Nine Lives

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His acknowledgements in this one are a bit strange, or perhaps just an ode to the story in and of itself. With economical strokes of his pen, Peter Swanson presents us with a clever homage to the Golden Age of Mystery which keeps you guessing right to the end.

I loved it and was a little afeared to read this because it is loosely based on a book by another of my favourite authors, Agatha Christie - And Then There were None. An honest reviewer who loves book discussions, she is here to help you find a book you'll love to read AND give you a place to talk about it and ask questions. Even though I adore Agatha Christie, I haven’t actually read And Then There Were None yet, but I have now been inspired to grab it from my tbr pile as soon as possible! The "List-of-Nine case" as the Detective Sam Hamilton refers to it, wants to learn how nine names on a list are related and why the list is dwindling.However, when one of the names meets an untimely death, Jessica realises that the bad feeling she had, has been confirmed.

Overall, it’s another winner for me from an author who style of writing is one I especially enjoy and I always look forward to reading what he comes up with next. because there are 10 POVs and the book is pretty short, there wasnt any time for me to develop a connection to any of the characters. What seems initially to be a fairly straightforward take on Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None turns out to be much, much more .I absolutely loved this book, reading it in two sittings, just having to know what happened next, and why. The characters didn’t do much for me, but the mystery held my interest--I was determined to solve it, but sadly I failed as I overlooked some key clues. He is one Frank Hopkins, proprietor of the Windward Resort in Maine, and has been drowned in a shallow pool on the beach that he walks every morning, clutching the list bearing his and the eight other names.

I also was a bit bummed that Swanson didn't finish with his requisite ode in his author's note to whatever book inspired him. not only that, but its not even until the 70%ish mark that some sort of connection is formed and the story seems to have a direction.In addition to reading, I also enjoy yoga and walking - I am a big audio fan and love listening to audio books while out walking! Peter Swanson has become a must-read author for me when it comes to crime fiction and I love that his books are so thrilling and binge-worthy and this latest one is no exception – I read this one in a day! The title to be read and discussed is sign-posted and on sale for the whole of the previous month (with a discount for those who make it known they intend to come) and everybody is welcome, whether first-timer, part-timer or regular-timer.

I also thought it was odd that every time the list of 9 names showed up after someone died, that person’s name wasn’t crossed off. I’ve been reading Peter Swanson novels since 2016, in which “The Killing Kind” totally blew me away and kept me on my toes.

They dismiss it as junk mail, a fluke – until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list. I was pleased by the way things came together and the twist toward the end that I probably should have seen coming, but didn't.