Eight Detectives

Alex Pavesi lives in London, where he writes full time. He previously worked as a software engineer and before that obtained a PhD in Mathematics. He enjoys puzzles, long walks and recreational lock picking.Terrific. Alex Pavesi knows the genre inside out. One of the year's most entertaining crime novelsDizzying, dazzling - a potent potion of a thriller, a brew of bibliophilia (think The Shadow of the Wind), wire-taut tension (The Talented Mr. Ripley), and plot swerves so sharp and sudden you risk whiplash with each turn of the page, as bold as the best of Michael Connelly and Lisa Gardner. When did you last read a genuinely original thriller? The wait is over. So, so clever. A twisty story and an education in the maths of murder mysteries, Agatha Christie would take her hat off to this one - bravo!Alex Pavesi is a lively writer . . . It feels like a game of Clue-do-kuAn elegantly structured, intellectually challenging and completely unique thriller that grips like a viceThis is both a wonderfully tricksy debut and a loving tribute to the golden age of crime fictionIt's rare for me to read a book in a single day, but I couldn't put Eight Detectives down. Compelling, clever, and beautifully-constructed. It deserves to be huge. I genuinely wanted to applaud at the endA brilliantly twisty thriller. I adored this clever, game-playing book - it's like Agatha Christie for bibliophilesA box of delights . . . Pavesi's revelations are completely unexpected, right up to the end

An absolute triumph of a novel. I read it in two greedy gulps. Intelligent and compelling storytelling. Utterly brilliant

This super-smart homage to the Agatha Christie tradition is a must. Stylish, ingenious and great funHas an intricacy rare in modern crime fiction. Alex Pavesi deserves huge applause for his plot, constructed with all the skill of the old mastersIn Eight Detectives, Alex Pavesi constructs a remarkable puzzle that turns readers into literary detectives with every new twist. Both a celebration and a reinvention of mystery fictionMasterfully told in a unique way - this is sure to get you thinkingAn absolute juggernaut of a novel.This debut novel, constructed with clockwork precision, has an understated creepiness that gets under your skinAlex Pavesi's Eight Detectives is a delightfully inventive and enjoyable debut which plays fascinating games with the classic murder mystery and puts a fresh spin on the notion of whodunit. Bravo!So clever and a lot of fun, fans of Golden Age crime fiction (of which I am one) will love this unique tale with a modern twistAlex Pavesi has written one of the most creative detective novels of the year...if not of all time. Sharp writing, crisp dialogue, and the end will leave you reeling. An incredible debut novel!A fantastic read. Utterly original, yet reads like a long-lost golden age classic. The author surprises from the first chapter, is always one step ahead, and constantly gives you this feeling that something macabre is happening behind your back! BravoI have never read a book quite like this. It's original, clever and compelling - and the revelations at the end took me totally by surprise.I loved this intelligent and inventive novel and I'm sure that it will find legions of fans amongst aficionados of classic crime. It's the most fun I've had in agesAn ingenious exploration of the crime genreAn enthrallingly layered literary mysteryA brilliantly conceived novel . . . "I didn't see that coming", you'll sayIngenious . . . perfect for fans of Agatha ChristieA clever read[An] impressive evocation of the golden age of crime fiction

THE BIGGEST MYSTERY CAN BE MURDER TO SOLVE . . . DISCOVER THE YEAR'S MOST ORIGINAL CRIME NOVEL

'One of the year's most entertaining crime novels' SUNDAY TIMES, CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH
'When did you last read a genuinely original thriller? The wait is over' A. J. FINN
'An elegantly structured, intellectually challenging and completely unique thriller that grips like a vice' SOPHIE HANNAH
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All murder mysteries follow a simple set of rules.

In the 1930s, Grant McAllister, a mathematics professor turned author, worked them out, hiding their secrets in a book of crime stories.

Then Grant disappeared.

Julia Hart has finally tracked him down. She wants to know what happened to him.

But she's about to discover that a good mystery can be murder to solve . . .
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'One of the most creative detective novels of the year . . . If not of all time' Samantha Downing

'Intelligent and inventive . . . It's the most fun I've had in ages' Cathy Rentzenbrink

'So, so clever . . . Agatha Christie would take her hat off to this one - bravo!' Sarah Pinborough

**Winner of the Capital Crimes Reader Award for Debut Book of the Year**

SHORTLISTED FOR THE GLASS BELL AWARD AND THE BARRY AWARD FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL