I delay as much as I can reading anything by Horowitz. This is only due to the fact that I devour his books in no time at all and I never want them to end. This mystery proved the same. Now, I must wait again for his next book. I truly love the banter between Hawthorne and Horowitz (the fictional version of the author) and find myself smiling throughout the story. The twists and turns are brilliant and as someone who truly appreciates the art of a writing a mystery novel, Horowitz is one of the best.

I am a fan of Horowitz. I brought Magpie mysteries to our bookclub. To date, I have enjoyed his writing. I have appreciated the formulation of his mysteries. I could not, and I tried, get in to this book. At the heart of it, I now realize is that, this is the first of this series where the first person voice was "alone" so much in the action. I know it's supposed to be a weird parallel universe of this author himself. However, I find this Horowitz distinctly unlikeable: self-centered, selfish to the point of narcissism. he's so insulated in his perfect life when things go awry his negative flaws and disbelief drive the character towards these traits. And then Hawthorne, who is meant to be a great unkown, slowly revealed, just really stays annoying and a bit pompous through the entire book without being in any way meaningfully explained. Bottom line, I had no one I like or even for whom to cheer.

But it's a mystery... how was that? Meh... yeah, it was a mystery... and there were clues and a path to truth... but somehow no engagement... no investment... no excitement..

if you are a fan of the series I welcome your thoughts and also warn you of potential disappointment. if this will be your first... give it a miss... start w/ book #1... and maybe pause after the third...

Very entertaining easy read. ☺️

Slow plot and forgettable. There were funny moments and interesting relationships. However, I finished this book 5 days ago and I've already forgotten who dunnit.

What fun, end to end! Another book in which Tony Horowitz himself is our main character, In this episode he is framed for murder (or did he actually commit the crime?) Filled with endless fun that welds Tony to his favorite ex-police officer, Hawthorne for a few more books. Somehow it also appears to have secured Hawthorne's top billing in this crime fighting duos book contract.

Horowitz is such a smart and witty writer. His mysteries are always a joy when I am looking for pure entertainment. (FWiW, I guessed several different solutions as I read, and all were wrong.) Additional note -- I always love when a book gives me a sense of place, and reading Horowitz's books always makes me feel like I somehow woke up to find that I live in London.

I'm a big fan of the series and always enjoy the twists and turns.

Not quite as good as the preceding three. Petals I’m tiring of them. The interaction between horowitz and hawthorn this time was less acute. They spent more time in separate activities but it is that interaction with IDs the true gold of these stories.