Magpie Murders by Antony Horowitz
4 pages + 213 pages + 241 pages (well... just lots of pages?)
 
What’s it about?
 This whodunit contains a book within a book.  It is almost too clever to work, and yet somehow Anthony Horowitz pulls it off. 
 
What did it make me think about?
 This was a murder mystery that is as much about literature and publishing  as it  is about who did it. 
 
Should I read it?
 I was in the mood for a good whodunit and this book certainly filled the bill.  I am a fan of anything Anthony Horowitz does (starting with Foyle’s War on PBS) so I expected a good read.  This book was almost too clever, and yet he pulled it off!  If you are looking for a good murder mystery then this book will satisfy.
 
Quote-
“It’s strange when you think about it.  There are hundreds and hundreds of murders in books and tlelevision.  It would be hard for narrative fiction ot survivie without them.  And yet there are almost none in real life, unless you happen to live in the wrong area.  Why is it that we have such a need for murder mystery and what is it that attracts us- the crime of the solution?


If you like this try-
The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz 
The Trespasser by Tana French
Norwegian by Night by Derek B. Miller
Still Life by Louise Penny

8 stars

Paris in the Present Tense by Mark Helprin 
394 pages

What’s it about?
This is a novel about looking back at your life.  Jules Lacour lives in Paris. He is a cellist, widower, veteran of the Algerian war, and a child of the Holocaust. He finds himself aging, alone, and with a quest.  He wants desperately to help his only daughter Catherine and his young grandson Luc.  Luc has leukemia and Jules would like to help get the family out of Paris and to better medical care.  Jules Lacour is so interesting!

What did it make me think about?
 Aging, love, fidelity, racism, and friendship.  

Should I read it?
This is a good novel, but not a great novel, and this is a shame because Jules is an amazing character! I found the story sometimes became bogged down by too many words. Mark Helprin writes beautifully- some passages take your breath away- but too many words can get in the way of greatness. 

Quote-
“ You may not understand this until you’re much older, but to people of my age it’s a given, if one will take it, that things become a once more beautiful, more intense, and more inexplicable. You learn to see with your emotions and feel with your reason.”

If you like this try-
*How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Moshin Hamid
*Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf 
*The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson
The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise by Julia Stuart

7 stars