I would say this is a good read. Not perfect (probably there is no such thing as a perfect book), not amazing, but good. It´s a classic crime story with a vibe of traditional crime novels but with a twist of its own. I liked Malcolm, the main character, he is totaly relatable and loveable, although he has a lot of issues and demons chasing him. I liked the style, the book reads really smoothly, even though it has too much books references for my taste, so it can be a little overwhelming at times, with so many book titles and premises. But all in all the book did it´s job - it took me on an adventure and that is the point of reading, right?

I loved the premise of this book and started with high expectations. It's enjoyable enough to read but unfortunately I didn't find it as clever or twisty as I was hoping. Yes it's meta but several of the twists and revelations did not come as a surprise.

This book was everything! I loved the AC inspiration, I loved the main character, I loved the twists, I loved the format! A perfect mystery in my book.

Rules for Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson is a chilling murder mystery written in the style of some of the classics of the genre. The plot is intricate and involved but somehow manages not to feel contrived. The writing has the perfect balance of mystery, tension and shock. I loved it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Fabre and Fabre Publishers for the opportunity to read this book.

This is a brilliantly clever murder mystery that explores the whole genre and turns it upside down. Highly recommended.

Kept me guessing the whole time. Well written and I read it within one day, look forward to more from this author!

Loved this - Patricia Highsmith is my favourite author of all time, so reading a book using her and other mystery/crime writers as a template for the plot was great.

Reminded me a bit of You and Gone Girl, which I also really enjoyed. Incredibly meta, and self-aware.

Recommend for fans of crime novels, twisty books and modern takes on traditional tales.

This book was so much fun, a must read for fans of the genre and a delightful homage to iconic moments in it's predecessors.

REASON TO READ

A list of eight of the most perfect literary murders. A killer on the loose. A formula for the perfect summer thriller.

REVIEW

If you are looking for a cracking good thriller read for the summer then keep on reading. Rules for Perfect Murders (aka Eight Perfect Murders) by Peter Swanson delivers everything you’d want from a great thriller, twists and turns, red herrings and a knock out ending.

The books narrator is Mal Kershaw who co-owns the Old Devils Bookstore. Enter stage left FBI agent Gwen Mulvey who arrives in Mal’s life to question him about a blog he posted years earlier entitled 'My Eight Favourite Murders,’ which are now linked to a series of unsolved murders.

Once you start this book you’ll have trouble stopping. It’s trademark Swanson, gripping, twisted and a perfect homage to its classic crime thriller predecessors including Agatha Christie's The ABC Murders, Patricia Highsmith's Strangers on a Train and Donna Tartt's The Secret History. There are definitely moments in the book that are far fetched, but these moments are what make the book fun. And did I mention the killer ending 😀 No spoilers.

Entertaining thrill ride. The perfect summer read ⭐️⭐️⭐️ out if five

What a unique and smartly written thriller. This broke a five-star slump for me after almost four months so I can definitely say it’ll be one of my highlights for 2020.

Rules for Perfect Murders is a celebration of thrillers, referencing (and spoiling) many of the best books in the genre. It follows bookshop own Malcolm whose blogpost listing eight perfect fictional murders is used by a serial killer. When approached by an FBI agent, Malcolm starts his own investigation and finds that the killer may be much closer to home than he first thought.

Peter Swanson’s writing style is smooth and makes for easy, enjoyable reading, despite the complex nature of the plot. I loved the way Malcolm almost directly spoke to the reader at points. The novel is structured like a memoir and this personal nature brings you daringly close to Malcolm’s mind. Despite the lack of information on the secondary characters, I didn’t feel like they were under-written. It was clear that Malcolm simply didn’t know anyone else on that deep of a level, but the few ways he described his employees and acquaintances revealed interesting character traits.

This is the kind of thriller you can read in a day; the kind you can watch like a movie in your mind. I definitely need to explore more of Swanson’s backlist because both of the books I’ve read of his so far (this and A Kind Worth Killing) have been memorable and exciting.

Brilliant! I love Peter Swanson's books and this one is amazing. I love the idea that someone is carrying out murders similar to other famous ones (ABC Murders etc). This is a brilliant thriller and, as it is quite short, was read very quickly!

This just wasn’t what I wanted from a Peter Swanson book, I’ve loved the two that I read Before She Knew Him and The Kind Worth Killing they were engaging and thrilling however this just bored me and took me a couple of months to read.

Peter Swanson is swiftly becoming one of my favorite authors. His writing style is really accessible which makes for an easy yet exciting read.
The concept of this story is brilliant and it was executed well, highly recommend.

I love Peter Swanson's writing and this book is no different. A unique story, well told. I run the virtual crime book club where once a month we discuss a crime book via Zoom so we can gather face-to-face and this book was the first book we chose when I restarted the club due to lockdown. It was enjoyed by all members.

This book caught my eye due to the interesting idea of Murders being done from a list of books based on the perfect murder. I could even see this being Small tv series where each episode was based on one of the books from the list... I really enjoyed this book and found it a refreshing change from other books in the same genre.

It kept me guessing for quite a while and many times when I thought I knew who it was the book would chuck a carrot in my face and I was let guessing once again ... I would recommend this to anybody who loves a thriller or if you are new to thillers and want to get your feet wet this is a great start.

Thanks once again for letting me read your book.

Peter Swanson’s latest book is a veritable delight for crime fiction fans, but fair warning, know your crime history or prepared to have it spoiled! Rules for Perfect Murders draws from some of crime fictions most fiendish stories and this book in particular has a lot of fun playing with the rules. Bookstore owner, Malcom Kershaw, once wrote a blog post describing the books with the most perfect murders. Amongst the list is Secret History, Strangers on a Train and ABC Murders. The blog post is long forgotten by Kershaw, especially as more tragic events have dominated his life, but all that changes when a FBI agent visits him with the theory that someone is copying the murders from the books on Kershaw’s list. Kershaw is then drawn into a dangerous game of cat and mouse where nothing is quite as it seems.

Peter Swanson plays a masterful game with this book. Crime fiction aficionados will love the clues and references sprinkled throughout the book. Swanson toys with the genre and throws in a few twists of his own for good measure. Every character becomes a suspect in the readers eyes and every interaction suspicious. It’s a proper book geek’s book and I’m sure there’s plenty in there that I didn’t pick up on. It’s the kind of book that makes you want to read another twenty more and I picked up a few more ideas for my ever growing to-read list. It’s a must read for crime fans and a really interesting take on the genre. Fantastic.

I received a ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a fair review.

I really enjoyed this, particularly the references to the other titles that were used as the 'killer's' MO. I read this very quickly, which is probably a testament to it's level of engagement and I enjoyed the sinister tone that ran throughout the story. The only thing I thought could have been better was the 'unravel' at the end. The book spends such a long time building this atmosphere of unease, that this part seemed a bit abrupt. However, thoroughly enjoyed this- unsettling and eerie - would recommend for fans of Robert Goddard.

Thank you for the approval, both Net Galley and publisher!!

I did think this was a good book it had all the essential ingredients of a good thriller I just felt that it started out as something I could get into but in the middle it kinda staggered a bit but then thankfully it picked up towards the end . A lot of good recommedations for other books as well

My rating ****

Since diving into this genre of crime thrillers, I've mostly stuck to lady authors, since the men authors I've found so far have been a tad tedious and formulaic, not holding my attention.

I'd give this 3.5 stars; it's not quite a 4, but it did keep me reading to the end, and quite urgently in the last few chapters.

I'd never read a Peter Swanson novel. I've no idea if I might take on another as yet. And if you've not read the 8 murder mysteries that are the premise for this novel, but intend to, don't read this until you are done with the others. I knew of 3 of the stories already, and I really did enjoy the telling of this story with them as the basis.

I enjoyed the journey, and yes Malcolm was a tad mundane, but what would one expect of a bookish type in all honesty. He was never going to be 007.

I enjoyed this foray into a different type of crime thriller, But I'm just as likely to stick to lady authors who tend to be a little deeper, a little more psychologically aware to intrigue one into their stories, the characters have more depth, and a great novel often loses you sleep. This, alas, did not, but I don't regret reading it for a moment.

I admit I really enjoyed this from beginning to end; I was fascinated by the premise and the way Swanson drew it out was nothing short of splendid. When Malcolm Kershaw gets a call from the FBI asking if he wouldn’t mind answering some questions, his mind obviously flies to all kinds of places. It doesn’t however immediately fly to a blog post he wrote well over a decade ago describing eight perfect fictional murders. But someone seems to be recreating murders from novels and it ties in with the list that he wrote all that time ago and with The A.B.C. Murders and Double Indemnity already down, the body count may become far higher yet. But is any murder truly perfect? Or is there a way Malcolm can figure out the truth to the puzzle before the truth finds him?

Swanson taunts and teases you by revealing layers of the truth slowly throughout the novel and I must admit, it twists and turns in entirely unexpected ways. Malcolm, an unassuming old school bookshop owner has secrets that he doesn’t want the world to know, but don’t we all. He has memories that are painful to revisit, his wife’s tragic death in a car accident when under the influence being understandably raw for him, even five years on. You are kept in a frustrating yet enthralling dusk like haze of information, unable to separate the full truth from the murky disinformation. The novel explores these perfect murders in significant detail, using them to try and pin down some elusive aspect of the real killers mindset and motivations. This is a book that delves deeply into the hidden psyche and the power of secrets and it is a fascinating read for it.

That is however a reason for the missing star here. Whilst I understand that Swanson likely deliberately picked old classics to base his thriller off, it can’t be ignored that there are a huge amount of spoilers here for anyone - like me - who hasn’t read these works. The original list of eight murder mysteries are almost given away in their entirety and there are one or two additional novels mentioned as well. Many of them date back to the 50’s or before, so a lot of people will have naturally already read them. For me, I have gained a significant number of new books for my to read pile - which if was a physical mass, would likely be as high as an average sized tower block - but I will have to wait awhile, as many crucial elements have already been divulged to me and there would be little mystery reading them right now. I get that the books are a central tenant of this novel, so I haven’t marked more harshly for spoilers, but it is a definite drawback to the finished article. I almost wish I had read them first.

What I did enjoy was Swanson’s obvious love of the thriller/mystery genre in particular and books in general. His enthusiasm and delight shines off the page and it is somehow addictive. Despite having not read the classics at the heart of this tale, I found myself enthralled by the energy of the words. This mixed with an engaging and twisting narrative filled with interesting characters with complex motivations and back-stories had me hooked and I flew through the novel in less than a day. I am certain that I will come back to it when I have read the novels that Swanson extols in such detail. This is dark, funny and exquisitely well written, delving into the motivations and the aftermath of murder, both real and fictional.

For those interested however, the books with key spoilers include The A.B.C Murders, The Drowner, Strangers on a Train, Red House Mystery, Malice Aforethought, Double Indemnity, Deathtrap, The Secret History and The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. There may be a few others.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my free review copy of this title.