forgot what I never read another. Flavorless ego.
The big problem with this series is that neither of the main characters are likeable or particularly interesting. It’s all very meta and clever but not gripping. Not a patch on ‘House of Silk’ or ‘Moonflower Murders’ which are both minor masterpieces. It feels like the author writes the Hawthorne series for his own amusement.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A page-turner, as expected, but temporary abandonment of known tracking and detection is needed to relish the discovery, so a small island with close to no violence otherwise must be the setting.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated