The Mystery of the Crooked Man

De: Tom Spencer

Narrado por: Claire Warrillow

Meet Agatha Dorn, cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green, the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist. She becomes an overnight sensation, basking in the limelight of literary stardom.

But Agatha's newfound fame takes a nosedive when the 'rediscovered' novel is exposed as a hoax. And when her ex-lover turns up dead, with a scrap of the manuscript by her side, Agatha suspects foul play.

Cancelled, ostracised and severely ticked off, Agatha turns detective to uncover the sinister truth that connects the murder and the fraudulent manuscript. But can she stay sober long enough to catch the murderer, or will Agatha become a whodunnit herself?

©2024 Tom Spencer (P)2024 Bolinda Publishing

Reseñas de la Crítica

'Not your usual cosy, and that's exactly what I loved! Spencer tip-toes on that line between traditional and modern with a delicate charm and deftness of touch to create a juicy whodunnit. Simply brilliant!' (Jonathan Whitehall, author of The Bingo Hall Detectives)

'With a prickly protagonist and a plot that's twistier than a bag full of corkscrews, this one will keep you guessing until the end.' (Fiona Leitch, author of The Cornish Wedding Murder)

'This edgy mystery takes you down a dark path with unexpected turns, intriguing Golden Age breadcrumbs and a thorny denouement.' (Sarah Yarwood-Lovett, bestselling author of A Murder of Crows)

1 part humor, 2 parts mystery, 3 parts gin!

This finely curated tale centers an unlikely protagonist who attempts to succeed despite herself and her ambitious diet of gin and water. While it took me a minute to get the cutting humor and London slang, once I did I was laughing every chapter at this ridiculous and captivating tale that pulls you in the deeper you go.

What a treat!

Picked this book because of rave review in Sunday NYT and glad I did! Intricate plot, strange and slightly spooky, but all very apt. Especially nice wordplay and grammar jokes, always a treat. Yes, there was a crooked man. We knew it all along. We just didn’t know what or who it was. Worth knowing.

A Twist I didn’t see coming

I read a lot of these cozy mysteries and this is the first time that I didn’t actually guess the killer before the end. Agatha is such a well written character and if you liked Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine you will enjoy this book.

Agatha can be very annoying

As much as I really do enjoy annoying female characters, this one’s traits included self-pity, self obsession, and whining—which made her often tiresome. Several times fairly early on I seriously considered returning the book but finally got caught up in the plot and made it to the end. This is a good book—the plot is interesting, and Agatha becomes less of an annoyance as the book progresses—but good grief, I had to struggle for a while.

Top notch

One of the funniest, most enjoyable books I’ve stumbled across in ages. The narrator was also a dream.