'A series of unsolved murders with one thing in common: each of the deaths bears an eerie resemblance to the crimes depicted in classic mystery novels.
The deaths lead FBI Agent Gwen Mulvey to mystery bookshop Old Devils. Owner Malcolm Kershaw had once posted online an article titled 'My Eight Favourite Murders,' and there seems to be a deadly link between the deaths and his list - which includes Agatha Christie's The ABC Murders, Patricia Highsmith's Strangers on a Train and Donna Tartt's The Secret History.
Can the killer be stopped before all eight of these perfect murders have been re-enacted?'

This was a gripping read that kept my interest throughout. FBI Special Agent Gwen Mulvey visits Malcolm Kershaw the owner of Old Devils Bookstore to discuss a piece he wrote on the Eight Perfect Murders I was invested in the characters and the development of the plot I would recommend and would read other books by this author

Rules for Perfect Murders cleverly references some classic murder plots from legendary authors and iconic movies. We’re not quite sure how reliable a narrator Malcolm is and at points I questioned the physical existence of some of the other characters. In the footsteps of Anthony Horowitz the clues are laid. The whole novel itself turns out to be homage to one of the most famous plots of all time.

Rules for Perfect murders by Peter Swanson is the first book in the Malcom Kershaw series and I have only read one other book from this author so, I was curious to see how this pans out.

The story is told Malcom Kershaw a bookseller and part owner of The Old devil’s bookstore which is situated in Boston. When he is visited by FBI agent Gwen Mulvey who needs his advice. A few years back Malcolm wrote a blog to drum up business for the store. In this blog there was a list of eight perfect murders that were referenced in eight books. It comes to light that lately that they have been some murders in the vicinity that who ever is killing these people are referring to the list that he made on the blog. Agent Mulvey also reckons that it is either someone that Malcom knows or even himself is in the frame for being the killer of these murders. But Malcom has an alibi. But who is committing these murders and what is the link to himself?
I thank Faber and Faber for copy of this book. I didn’t realise it has already been published when I requested it on NetGalley. This is a real slow burner of a story that I struggled at first to get into. It is only halfway through that I got into the story. This has a cleverly written plot, with lots of different characters to keep you guessing. For me though I found it to be too slow and I was losing interest until the last quarter. 3 stars from me.

This is the first book I’ve read by Peter Swanson but it certainly won’t be the last. It’s the sort of book you can’t wait to find out who the protagonist it while, at the same time, not wanting the narrative to end. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys thrillers, mysteries and who dunnits.

I liked the fact that the book was an easy read and I felt well engaged with the author and characters in a few pages. With the twists and turns of well developed characters it kept me guessing until the end.

This was my first book from this author and will be looking out for more.

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson is one of my favourite thrillers of recent time, and high on my recommendation list. Yet his subsequent have failed to grip me the way The Kind Worth Killing did. The premise of Rules for Perfect Murders is an intriguing one. Books within books is one of my favourite tropes. However Rules for Perfect Murders was a rather disappointing read for many reasons:
* It spoils a lot of famous mystery novels, so don't go in if you're planning to read Agatha Christies novels and The Secret History among many other books referenced.
* At times this read less than a thriller and more like a non-fiction book with the protagonist, Malcolm Kershaw, going off into tangents about why certain thrillers are significant for their remarkable plotting.
* Uneven pace. There is so much repetition with Malcolm and Grace talking about the books that not much happens until the last third.
* Uncompelling characters. The protagonists are so ordinary and forgettable that they failed to grip me the way The Kind Worth Killing did.
Unfortunately for me this was a 1-star read but I can see why certain readers would be drawn this book.

This was so much fun to read! Not my favourite from the author, but definitely an enjoyable read. It'll keep you on the edge of your seat and you'll be trying to dodge all the red herrings just to find out who the culprit is.

Just finished Rules For Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson and I gotta say this is probably my least favourite out of the books of read by this author, even though I did enjoy its contents I found it to be a slow read which I’m thankful it was only a short read ✨

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I received an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Faber & Faber, and the author Peter Swanson.
I thought this was great! I read it while traveling and while on holiday, and it was perfect for those situations.
If you enjoy mystery and psychological thrillers, it will have you gripped. A really interesting premise and an ending I didn't predict. Everything also wrapped up neatly and satisfactorily at the end. Would recommend!

Cleverly Executed.....
Cleverly executed mystery. A series of unsolved murders, the deaths of which appear to based upon plots of classic mystery novels, an FBI agent and a mystery bookstore owner. The premise itself held huge promise and it was indeed a fun, engaging and escapist read .

This was a very enjoyable mystery / thriller read. In a way, it was a mystery book about other mystery books which I liked (although I could understand some other reviewers' frustration about the spoilers for the 8 perfect murder reads). It wasn't particularly fast paced, but certainly enough to keep me wanting to read / listen more. At some point, I guessed whodunnit, but then I got thrown by a red herring so it all still caught me by surprise a little.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest and impartial review.

I ended up DNF'ing this book pretty early on when I realised it spoils all of the classic murder mysteries mentioned. Maybe I'll come back to it once I've read the books that I wanted to read. Maybe I won't. I don't like that this book clearly relies on name-dropping more popular books.

Third time is the charm so they say. This is my third Peter Swanson book and I truly enjoyed this.

I've read two others prior but was disappointed and did not enjoy it.

This one however, the writing is superb, the story is intriguing and suspenseful and a very clever read indeed.

This is a novel that will surely be loved by all those for whom crime fiction is something more than a simple literary genre, a mere category under which a particular text can be classified according to the content of its plot. It is written by the American author, Peter Swanson, from Massachusetts, who has authored several best-sellers such as The Kind Worth Killing and Before She Knew Him and his new writing attempts are always something to wait and watch for. In this book, Swanson introduces a protagonist,.Malcolm Kershaw, who is a seasoned crime fiction addict and also owns a second-hand mystery bookshop where he spends the largest part of his everyday existence. A fine morning he is visited by a female FBI agent who is investigating a string of seemingly unrelated murders, without a clear motive, that seems to be connected with a blog post that Malcolm wrote several years ago and where he listed the eight crime novels that feature "the perfect murder", that is a killing where the culprit is so cunning as to organize the crime in such detail that makes it impossible for the prosecuting authorities to find to even consider him as a possible suspect.

Malcolm's blog post lists some of the most classical pieces in the genre, some written in the British Golden Era of mystery fiction and others more recently. Some of the titles are Agatha Christie's The ABC Murders, Patricia Highsmith's Strangers on a Train that was adapted to the cinema screen by Alfred Hitchcock in 1951, and Donna Tart's college-centered mystery The Secret History. There are many discussions between the main characters around these books as it is evident that the key to understanding the perpetrator's killing spree can be found only by reading them carefully and meticulously. The main plotline is, not genius or over-elaborate, but unravels at a fast pace while the whodunit element provides the reader motivation to keep on reading.

It should be noted that those who haven't already read the books of the list and sincerely wish to in the future, should not read Rules for Perfect Murders due to the presence of major spoilers that in many cases reveal the ending or the final twist of the novel. Apart from that, for the scholars of the genre's history is a great, light-read that one can relish even in one sitting. The readers will have the opportunity to remember some of the genre's cornerstone achievements and it is a real pleasure to do so even if you are not a hardcore fan of any of the listed authors. I enjoy the Swanson's simple, though not simplistic, writing styles that are easy to follow and offer thrill and excitement to the reader. I want to sincerely thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free ARC of this title.

This is a very clever and well written book which will keep you turning the pages. Malcolm Kershaw co owns a bookshop and occasionally and sporadically writes a blog. Someone has found that blog and is killing in the way of Malcolm’s favourite murder mysteries. This brings an FBI Agent to his door. So far, so generic... but this book has so many unexpected twists and turns, your head will be spinning - in a good way. No spoilers but this is definitely worth reading for the denouement alone!

An easy four stars and nearly five as the characters and plot are well developed and the pacing is perfect.

Recommended if you’re becoming a little bored with the “usual” in crime novels.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

This was a decent suspense novel. It was more of a slow-burn mystery than anything else which in essence is not something bad. Even so, it was more in the style of a classic mystery novel than a modern thriller, which I do appreciate. Old-school mysteries are always going to be some of my favourites.
The waiting style is very good, exciting at times, building the perfect 'excuse' for a couple of very interesting plot twists.
And even though I did think the writing was good, the narrative voice of Malcolm annoyed me very much from time to time. Also, that ending is not something I would've picked out for this book.

I loved the writing style of this novel. Think Stanley Tucci for the book shop owner - I can easily see it as a series. It's my first introduction to Peter Swanson and I was instantly gripped. The main protagonist Mal Kershaw runs an old-fashioned book store in Boston. Out of the blue FBI agent Gwen Mulvey walks into the shop to talk to the pompous Mal about a blog he painstakingly created several years ago 'My Eight Favourite Murders.' I loved this read and while I could see some of the turns coming that didn't take away from my enjoyment. Very clever and would recommend.

This is a good book with a very clever plot. I found it very different to other books written by this author and am not sure if I liked it quite as much.

Peter Swanson is one of my favorite authors! All of his books are excellent. I am looking forward to reading all the new books he writes!

This book is an enjoyable read and incorporates many classic murder mystery novels into the storyline. I haven't read that many of the books mentioned within this book and don't really need to now due to the spoilers included within this storyline.

This is a twisty novel which keeps the reader engaged through the unreliable narration of Malcolm. The story unfolds as he discovers who the murderer could be and how they are linked directly to Malcolm himself.

Definitely worth a read but perhaps not quite as good as some of his previous books.