Reviews with content warning for Death - Eight Detectives: The Sunday Times Crime Book of the Month

The concept is very interesting and the link to mathematics is unusual. For me the ending seemed rushed and a little unsatisfactory but I read it quickly and enjoyed it.

Content Warnings

lexslittlelibrary's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

The beauty of the 8th Detective is that it is a mystery that tells you exactly what happened and who did it before you even open the book.

Spoiler

Literally just from reading the back of the book, I knew Grant had to have killed the girl mentioned there

However despite knowing the inevitable place the book will end up, it’s almost impossible to deduce the “why” and “how” of much of the story—but it is possible, which makes it a perfect example of the detective genre.

While I loved the smaller murder mystery stories, what really made this book special was the thought given to what makes the genre and how those details can be manipulated to tell an infinite number of unique stories.

However, parts of the last two or three chapters felt like rushed resolution. I would have liked to have seen more of both characters as they grappled with their own problems independently.

Spoiler

I also wish the alternate endings to the stories had been written in differently, or perhaps had a reference point back to where that change became relevant to the story itself, as I found the alternate/original endings being thrown into the middle of a chapter one after another to be dizzying. Had I not read it all in two days I wouldn’t have been able to follow what was happening there at all.

Overall it was a solid detective story and definitely one I’d recommend to others.

Content Warnings

_emmadoherty's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Fantastic read! Perfect for anyone who likes murder mysteries. The format is so different to any other detective novel I’ve ever read, so refreshing and keeps the pace going. I find I’ve read so many detective stories that they all get a bit same-y but this a perfect mix of like the murder mysteries we know and love but in a fresh new way.

Basically the story is split into 2 - you have alternating chapters which switch between one of the mystery stories that the main character wrote, and the journalist interviewing him about that story. You therefore get 7 mini mysteries to enjoy plus the overall mystery of the story as a whole, it’s so enjoyable to read. To top it off there’s multiple plot twists just to keep it exciting! The way it’s laid out means it’s easy to put down after each chapter if you need to, because that’s been a mini-story, but you’re also dying to know what’s going to happen next.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and it’s so nice to finally see something a bit different in this genre. Can’t say too much more at risk of spoiling it, but if you get the chance - read it!

Content Warnings