Drawn Murders
Ágnes Mészöly: Drawn Murders* (Prae Kiadó 2022) After the events in Fox Hill*, Dr. Ágota Szabó, the former star prosecutor, turned her back on her former life with her iron will and with the help of her psychologist. She sold her apartment, broke up with almost all her old friends, quit smoking and gave up her successful job to work in a notary’s office. For four and a half years, managing the unexciting estate matters was just fine for her, but when she meets a young man in boots at the funeral of an old colleague, she drifts into the investigation of the serial killer who terrorizes Budapest, because the colleague was their latest victim. Ágota joins the special team led by Captain Pataki to try to get to the bottom of the case. The author drew my attention to the book when she signed the Fox Hill for me…
The Vanishing of Aveline Jones
Phil Hickes: The Vanishing of Aveline Jones (Usborne Publishing 2022) A lot of weird and scary things have happened to Aveline Jones already. First, she encounters a supernatural force in an unfriendly coastal town, and the following summer, in a Neolithic sanctuary, she discovers that witches don’t always drive on broomsticks. However, it wasn’t the end of the creepy adventures: surprises await the little girl even during the winter break. After years of hoping that Aveline’s uncle would return, her mother and aunt finally decided to sell his house. Sneaking into his office, Aveline and Harold discover that her uncle has been researching possible supernatural activity around an ancient burial mound near the town – linking it to the unexplained disappearances of local residents. There are dark, magical forces at work in the city, and they are doing everything they can to stay hidden… The story draws a lot from…
Miss Marple reloaded
Agatha Christie: Marple – Twelve New Stories (HarperCollins Publishers 2022) Miss Marple herself is like the neat little village of St. Mary Mead where she lives: calm, quiet and predictable on the surface, but full of life and surprises underneath it. Although many people only see her as the chattering old lady (which she doesn’t try to deny either), she sees through everyone with her gray-blue eyes and nothing escapes her attention. She knows all the frailties of human nature. Between 1927 and 1976, she appeared in 12 novels and 20 short stories by Agatha Christie. So far… In the Marple: Twelve New Stories short story collection published this year, we can read original stories by 12 contemporary writers, in which Miss Marple investigates again. Each author reimagines the detective through their own unique perspective while remaining true to the original characteristics of the story and the protagonist. The authors…
Christmas crimes
Agatha Christie: Christmas Crimes* (Helikon Publishing 2022) Agatha Christie is called the Queen of Crime for a reason. Since her first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, was published in 1920, she has published 66 novels and 14 short story collections, which are still read with the same enthusiasm as when they were first published. She was one of the authors who made the crime genre great. Her books have been published in Hungary since the 1930s. There are many translations of her works. Christmas was a very important holiday for Agatha Christie. So much so that it provides the background for several of her stories and she always wanted to wish her readers a pleasant holiday with a new book every year. Recently, several thematic volumes of short stories have been published (Midwinter Murder, Midsummer Mysteries, A Deadly Affair), but the Christmas Crimes, although the edition is in the…
Novel of Advent
Pascal Brissy: Le Mystère de Lord Noël (The Mystery of Mr. Christmas* Éditions Auzou 2022) Pascal Brissy is a French children’s author. He started writing in 2003 and since then many of his works have been published. In his free time, he is involved in screenwriting and game design. The Aouzou publishing house has been producing Advent calendar books for several years, the chapters of which are perforated and can be divided into pages. With the 24 chapters, we can get to December 24, to the end of the story. This year, one of the stories is The Mystery of Mr. Christmas, in which Nathan, Akim, Léo and his sister Léonore decide to discover the castle at the end of the street. However, the mysterious Mr. Christmas hates to be disturbed… What could he be hiding? The children must shed light on the secret if they want to save the…
Classics and contemporary
Lily King: Writers & Loves (Grove/Atantic Inc. 2020) Sally Rooney: Beautiful World, Where Are You (Faber & Faber 2021) 21. Század Kiadó Magazine Many thanks to 21. Század Kiadó for sending me the books and the magazine! The Magazine is published for the second time. We can receive it as a gift with our purchase. Its special feature is that it includes a novel by Hemingway that has not yet been published in Hungarian. Seán Hemingway, the writer’s grandson, came across the short story when he was preparing the new edition of The Old Man and the Sea. The short story is one of the few that was not published in the writer’s lifetime, but it is imbued with the unadulterated Hemingway feeling: the pursuit of perfection and happiness. In the magazine, we can read an interview with the author of The Binding, Bridget Collins, we can find out how…
Young detectives
Robin Stevens: Cream Buns and Crime, Once Upon a Crime, Mistletoe and Murder (Puffin Books) ‘Grown-ups always underestimate children. Children never underestimate each other.’ Robin Stevens, although born in America, has lived in England since the age of 3. She herself studied at a boarding school and included her own experiences in her book series. However, unlike the protagonists of the story, she waited in vain for a real crime that she could investigate. The mysteries followed her throughout her life. Ever since she read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, she knew she wanted to be Poirot or Miss Marple when she grew up. She studied crime fiction at university and then worked for a children’s book publisher before becoming a full-time writer. The Murder Most Unladylike series started in 2014 and has 10 books, the first volume has already been published in Hungarian. Cream Buns and Crime and Once…
A Very Merry Murder Club
Serena Patel – Robin Stevens: The Very Merry Murder Club (Farshore – HarperCollins Publishers 2021) In this anthology, we can read the short stories of 13 contemporary middle grade authors, all of which take place in winter, during the holidays or in snowy, cold settings. Crime fiction is always an interesting subject, despite the fact that it follows a certain pattern: there is a crime, suspects, clues and a detective who solves the mystery. Why do we love it then? Because every case is unique. Every writer makes their own work special with the characters, the location, the twists and turns and most importantly: there is always a solution. It is no coincidence that the golden age of crime fiction was the 1930s. People were thirsty for truth and justice. I like anthologies because I get to know writers from whom I haven’t read before. The writers in this book…
Amari and the world of magic
B. B. Alston: Amari and the Night Brothers (Balzer + Bray in HarperCollins Publishers 2022) Many Thanks to Maxim Kiadó for sending me the book! What would you say if I told you that all the creatures you’ve read about (goblins, fairies, sea monsters, vampires and vampire hunters) actually exist? You probably didn’t believe it. However, Amari has to believe it when one night she receives a message from her missing brother. Even before he disappeared, Quinton had recommended his sister to the summer camp at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, from which he himself got his scholarship and job. However, Amari has to face the fact that navigating the supernatural world is no easier than ours. The setting of the story is the American version of the British boarding school: the summer camp. This is also a good location for middle grade stories, because children have to get by…
Crime Christmas
These are the crime novels I want to read in December: Robin Stevens: Cream Buns and Crime, Once Upon a Crime, Mistletoe and Murder (Puffin Books) I wrote about it recently, that the series Murder Most Unladylike has become one of my new favorites. In the first two volumes listed, we find short stories in which further mysteries are revealed by the girls. Once Upon a Crime is the last, additional volume of the series, which also includes a chronology, with the help of which we can place the investigations in time. Mistletoe and Murder takes place at Christmas, when the two girls spend the holidays at Daisy’s. Ágnes Mészöly: Drawn murders* (Prae Kiadó 2022) The Drawn Murders is the ‘continuation’ of the Rókabérc, haláltúra (Fox Hill, Death Tour*), which you have already read about on BogiWrites. Former prosecutor Ágota Szabó has to investigate again, this time after a serial…