New Release Spotlight: The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths.

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Publication Date: Available now from Quercus

Source: Publisher Review Copy.

Brighton, 1950.
When the body of a girl is found, cut into three, Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens is reminded of a magic trick, the Zig Zag Girl.
The inventor of the trick, Max Mephisto, is an old friend of Edgar’s. They served together in the war as part of a shadowy unit called the Magic Men.

I’m a fan of Elly Griffiths Ruth Galloway novels so was really looking forward to diving into this one, a standalone novel inspired by her Grandfather.

I loved it. Beautifully written to give a sense of the time, a terrific mystery story and a wonderful flow, plus some great characters made this a really really fun read.

Edgar, Max and the so called “Magic Men” are a fascinating and eclectic bunch, brought back together by a strange murder that mimicks an old magic trick – The Zig Zag Girl. As Edgar investigates he looks to Max to help him work out what is going on and their friendship is rekindled.

There was a delightful old school feel to the prose, very different from the Galloway novels – Christie-esque in style to suit the era, despite the violence it is quite a gentle read. in some ways and Ms Griffiths has caught the sense of the theatre community brilliantly. The glamorous and the less glamourous side merge to give a realistic feeling to it all,  you can almost imagine yourself right there. The back story involving the Magic Men during the war is evocative and intriguing as well – and the mystery element is well imagined as the author brings the two strands together to paint a full picture.

This is definitely one of my favourite mystery novels of the year so far, clever misdirection, a very enchanting look at the world of magic and a captivating and compelling story means that this definitely comes Highly Recommended from me.

Find out more here: http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/index.html

Follow the author on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/ellygriffiths

Purchase Information: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Zig-Zag-Girl-Elly-Griffiths/dp/1848669852/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1415258483&sr=1-1&keywords=the+zig+zag+girl+elly+griffiths

 

Happy Reading Folks!

 

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One Response to New Release Spotlight: The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths.

  1. Cleo says:

    So good to hear you enjoyed this one which I’ve been longing to read. Great review and high praise regarding the mystery element had only increased my longing.

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