Fabulous Fiction Firsts #813 - Locked-Room Mysteries
by muffy
Death and the Conjuror: A Joseph Spector Locked-Room Mystery * (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook) by Tom Mead, a series launch that features a magician-turned-sleuth in 1936 London, “a valentine to the locked-room puzzles of John Dickson Carr, to whom it is dedicated. “ (Kirkus Reviews)
Renowned psychiatrist Dr. Anselm Rees, a recent arrival from Vienna, has taken up residence at Dollis Hill. On a rainy night, after a secretive visit from a guest, he is discovered dead in his locked study. With no clues, no witnesses, and no murder weapon, George Flint, a stumped Scotland Yard detective calls on retired stage magician-turned-part-time sleuth Joseph Spector for help.
As they interview the colorful cast of suspects among the psychiatrist's patients and household: Floyd Stenhouse, Patient A, a Philharmonic violinist tormented by dreams of snakes; Della Cookson, Patient B, a kleptomaniac actress currently starring in Miss Death, which has just opened at the Pomegranate Theatre; and Claude Weaver, Patient C, a suspense novelist subject to blackouts, they uncover no shortage of dark secrets or motives for murder.
“Mead maintains suspense throughout, creating a creepy atmosphere en route to satisfying reveals. Puzzle mystery fans will eagerly await the sequel.” (Publishers Weekly)
Under Lock & Skeleton Key (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook), the first book in Gigi Pandian’s Secret Staircase mystery series, flawlessly balances magic, misdirection and murder.
26-year-old Tempest Raj, a popular Vegas magician, returns home to Hidden Creek, California, broke and disgraced after a dangerous stunt in her new show goes horribly wrong. Reluctantly, she starts working at Secret Staircase Construction, her father’s business that specializes in bringing magic to their clients homes - secret passageways, sliding bookcases, intricate locks and hidden entrances.
On the site of their latest job, Tempest discovers a body inside a wall that's been sealed for decades - THE body of her former stage double, Cassidy Sparrow who Tempest suspects sabotaged her Vegas show.
“This "Secret Staircase" series starter is a fresh and magical locked-room mystery filled with fascinating and likable characters, incredible settings, and Tempest's grandfather's home cooked Indian meals (recipes included)...Readers will enjoy not only figuring out the mystery but also learning how the magic tricks are done.” (Library Journal)
BONUS FEATURE
The Christie Affair * * * by Nina de Gramont (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook) is the “fanciful reimagining of actual events“ (Booklist) in the life of Agatha Christie on the author's mysterious, 11-day disappearance in December 1926, shortly after Christie's husband, Archie, revealed he was having an affair with Nan O'Dea, and wanted a divorce.
Amidst the national manhunt for the celebrated author, Agatha and Nan met up at the fashionable spa town of Harrogate where a series of impossible crimes occurred.
“The author weaves a clever, highly original, mesmerizing tale filled with strange and unexpected turns and concludes it in an unexpected but wholly satisfying manner. With its superb writing, strong characterizations, and wonderfully imaginative plot, this is a must-read for fans of romance, history, or mystery.” (Booklist)
“Devilishly clever, elegantly composed and structured—simply splendid.” (Kirkus Reviews)
The Woman in the Library * * * by Australian author Sulari Gentill (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook) opens with four strangers sharing a table at the Boston Public Library. Writer Winifred “Freddie” Kincaid, recipient of a prestigious writers’ residency fellowship, named them "Freud Girl," "Heroic Chin," and "Handsome Man" before she gets to know them as Marigold Anastas, Whit Metters and Cain McLeod when they heard a woman's terrified scream. As they wait for the all-clear from Security, a quick friendship forms. Then they read that a woman’s body had been found in the Library. The subsequent story is Freddie's account of their relationship and her growing awareness that one of them is likely the murderer.
“But Hannah Tignone, a best-selling Australian author, is actually writing the story of Freddie and her new friends. The story within a story alternates Hannah's writing with letters written to her by a wannabe author, Leo…Freddie's account of trying to discover which of her new friends is a killer is an engrossing mystery…Ned Kelly Award winner Gentill presents a complex, riveting story within a story.” (Library Journal)
The Locked Room: A Ruth Galloway Mysteries by Elly Griffiths (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook).
Three years after her mother's death, Ruth is finally sorting through her things when she finds a curious relic: a decades-old photograph of her own Norfolk cottage--before she lived there--with a peculiar inscription on the back. Ruth returns to the cottage to uncover its meaning as Norfolk's first cases of Covid-19 make headlines, leaving her and Kate to shelter in place there. They struggle to stave off isolation by clapping for frontline workers each evening and befriending a kind neighbor, Zoe, from a distance.
Meanwhile, Detective Nelson (and Kate's father) is investigating a series of deaths of women that may or may not be suicide. When he links a case to an archaeological discovery, he breaks curfew to visit Ruth and enlist her help. But the further Nelson investigates the deaths, the closer he gets to Ruth's isolated cottage--until Ruth, Zoe, and Kate all go missing, and Nelson is left scrambling to find them before it's too late.
Readers of locked-room mysteries might also what to check out CrimeReads’ The Great Locked Room Mystery: My Top 10 Impossible Crimes.
* * * = 3 starred reviews
* = Starred review
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