I really loved the beginning of this book although I did find it a little confusing for the first few chapters. Having said that it was very cleverly executed and when I realised what was going on it definitely added an extra unusual dimension and showcased an adept style of writing. However, for all that the plot was unique I felt it soon became contrived and so far fetched. I felt there were too many twists and although I very much connected with the two main characters, I started to find it all just too much. The story became too busy and convoluted. Such a shame as this book had so much potential and very clever ideas. I wanted to love it but it just didn’t gel.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC copy on exchange for an honest review.

I used to read a lot of Chris Brookmyre books, but haven't read one for many years. This is very different to the older books, but I really enjoyed it.

Rating: 4.3/5

A couple of years ago Chris Brookmyre wrote "The Cut", which presented an unlikely alliance between a 72 year old former movie make-up artist and a young male university student. Together they entered into the world of a conspiracy drama that was fresh, twisting, dark, humorous and, at times, strangely uplifting. In a number of ways the author has revisited similar territory in "The Cracked Mirror". This time we have Penny Coyne, an octogenarian with more than a passing similarity to Miss Marple, crossing the path of Johnny Hawke, a maverick cop from LA, who could easily have stepped out of the pages of a Michael Connelly novel. The result - ultimately - is a very cleverly plotted mystery utilising a combined genre narrative.

Reading this novel is certainly a rollercoaster of a ride and my feelings about it - and attitude towards it - altered quite dramatically along the way. In the early stages I was intrigued and amused by the freshness of the scenario that Chris Brookmyre was presenting. A little later, I found myself becoming frustrated and questioning whether the novelty value had been overplayed. Ultimately, in the final quarter of the story, I had nothing but admiration for the intricate and clever plotting that had been so expertly constructed. Really, it was only when I had finished the whole book that I could properly appreciate the skilful work of the author.

The construction of "The Cracked Mirror" is essentially a mash-up of a "golden age" style mystery and a modern hardboiled crime fiction novel. I deliberately use "mash-up" rather than "blend", because - like oil and water- the two elements do not readily form a stable mixture. Chris Brookmyre brilliantly captures the essence of the two genres and depicts them wonderfully well in their respective chapters. It is deftly done and worthy of admiration. That said, there were times when I felt that this unusual genre fusion was dragging and becoming irritating - though that was probably, in part, due to the fact that I am not a huge fan of hardboiled crime fiction! The "golden age" style of Penny's segments were far more to my personal taste. I was struggling on occasion to escape the feeling that the narrative was too disjointed and that, for all its cleverness, this high concept plot may well work better as a big screen adaptation.

Whatever misgivings I may have had, in the last quarter of the book the author completely won me over. For the sake of remaining as spoiler-free as possible, I will not go into detail, but if I'd been wearing a cap, I would have been doffing it to Chris Brookmyre in those closing sections.

I mentioned earlier that I was only able to fully appreciate the structure of this novel after I had finished it. I suspect that if I were to go back and read "The Cracked Mirror" again, I would appreciate it all the more. I have rated this as a four-star read, purely because I think there were elements that felt too disjointed and grated a little too much during the initial reading process. However, in a little while from now, I may look back and wonder whether I was too harsh and should have gone with the full five stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

Miss Marple meets Harry Bosch.

Johnny Hawke, hard bitten LA cop isn't convinced that a suicide is actually a suicide, and after being suspended he sets out to get some answers. This path takes him to Perthshire where he crosses paths with Penny Coyne, who is struggling to understand why she has been invited to a wedding. The morning of the wedding there is another suicide, and neither Johnny or Penny are convinced that it is what it looks like. Are both deaths suicides, or where the victims murdered and if so by who and why? Johnny and Penny set out to get some answers. As usual with Brookmyre nothing is what it seems, while this is an entertaining read it is definitely not his best book.

My thanks to Netgalley and Little Brown Book Group for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review. I requested this book because of the author, having loved his Victorian medical series, set in Edinburgh, written with his wife Marisa Haetzman, under the name of Ambrose Parry. He was also recommended by a Scottish member of the book club that I attend.
I was impressed by his writing skills in this novel which begins on two separate continents, each featuring a very different character and alternating between the two every few chapters. Each character has a different writing style so that I would have sworn that it was two separate authors. This takes some doing, but I didn't enjoy the chopping and changing but knew that they would soon join up. The humour in the writing sometimes gets in the way, especially in the midst of high tension, a terrific passage of which happens in the middle of the book, as good as any normally found in a conclusion.
The two characters, a Miss Marple Scottish type of eighty-year-old and a suspended American cop, making a pairing of unlikely allies. This seemed odd. I found the storyline to be all over the place, with too many strands that you hoped would eventually come together. There were now becoming too many characters as well and I was finding it difficult to remember who was who and what was what. But perhaps that's just an age thing on my part. I gradually found that it was just getting daft and if I hadn't requested it, I would probably now have given up. But I did want to find out what was going on, however, bonkers it now was.
I finally finished the book feeling that I had been short-changed and that the author had been too clever by half. The ending of a book has in the past, left me with many differing emotions, but never actually anger at having invested reading time and mental energy trying to figure out what I thought was a genuine puzzle, only, I felt, to have been taken, literally, for a ride by the author. I hope that lover of tech and science fiction will give it a go, but I'm afraid that as a fan of straightforward detection mysteries, it wasn't for me, well written though it was.

The Cracked Mirror revolves around LAPD detective Jack and local crime solver Penny who work together to unravel a series of murders . The story is full of memorable characters and is definitely worth a read!

Two identical suicides one in Scotland and the other in Los Angeles, but are they suicide? Bring in the Octogenarian Penny Coyne in Scotland and Johnny Hawke in LA. Penny and Johnny end up joining forces but then the story twists!

Not sure whether I enjoyed this book, it is well written but very mind bending.

Have you ever finished the entire run of a particular crime series and then looked at the next author with dozens of books with the same sleuth and thought: where do I start?

Well, this is not one of those books. Meet Penny Coyne (I know), star of a cosy crime set in a small Perthshire village, where murder seems to dog every parishioner's footsteps. Also meet Johnny Hawke, hard-bitten and cynical LAPD homicide detective, ready to do whatever it takes to get the perp. And when their worlds met, it was moider!

As their two investigations collide, the facts add up to an impossible number, a rabbithole that opens up and swallows you in a literary maze akin to a Thursday Next novel. We know all the well-trodden beats in the crime genre, but what happens when you cross-pollinate Miss Marple with Harry Bosch, and throw in creative direction by Christopher Nolan? The Cracked Mirror, people, a mystery within an enigma within a conundrum, a labyrinth of stock characters expanded to mythic proportions by the ingenious and fiendishly entertaining plot and two characters who are so much more than their immediate peers.

And the twist! No spoilers but, man, the twist is so worth the highly entertaining read of Brookmyre’s highwire performance. It’s one where a second reading, a third reading will give you even more to savour. A big fat five stars from me.

3* The Mirror Cracked by Chris Brookmyre, a smart high concept thriller.

Penny lives a less than quiet life in her pretty Perthshire village, with a reputation for solving murders and supporting the local police. When a body is found in the confession box of the local church, Penny is quickly into detective mode, but not before she is mysteriously invited to a significant society wedding. Johnny is a 'seat of his pants and don't bother with the rules' kind of LA detective. Sent out to look into a high-profile suicide, he suspects that all isn't as simple as his superiors want it to be. And then the clues take him to Perthshire ...

Mixing up genres is a tricky thing to pull off, not least the tone and pace. Here we have Agatha Christie's Marple meets noir meets Michael Connelly (and lots more besides but I won't spoil the fun). This is a hugely enjoyable book where you get sucked into every part of its universe. The plot is a little 'involved' with a lot of characters, so it certainly isn't one for a quick read but it is certainly a book that is full of twists and turns, which are extremely clever right to the end.

With thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC

Chris Brookmyre is an insta buy author for me, and this is no exception. Deftly executed, a fun, pacy thriller with a great twist. I absolutely loved it.

Thank you to netgalley, the author and the publisher for this advance reader copy.
I so wanted to love this book having read the blurb. Unfortunately I had to give up 20% into the story because I found it too confusing to follow. There were so many characters that I couldn't remember who was who and I found the storyline confusing. Not for me I'm afraid.

Although a bit bit of slow burner, it is well worth sticking with this book. Beautifully written and truly a masterpiece.

Love a good Chris Brookmyre novel and this is one of those. Miss Marple meets Harry Bosch by way of Douglas Adams! Mystery, thriller, cosy crime, crime noir and Sci-fi, this book covers many a genre. Entertaining page turner and a change of style for Chris Brookmyre. Fear not though, his dark humour and likeable characters are all present and correct.

WOW what an edge of the seat mystery thriller The Cracked Mirror by Chris Brookmyre is. This is my first time reading a book by this fantastic author.

Penny Coyne an elderly librarian in a sleepy village encounters John Hawke an LAPD Homicide Detective, an unlikely pair team up together to solve the mystery of a double locked-rooom mystery. and much much more.

A book, a movie, a video game, murder, deceit, science fiction all factor in this mystery thriller. Agatha Christie, John Marrs, Michael Connelly rolled into the mix.

I love John Hawke's catchphrase 'Holly Goly.' when he is up against it and has a light bulb moment it is so endearing. Don't let Penny in her twinset and tweed fool anybody as beneath her exterior she is one smart cookie. Also behind hard hitting Detective John Hawke there lies a heart of gold especially in his relationship with Penny.

Found this a very intriguing read but did require some perseverance, some bits I got and some I didn’t, well least not until the end. The meeting of the two central characters was fun to read and follow however bizarre it got and in the end I was waiting for the Penny to drop, which it duly did. A gumshoe and tweeds avatar which I enjoyed reading.

From the blurb:

FORGET WHAT YOU THINK YOU KNOW
THIS IS NOT THAT CRIME NOVEL

You know Johnny Hawke. Hard-bitten LAPD homicide detective. Always in trouble with his captain, always losing partners, but always battling for the truth, whatever it takes.

You know Penny Coyne. The little old lady who has solved multiple murders in her otherwise sleepy village, despite bumbling local police. A razor-sharp mind in a Sunday best hat.

A cross-genre hybrid of Agatha Christie and Michael Connelly, The Cracked Mirror is the most imaginative and entertaining crime novel of the year, a genre-splicing rollercoaster with a poignantly emotional heart.

Well, I didn't know Johnny Hawke, but I ADORE Michael Connelly. I also don't know Penny Coyne, nor have I read Agatha Christie - but I did really enjoy this book.

It's actually incredibly quite difficult to write a review which doesn't give any spoilers and I don't ever do that!

There is something troubling about the content, something which we can't understand yet, the possibilities and risks that makes me feel like it's tapping into a world, which frankly scares the shit out of me!

Thank you Netgalley for my advanced copy, I'll be checking out the authors other work for certain now!

I got about 15% in before I gave up. I found it quite confusing and wasn’t really sure what was happening. I loved the premise when I first heard of it and the actual writing was very good. I’m sure if I’d persevered there would have been some great twists but I just think it wasn’t for me.

I enjoyed this mystery/thriller very much, even though most of the time I had no clue what was going on! There are red herrings, dead ends and confusion aplenty as elderly Scot Penny and suspended LA cop Johnny sleuth together to uncover the riddle connecting three (or more) murders - or were some of them suicides?! Whilst the denouement requires a bit of an imaginative stretch, it doesn't detract from the overall plot, which has seemed borderline fantastical from the very start. I particularly enjoyed the love-hate relationship between the two protagonists, and their different styles of investigating the crimes. This book is a page-turner, lighthearted but well-written, an excellent choice for a summer read for puzzle lovers.

Ohhh very interesting premise and fun read

I loved the two characters and how they were written, I could not get enough!

This book caught my eye because I enjoy reading Agatha Christie and Michael Connelly, and I'd just finished reading my first Christopher Brookmyre book. I was intrigued how he was going to combine such different styles, but he does it excellently, alternating between two stories which don’t appear to be related initially, but start to become intertwined as the book progresses. The Agatha Christie element is very Miss Marple. It’s impossible to say more without giving the major plot twist away. It’s a long book for a crime novel (the paperback has 512 pages) but it kept me interested and was a satisfying read. Highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.