Paul Austin Ardoin's Blog, page 13

What's the best puzzle you've ever read in a novel?

Originally shared on Quora.

It may not fit the definition of a puzzle for many people, but the central mystery of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express is one of the finest puzzles constructed—and this particular mystery is perhaps why Dame Christie is considered by many to be the finest mystery writer of all time.

A murder occurs on a train, but the train is stopped by a snowdrift. When the murder is discovered, the detective knows that there are twelve people (besides him) in the coach, and he must figure out who the killer is before the train continues on.

It’s a logic puzzle, and the reader is presented with the same clues that the detective sees.

Of course, the book has been made into a movie (several times, actually). As it’s arguably Christie’s most famous book, and the movies were seen by millions, many people know the answer to this puzzle. Upon repeated readings/viewings, the answer may seem obvious, but it was assuredly not so when most people are exposed to this puzzle for the first time.

One requirement I have for a great puzzle is this: an average person should be able to figure it out without an advanced degree or specialized knowledge. This mystery fits that requirement perfectly. It’s the subversion of reader (or viewer) expectations that makes this puzzle so deceptive—and the solution so satisfying.

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Review: Murder Out of the Blue

Murder Out of the Blue is the first book in Steve Turnbull's Maliha Anderson steampunk mystery series.

There's a lot to like about Murder Out of the Blue. I found the worldbuilding to be seamless. I'm relatively new to steampunk, so I wasn't familiar with the concept of the Faraday engines, but the world of steampunk so well-integrated into the story that it took a few chapters before I realized that it was steampunk and not just a historical mystery set in the zeppelin era.

The strongest aspect of the book is Maliha Anderson herself. She's a sharply-drawn, wonderful character. Turnbull gave her a unique voice and believable reactions to difficult and racially insensitive situation—and gave the reader an irresistible taste to an enticing backstory.

However, the mystery itself leaves a lot to be desired. The murder isn't uncovered until more than halfway through the story, which perhaps would be expected if this novel had been written in Victorian times, but breaks my expectations of a modern novel, steampunk or no. As a result, the first part of the novel drags.

More problematic, though, is that the murder is solved far too quickly, and with the reader seeing little detective work on Maliha's part. It's a bit of conjecture followed by a lot of luck, and the arc of the plot that has to do with the murder simply isn't satisfying.

Turnbull's language is usually powerful and astute—and quite appropriate for a steampunk mystery. Unfortunately, the exception is the climactic scene. A physical altercation that takes place very quickly—perhaps one or two seconds at most—is over-described and goes on for a couple of lengthy paragraphs. The immediacy of the scene is lost, replaced with tepid emotion.

In spite of this book's issues, I plan on continuing to read this series. I believe part of the issue is the short length of this book. More time to solve the murder to balance out the time...Read More

Review: The Jacq of Spades

Set in a distant post-apocalyptic future, The Jacq of Spades is a steampunk mystery, with the promise of zeppelin travel, different drug-lord families that control city quadrants, and 22-year-old Jacqueline Spadros, raised in a brothel in the slums, but chosen to be the wife of a drug-lord heir. Jacqui's secret life is as a private investigator, which her new family can never know about. Her latest case is a missing child, the younger brother of a boy she grew up with in the slums.

The book spends a bit of time world-building, which was a bit slow (I had read a prequel to this story, which is the leadoff novella in Death and Damages), so I knew much of the world already), but once it started propelling itself forward, it was hard to put the book down.

Jacqui is a rich, complex character who never completely forgets her roots, and her dealings with the other families—and her ability to sneak about successfully—lead to many edge-of-your-seat scenes. Her digging leads her to uncover other dark, sinister secrets of both other families and her own. And while many of the mysteries are unanswered—that's why this book is the first of a series—the central question of the book is resolved in what I think is a satisfying way. That's not always the case for book series, and I was happy to see the resolution.

Many of the characters are well-rounded too, from the husband and heir who Jacqui doesn't really love, to Jacqui's maid, to the twins from another quadrant who befriend Jacqui. Jacqui's father-in-law is a cruel, heartless man, but Loofbourrow shows some interesting sides to him that save him from being the mustache-twirling villain he could be.

Recommended.

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12 Books of Bookmas 2019

I hope you've enjoyed "The Twelve Days of Bookmas" and find something here to grab your imagination and help fill your eReader.  Here's the full recap of book recommendations to start the year. Be sure to view their individual blog posts for descriptions and aspects I enjoyed about each one.

Santa Lucia by Michelle Damiani

The Zachary Goldman Mysteries by P.D. Workman

Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson

Dr. Lillian Whyte Adventures by CB Samet

The Slim Hardy Mysteries by Jack Benton

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Death and Damages: A Mystery Box Set

Preservation by Charles Lemoine

The Larry Macklin Mysteries ("Monthly Mysteries") by A.E. Howe

The Molly Sutton Mysteries by Nell Goddin

A Fatal Obsession by Faith Martin

Leviathan by Paul Auster

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The Final Day of Bookmas

This is the twelfth, and last, day of Bookmas. I hope you enjoy these twelve suggestions as much as I do. I leave you now with one final recommendation:

Leviathan by Paul Auster

Don't confuse this with the Thomas Hobbes philosophy classic; this is the story of a man who blew himself up on the side of the road in northern Wisconsin on the USA’s Independence Day, 1990—and the strange journey he took to get there. A fantastic powerhouse of a novel; definitely literary (I have a high tolerance for pretentiousness) and a fascinating story. Auster is a great novelist, and in my opinion, this is his best work.

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The Eleventh Day of Bookmas

A Fatal Obsession by Faith Martin

Yes, yes, I know. Isn't this the Hillary Greene author? Didn't I put a sentence about Faith Martin at the beginning so I wouldn't have to bore you with my recommendation of the 17 Hillary Greene books? Yes, yes, and yes. But listen—this book is better than the Hillary Greene series. It's traditional in every sense—it's even set in 1960—but the characters are well-drawn and compelling, the writing is sharp, and it's truly unputdownable. I hope the next two are as good as this one.

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Ten French Gendarmes

The Molly Sutton Mysteries by Nell Goddin

While I usually prefer traditional and hardboiled mysteries to cozies, I really like Molly Sutton, a Boston transplant to a little town in the French countryside, where she runs a bed and breakfast, flirts with the cute gendarmes, and solves murders. I recommend getting the collection of the first three books if you're just starting out.

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The Ninth Day of Bookmas

The Larry Macklin Mysteries ("Monthly Mysteries") by A.E. Howe
Set in northern Florida, these books focus on Deputy Larry Macklin, his complicated relationship with his overbearing father (and his father's overbearing Great Dane), and the murders and conspiracies Deputy Macklin uncovers. Start with the first one, November's Past. Don't ask me why Howe started the series in November like a lunatic, instead of starting in January like a normal person. He's up to September now, with only October to go.

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Eight Tar Pit Puzzles

Preservation by Charles Lemoine

I didn't visit the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits in L.A. until I was a grownup with kids in tow, but I found it fascinating. So reading Preservation, a mystery/thriller with a brilliant female scientist who years to unlock the mystery of a prehistoric woman whose remains were found in the Tar Pits, was right up my alley. The scientist, Mariska Stevenson, is ambitious and driven, and you can't help but root for her as she uncovers puzzle piece after puzzle piece. I liked the interplay of the modern technology and the archaeology. The theme of identity is also well-done here: where you came from can either define you, ruin you, or inspire you, and that thread connects all the way through the narrative and has repercussions for many of the characters—especially Mariska. 

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Seven (Plus Eighteen) Mystery Novels

Death and Damages: A Mystery Box Set

This is a fantastic deal—25 mystery novels and novellas for $2.99. I was unable to resist the temptation to buy it, and I haven’t regretted it. Patricia Loofbourrow’s opening novel Drawing Thin is a great companion piece to her cyberpunk mystery series, John Ling’s Vengeance is fantastic, and Maggie Carpenter’s The Scarlet Stiletto is a fun tongue-in-cheek noir mystery. I haven’t read all 25 yet, but so far it’s worth way more than the price of admission!

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