Eight Perfect Murders: A Novel (Malcolm Kershaw Book 1) Kindle Edition

Classical mystery novels still occupy a warm spot in many genre fans’ hearts. No matter how much they rush to buy the newest Michael Connelly or Patricia Cornwell book, Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie remain among their favorite authors. Mystery writers themselves love those same authors. Best known for his suspense thrillers, Peter Swanson created perhaps the ultimate tribute to the traditional mystery in “Eight Perfect Murders.” It’s a gimmick book, but one that is beautifully crafted. Moreover, it’s the sort of book that, the more familiar a reader is with the genre, the better they will enjoy it.“Eight Perfect Murders” is based on a fictional blog post, the type that appears in mystery and literature blogs all the time. The post’s author (and novel’s narrator), Malcolm Kershaw, owns a small Boston bookstore that specializes in mysteries. A few years back, he started a blog, and the first post was entitled “Eight Perfect Murders.” It was a list of eight works Kershaw called “the cleverest, the most ingenious, the most foolproof (if there is such a thing) murders in crime fiction history.” The list is all but forgotten until Kershaw receives a visit from an FBI agent. She’s very familiar with the list. So, too, is a serial killer who seems to be making their way around the Boston area committing murders with the same M.O. as those outlined in Kershaw’s list. Kershaw soon begins investigating the real-life killings to see if there is anything to the FBI agent’s theory.Fictional authors have been amateur detectives since the days of Ellery Queen and, more recently, Jessica Fletcher and Rick Castle. But Swanson takes readers into a new realm, that of the bookstore owner. Unlike some genre novels, “Eight Perfect Murders” won’t provide much education into the inner workings of the bookstore. But, as readers soon learn, the killings are related to people who have patronized Kershaw’s shop over the years. In particular, one possible victim of the list was a regular and rather annoying customer. And, of course, a mystery bookstore provides Kershaw and the other characters in the novel with abundant research material.As the bookstore angle implies, “Eight Perfect Murders” is a paean by author Swanson to the classical mystery. Of course, the eight works cited in the list figure into the story. But so do other classic mystery stories and themes. Those who are very familiar with the genre will spot some of these references that make their way into the plot. But that’s the idea. Swanson hasn’t written a mystery whose solution depends on a knowledge of arcane toxicology or similar subjects. Instead, an understanding of the mystery genre and, specifically, the traditional mystery subgenre will help readers stay one step ahead of the author. I doubt any reader will emerge from this experience without being fooled a time or two along the way. “Eight Perfect Murders” is that sort of book. For me, however, being fooled made the story that much more entertaining.“Eight Perfect Murders” is primarily an exercise by the author in constructing an intricate puzzle. Still, readers will see glimpses of the style and technique he’s used in his more traditional thrillers. There are some suspenseful scenes here, and Malcolm Kershaw proves to be a fascinatingly complex character as readers learn more about him from his narrative. The other characters in the book are thinly sketched, but readers learn all they need about anyone playing a significant role in the story.Some reviews have criticized “Eight Perfect Murders” for containing spoilers. In his blog post and other places in the narrative, Kershaw reveals details about the eight works and other classic genre novels. Much of what he discusses is already common knowledge (the newest book on the list is 30 years old). The central plot device in Patricia Highsmith’s “Strangers on a Train” has been used so many times since then that it’s almost a stereotype now. Other books on the list are open-form mysteries, like TV’s “Columbo,” where readers know the villain and the details of the crime from the start. Kershaw describes the motive behind the killings in Agatha Christie’s “The ABC Murders” (another book whose plot device has been copied several times since then) but does not reveal the killer’s identity. Swanson does what the fictional Kershaw meant when he wrote the list, increasing interest in these eight works and influencing the audience to read or re-read them. Classical mystery lovers will enjoy “Eight Perfect Murders” more than fans of Swanson’s other works will. Since I count myself among the fans of the classics, I’m giving this book a rare (for me) five-star rating. I enjoyed this story from the first chapter to the last. Fans of authors like Agatha Christie and Rex Stout (whose Nero Wolfe makes a cameo appearance of sorts as the name of Kershaw’s cat) will have a field day spotting all the in-references and Easter eggs Swanson provides. Eight perfect murders make one perfect literary experience for mystery buffs.

5/5This is my first five-star review for a book review on Amazon! I can’t get this book out of my head – it’s that good!SYNOPSIS: “Years ago, bookseller and mystery aficionado Malcolm Kershaw compiled a list of the genre’s most unsolvable murders, those that are almost impossible to crack–which he titled “Eight Perfect Murders”–chosen from among the best of the best, including Agatha Christie’s A. B. C. Murders, Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train, Ira Levin’s Death Trap, A. A. Milne's Red House Mystery, Anthony Berkeley Cox's Malice Aforethought, James M. Cain's Double Indemnity, John D. Macdonald's The Drowner, and Donna Tartt's A Secret History.But no one is more surprised than Mal, now the owner of the Old Devils Bookstore in Boston, when an FBI agent comes knocking on his door one snowy day in February. She’s looking for information about a series of unsolved murders that look eerily similar to the killings on Mal’s old list. And the FBI agent isn’t the only one interested in this bookseller who spends almost every night at home reading. The killer is out there, watching his every move–a diabolical threat who knows way too much about Mal’s personal history, especially the secrets he’s never told anyone, even his recently deceased wife…”RATING: I have not read a book this good in a while! I actually had this in my hand in early March at the bookstore and I put it back and got Follow Me and The Hunting Party instead. Since I did that, I kept seeing Eight Perfect Murders popping up everywhere and many bookstagrammers raved about how good it is, so I caved and purchased myself a copy – I AM SO GLAD I DID! If you don’t currently own this book, stop what you’re doing and go buy it. If you own it, but haven’t yet read it, stop what you’re doing and go binge read it!I absolutely could not put this book down. I definitely could have finished this in less than a day, but #momlife and instead, I read it in two days. It was unpredictable the whole way through and I love how it all came together in the end. Speaking of the ending – no spoilers here, but O-M-G I was actually quite shocked with how it ended. The book, based in Boston, also has a lot of ties to Maine, which is where I’m from so it was cool that the characters found their way to areas of Maine I’ve visited before. I truly could not stop thinking about this book and how I needed to finish it asap! Every chance I got, I was reading it. Another cool, but minor thing I liked is that every chapter started on the right side. I’m not sure if all of Peter Swanson’s books are that way, but I liked this touch.I will for sure be purchasing Peter Swanson’s other books and hope they are all just as good as this one!

I am 70 now and have been an avid book reader all my life. I enjoy being pleasantly surprised how an author tidies up a book with a satisfying ending. But with this novel, I figured out the ending in the first chapter & hoped like heck this was not true. This hope kept me going since the book is wonderfully written and I genuinely felt for the character. I thoroughly enjoyed the authors listing of all the old and wonderful mystery books which I am mostly familiar but intrigued by more than a few others. It would have been helpful if the author has listed all books referenced in the story in a special section at the end of the book.If this had been the first or five hundredth 'who done it' I read, perhaps i would be pleased with the ending but i wasn't. I was so disappointed.Also, i feel some stuff was redundant' padding to move the story forward or lead as astray - there are gaps where some murders should have been solved much quicker. It moved chunky at some points. Excellent premise. But too old formula to all the books he mentioned but maybe that was the authors intention.

I don't usually like murder mysteries as the characters are so predictable. This one proved to be a pleasant change from the genre. By the time it got near the end, it was pretty obvious where the story was going, but the story evolved without the normal stereotypical characters or plot. I won't say more other than to suggest that you read it front to back as opposed to skipping to the back to find out the murderer and then reading it. It's a much better read that way.

This was beyond what I expected; I could not put this book down. I read it in one sitting and it was a literary masterpiece. Every event (not matter how insignificant it was) tied the book together and it finished beautifully. I feel like even if murder/mystery wasn't your genre; you would still thoroughly enjoy this book. The ending was brilliant and completely unexpected, which is very rare nowadays. I read it cover to cover in about 10 hours and honestly... all I want to do is re-read is again today.This will be the book that I compare all other murder mystery books to. You do not need to be familiar with the '8 perfect murder' books referenced in this book. If anything; it just gives you motivation to read (or re-read them) after you finish this book.Very well done Peter Swanson! HUGE fan!

I liked the fairly unique story line and the fact that there were enough clues provided that you could have guessed the ending. The story hung together without leaving any questions - well except for maybe no-one wondering about the cat. Still, couldn't give it 5 starts - if just felt a little flat, not a real page turner.

Llego antes de lo esperado, pero la calidad del libro deja mucho que desear. El cortado de las hojas se ve como mordido y mal cortado no están del mismo tamaño los cortes. Es la primera vez que veo algo así. Lo leeré, por lo pronto mi crítica fue en relación a la calidad del libro físico