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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
Liked the characters a lot, interesting concept for the war... figured out The suspect but not sure why they chose those victims... liked the magic tricks being part of the murder. Looking forward to the rest of the series!
A box addressed to Captain Edgar Stephens is found in the Left luggage section of the Brighton Railway Station. It contained a body of a girl cut in three, reminiscent in an extremely gruesome way of a magic trick Edgar had once known.
Edgar had been part of a secret mission during the War called the ‘Magic Men’, one of whom, Max Mephisto was the creator of this trick. Edgar was still in touch with his old friend Max, who had gone back to his life in the show business. All his efforts to involve Max to help solve the case falls in deaf ears, as Max didn’t want to get entangled in the world of uniforms, until Max discovers the identity of the girl who died.
Another murder follows and it becomes very clear that the murders are definitely connected to the Magic Men, and Edgar and Max have very little time to find out who is behind this. The plot gets more and more intriguing as the mystery deepens, murders pile up and we follow Edgar and Max into their past, to the time when the Magic Men were active. The time when they had been tasked to trick the Germans into believing that the Allies had more resources and better protected than they actually were, using illusions and magic. All the Magic Men had to be tracked down if they had to get to the bottom of the case.
We follow Edgar and Max as they track down their motley crew of show men and army folk who came together in a secret mission. The most unlikely of people to be part of a team, but which of them were the reason for these murders, if not actually responsible for them?
An interesting murder mystery, an old fashioned one, set in 1950s, with lots of reference to the War times, it was a charming read, which can’t often be said of a murder mystery. The characters were so well drafted. You can’t help love Edgar Stephens. Max, the world-weary, hardened magician was charming in his own way. Each of the characters had depth and nuances that added to the story.
A fast-paced read, with the final unexpected twist that takes you by surprise. I haven’t read Griffiths before, and this was a really good introduction to her writing. I haven’t read this genre in a while and was fun to revisit. I am now tempted to check out other books by the author.
The author meant this book to be a tribute to her grandfather, and I have to say, it is a great one. She has brought out the flavour of those times so beautifully, you can’t help be transported to the post war Britain.
A 4/5 read for me. A book I would definitely recommend.
This book is available from Amazon(UK).
Edgar had been part of a secret mission during the War called the ‘Magic Men’, one of whom, Max Mephisto was the creator of this trick. Edgar was still in touch with his old friend Max, who had gone back to his life in the show business. All his efforts to involve Max to help solve the case falls in deaf ears, as Max didn’t want to get entangled in the world of uniforms, until Max discovers the identity of the girl who died.
Another murder follows and it becomes very clear that the murders are definitely connected to the Magic Men, and Edgar and Max have very little time to find out who is behind this. The plot gets more and more intriguing as the mystery deepens, murders pile up and we follow Edgar and Max into their past, to the time when the Magic Men were active. The time when they had been tasked to trick the Germans into believing that the Allies had more resources and better protected than they actually were, using illusions and magic. All the Magic Men had to be tracked down if they had to get to the bottom of the case.
We follow Edgar and Max as they track down their motley crew of show men and army folk who came together in a secret mission. The most unlikely of people to be part of a team, but which of them were the reason for these murders, if not actually responsible for them?
An interesting murder mystery, an old fashioned one, set in 1950s, with lots of reference to the War times, it was a charming read, which can’t often be said of a murder mystery. The characters were so well drafted. You can’t help love Edgar Stephens. Max, the world-weary, hardened magician was charming in his own way. Each of the characters had depth and nuances that added to the story.
A fast-paced read, with the final unexpected twist that takes you by surprise. I haven’t read Griffiths before, and this was a really good introduction to her writing. I haven’t read this genre in a while and was fun to revisit. I am now tempted to check out other books by the author.
The author meant this book to be a tribute to her grandfather, and I have to say, it is a great one. She has brought out the flavour of those times so beautifully, you can’t help be transported to the post war Britain.
A 4/5 read for me. A book I would definitely recommend.
This book is available from Amazon(UK).
4.5 actually. Not heavy. Cozy mystery. A nice start to a series!
This book never really grabbed me. There was nothing wrong with it, but the characters, plot, and setting all were much less interesting than it seemed like they should be.
Interesting mystery set in the theater world of post-war England. The story centered on two old Army comrades. One, Edgar Stephens, is now a policeman, while the other, Max Mephisto, has returned to his career as a well-known magician. The glimpse into their war work was interesting but I found the characters a little thin. Or maybe they just failed to live up to my high expectations since the people in Griffiths' Ruth Galloway series are among my literary favorites.
Good fun. Bloody, English murders. Post WWII. Variety theatre people concentrating on magicians. Some nice surprises.
Not as good as Griffiths' other 2 series. This one took patience to get through.
I always think it’s a brave decision by an established series author such as Griffiths with her hugely popular Ruth Galloway novels, to step outside of the familiar and tackle a standalone (or opener to a possible new series). I had similar fears with Belinda Bauer, on the publication of Rubbernecker, but Griffiths like Bauer has succeeded admirably in my opinion. Having said that, I would partly put my enjoyment of The Zig Zag Girl down to my own fascination with the world of magic, particularly of this period and earlier, so many of the little nods and references to magic resonated very well with me- Hugh D. Nee indeed! However, where I think Griffiths succeeds so well in this book, is the underlying sense of fun that she seems to be having, and that we can participate in, along the way. There are a host of great little comic interludes and one-liners, that add another dimension to what is essentially a more graphic and souped-up classic Golden Age mystery, including the trusty use of tea cup and poison, transported into 1950’s Brighton. The unerring sense of darkness, and the slight seediness and desperation of the world which Max in particular resides in, is set against the lighter comic tone with great effect, reminding me strongly of the brilliant Bryant & May mysteries by Christopher Fowler. Add into the plot the pivoting timeline, charting the beginnings of the less confident Edgar’s and uber confident Max’s friendship, with their undercover and top secret wartime mission, and The Zig Zag Girl, draws us into its own little illusionist’s trick where nothing is quite as it appears…
I am a self confessed fan of Griffiths, and what I enjoy most about her writing is her characterisation, and this book does not disappoint. Every character is incredibly well-delineated, no matter how small or large part they play in the plot. I’ve already identified the essential difference between policeman Edgar and showman Max in terms of confidence, but it’s incredibly interesting to see how this chalk-and-cheese combo, and their understated loyalty to each other, join forces to catch a killer. Likewise, the character of Mulholland is joyous- in common parlance he would be a total **** – and I enjoyed the acerbic mocking by Max of Mulholland’s purported mesmerist skills and comic talent. He has none. There is also a wonderfully credible female character with Ruby, harbouring designs on being a world famous female magician in her own right, who enthrals Edgar, but strangely manages to resist the obvious appeal of the suave and cool Max. These characters draw you in completely, and I genuinely cared about the peril each faces as the story unfolds. So in conclusion, I was rather keen on The Zig Zag Girl, with its terrific blend of light and dark mood, the strength of the characters, the use of the shabby seaside locations, and the careful balance of historic period detail. All in all it’s fun, a jolly good murder mystery, with a few unexpected shocks along the way to jolt the reader. Magic…
I am a self confessed fan of Griffiths, and what I enjoy most about her writing is her characterisation, and this book does not disappoint. Every character is incredibly well-delineated, no matter how small or large part they play in the plot. I’ve already identified the essential difference between policeman Edgar and showman Max in terms of confidence, but it’s incredibly interesting to see how this chalk-and-cheese combo, and their understated loyalty to each other, join forces to catch a killer. Likewise, the character of Mulholland is joyous- in common parlance he would be a total **** – and I enjoyed the acerbic mocking by Max of Mulholland’s purported mesmerist skills and comic talent. He has none. There is also a wonderfully credible female character with Ruby, harbouring designs on being a world famous female magician in her own right, who enthrals Edgar, but strangely manages to resist the obvious appeal of the suave and cool Max. These characters draw you in completely, and I genuinely cared about the peril each faces as the story unfolds. So in conclusion, I was rather keen on The Zig Zag Girl, with its terrific blend of light and dark mood, the strength of the characters, the use of the shabby seaside locations, and the careful balance of historic period detail. All in all it’s fun, a jolly good murder mystery, with a few unexpected shocks along the way to jolt the reader. Magic…
Listened to 1.5 hours and just wasn't interested in the story line.
The Zig Zag Girl is a cracking good mystery/British police procedural set in the 1950s at a time when police work meant hours of interviews and staring at piles of paper rather than relying on computers and other forms of technology. The main characters DI Edgar Stephens and Max feel like flesh and blood people in the first entry of Griffiths new series about post war Britain and the variety shows that once served as the nation's main form of entertainment.