Eight Perfect Murders : A Novel

New York Times bestseller

Swanson rips us from one startling plot twist to the next A true tour de force. Lisa Gardner

[A] multilayered mystery that brims with duplicity, betrayal and revenge. USA Today

From the hugely talented author ofThe Kind Worth Killingcomes a chilling tale of psychological suspense and an homage to the thriller genre tailor-made for fans: the story of a bookseller who finds himself at the center of an FBI investigation because a very clever killer has started using his list of fictions most ingenious murders.

Years ago, bookseller and mystery aficionado Malcolm Kershaw compiled a list of the genres most unsolvable murders, those that are almost impossible to crackwhich he titled Eight Perfect Murderschosen from among the best of the best including Agatha Christies A. B. C. Murders, Patricia Highsmiths Strangers on a Train, Ira Levins Deathtrap, A. A. Milne's TheRed House Mystery, Anthony Berkeley Cox's Malice Aforethought, James M. Cain's Double Indemnity, John D. MacDonald's The Drowner, and Donna Tartt's TheSecret History.

But no one is more surprised than Mal, now the owner of the Old Devils Bookstore in Boston, when an FBI agent comes knocking on his door one snowy day in February. Shes looking for information about a series of unsolved murders that look eerily similar to the killings on Mals old list. And the FBI agent isnt the only one interested in this bookseller who spends almost every night at home reading. The killer is out there, watching his every movea diabolical threat who knows way too much about Mals personal history, especially the secrets hes never told anyone, even his recently deceased wife.

To protect himself, Mal begins looking into possible suspects . . . and sees a killer in everyone around him. But Mal doesnt count on the investigation leaving a trail of death in its wake. Suddenly, a series of shocking twists leaves more victims deadand the noose around Mals neck grows so tight he might never escape.