A little while ago, Ayo
Onatade, Muriel Karim and I enjoyed the hospitality of Cornerstone Publishing
at their first Crime-Fiction
Party. Of particular delight was an opportunity to meet and have a good
chat with novelist and screenwriter Anthony Horowitz. We all know of Horowitz’ screen-work
on Foyles War and Poirot as well as his Alex Rider novels – and his taking on
the Ian Fleming mantle with the continuing adventures of James Bond 007, as he follows
up Trigger Mortis.
I mentioned to this
remarkable writer how much I enjoyed his after-dinner speech at the Crimefest
2017 Gala Dinner, and rarely had I laughed as much, which delighted Anthony Horowitz.
I also told him how delighted I was seeing Felix
Francis having a laugh too.
Since then I have reviewed his last two
works, and found them remarkable – a real insight / reworking of what we term
the British Golden Age Murder Mystery, with a nod to Dame Agatha Christie.
As a reader / reviewer
who is always seeking ‘something new’, ‘something different’ – I would urge you
to explore these two delightful and insightful novels of Murder, and of
Mystery. I found the Audio versions from Audible
to be excellent, with Actors Roy Kinnear, Allan Corduner & Samantha Bond bringing
these elegant novels to life.
Magpie Murders by
Anthony Horowitz [Paperback]
Horowitz’s love of the
British Golden Age mystery is evident in this intricate homage to Dame Agatha
Christie. Reviewers are often on the hunt for something new, something fresh;
and “Magpie Murders” is just that - a most unusual take on the British Golden
Age Mystery Novel.
The literary device
utilised by Horowitz takes the shape of a “novel within a novel” as well as a
reflection on British Crime Fiction Publishing, as there are some characters
named after real-life figures, such as Angela McMahon
[Horowitz’ own Publicity Manager] among others.
When literary Editor Susan Ryeland introduces bestselling author Alan
Conway’s ninth novel about Greek / German detective Atticus Pünd, “Magpie
Murders” - she indicates this novel changed her life. The novel opens
with the funeral of Mary Elizabeth Blakiston, housekeeper to Sir Magnus Pye. It
appears she tripped over a Vacuum cleaner cable and tumbled to her death down
the staircase. It seems that Blakiston’s death was an accident; until the
decapitated body of Sir Magnus Pye is discovered. This leads to Conway’s
post-war sleuth Atticus Pünd and his assistant to head to Somerset from his
London lodgings to investigate [assisting the local police]. It appears that
Pünd is facing a terminal condition of his own, so it could be his last case,
and one that features more Red Herrings than a Coastal Fishing Vessel.
However
the genius of this novel is that Alan Conway’s murder mystery “Magpie
Murders” appears populated by characters who are disguised versions of
real-life people. The first problem is that Ryeland discovers that Conway
appears to have committed suicide, but that perhaps his death is actually
murder – and the clues as to the perpetrator lie within “Magpie Murders”.
The second problem is that the final chapters of the manuscript of “Magpie
Murders” are missing.
A most
unusual Murder Mystery, and one that makes the reader work hard for the
entertainment and insight torn from the devious mind of Anthony Horowitz.
In two
words, “Magpie Murders” is “Bloody Good”.
The Word is Murder by
Anthony Horowitz [Hardcover]
Following from the genius
of “Magpie Murders” comes another murder mystery from the fevered imagination
of Anthony Horowitz. Again, we have something fresh, something unusual and
something very weird.
Horowitz casts himself as
a character in this ingenious narrative - as a writer recording a murder
investigation lead by a very odd consultant, the former Detective Daniel
Hawthorne. The plan being that a true-crime narrative penned by Horowitz,
entitled “Hawthorne Investigates” being the outcome.
Diana Cooper a
sixty-year old widower is found murdered by strangulation, only hours after she
arranged her own funeral arrangements. The London Police call upon Hawthorne to
investigate, and he in turn calls upon Anthony Horowitz to record the
investigation for the upcoming book “Hawthorne Investigates”. The trail is most
curious, with strands reaching to Hollywood, as well as a seaside resort in
Kent [England]. There is tragedy, there is grief as well as much curious
machinations of the protagonists as Horowitz [like a stage magician] slowly
reveals that the truth is submerged beneath a murky past, where past deeds and
the dark edges of human nature converge.
There are many suspects
in the murder of Diana Cooper, and the case is further complicated when another
murder occurs, and one that is related to a tragedy that was far more
convoluted than the police concluded. Though somewhat “weird” in terms of
narrative structure, but “weird” in a good way, as Horowitz weaves real-life
people into his story, including Publisher Selina Walker, among many others. We
also get an insight into Horowitz’s own writing life, with his homages to
Christie, Conan Doyle and Ian Fleming as well as his TV writing such as Poirot
and Foyle’s War – as well as a nod to his Alex Rider novels. These insights
prove fascinating for readers and writers of the British Murder Mystery.
Horowitz reveals his
love of the crime / mystery genre as he probes the lives, the loves and the
tragedy of his characters with their hidden motivations for murder. It reminded
this reader of his After-Dinner
speech at this year’s Crimefest
convention.
More information available from www.anthonyhorowitz.com
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