“At the Pomegranate Theatre, tempers flared like oil lamps.”
Genre: Historical Thriller/Mystery
Number of Pages: 288
Date of Publication: 2 February 2023
Publisher: Head of Zeus/Aries
My Review Summary: A cleverly woven, historical mystery.
📖PLOT SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS📖
A magician-turned-sleuth in pre-war London solves three impossible crimes.
In 1930s London, celebrity psychiatrist Anselm Rees is discovered dead in his locked study, and there seems to be no way that a killer could have escaped unseen. There are no clues, no witnesses, and no evidence of the murder weapon. Stumped by the confounding scene, the Scotland Yard detective on the case calls on retired stage-magician-turned-part-time-sleuth Joseph Spector. Who better to make sense of the impossible than one who traffics in illusions?
Spector has a knack for explaining the inexplicable, but even he finds that there is more to this mystery than meets the eye. As he and the Inspector interview the colorful cast of suspects among the psychiatrist’s patients and household, they uncover no shortage of dark secrets—or motives for murder. When the investigation dovetails into that of an apparently impossible theft, the detectives consider the possibility that the two transgressions are related. And when a second murder occurs, this time in an impenetrable elevator, they realize that the crime wave will become even deadlier unless they can catch the culprit soon.
💭THOUGHTS💭
I love a murder mystery, and with the addition of being set in the 1930s, plus having a magician involved, I knew that it would be an interesting read. Without the use of modern day technology I find that there is a certain charm and intelligence to the murders, that otherwise would be even more difficult and unrealistic to pull off.
The writing was clever and added a number of different storylines together without overcomplicating anything. I liked that there was a character list at the beginning, that was helpful. I was able to easily follow what was going on, however the ending was a complete surprise to me! I also liked that at the end you as the reader were directly spoken to before the solution to the puzzle was finally revealed.
The chapters were long and split. I enjoyed the different titles that each chapter had, they were interesting and certainly different to any other book that I have read. There was a good flow to the book, and whilst it felt fairly long, I think that everything was necessary in order to solve all the different threads. I wasn’t left feeling disappointed!
I loved the characters. I enjoyed following the Conjuror’s point of view and the fact that he gave nothing away. As the reader you were presented with everything that you needed to know, but it wasn’t until the end that the main character told you the answer. I liked that when a solution was explained there was a reference to the page where you could find the evidence to back it up.
All of the characters were suspicious and all of them had something to hide, which was enjoyable to read about.
Lastly the settings. I loved going round London following the characters. There was a darkness to it that added another layer to the story.
Overall an interesting book.
📖THE AUTHOR📖
ABOUT TOM MEAD
Tom Mead is a UK crime fiction author specialising in locked-room mysteries.
He is a member of the Crime Writers’ Association and the International Thriller Writers’ Organization.
His debut novel is DEATH AND THE CONJUROR, featuring magician-detective Joseph Spector.
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