The owner of a Boston bookshop specializing in mysteries posts a list of books on the store’s blog. It is entitled “Eight Perfect Murders” and it lists the novels he feels have described unsolvable murders. These are murders in which the killers cannot be connected with their crimes. Years later, he is contacted by an FBI agent. She believes that a series of unsolved murders in the area surrounding Boston are being committed to mimic the deaths in the books on the “Eight Perfect Murders” blog post. As bookshop owner is the person who created the list, she needs his help to determine not only if this is true, but, if it is, how can they stop the killer before he commits another murder based on a classic mystery novel. 

In Eight Perfect Murders, author Peter Swanson pays homage to the classic mystery literature he is using as a foundation for his clever and compelling new crime novel. The characters are likeable, if not reliable, and the circumstances, a serial killer using a book list from an old blog post as a blueprint for murder, is simultaneously old school and contemporary. Swanson paces the novel perfectly, revealing just enough information about the crimes and characters to keep the plot moving along with just the right amount of jolts to derail speculations about “whodunit.” Throughout the novel, Swanson also knowingly drops the names of notable mystery authors and titles not included in the blog post.. Readers may want to keep a pen and paper handy to create a “to be read” list for when they finish Eight Perfect Murders, which they most certainly will want to do. This suspense novel almost dares readers to find the solution to an intriguing puzzle.

Available on e-Media

Other books by Peter Swanson are available on e-Media