Peter Swanson crafts an ideal novel for crime and mystery fans, centering on Malcolm Kershaw, a bookseller in Boston who specializes in crime fiction. Years ago, Kershaw wrote a blog post listing what he believed to be the eight perfect murders in classic crime novels. Now, FBI Agent Gwen Mulvey shows up at his bookstore, suspecting that someone is recreating these murders in real life.

As the investigation unfolds, Kershaw becomes deeply involved, not only as an assistant but also as a suspect. His past and personal history come to light, adding layers to his character. Swanson incorporates numerous nods to famous crime novels, creating a richly interwoven narrative for genre fans. Be warned, though—there are spoilers for the books mentioned in Kershaw's list.

Swanson masterfully plays with familiar crime fiction elements while crafting a suspenseful and engaging mystery. A must-read for lovers of the genre!

I have just finished reading this and thoroughly enjoyed the whole premise.

When murders start to happen, it quickly becomes apparent that they are copying the format from fictional murder mystery novels , from Agatha Christie’s ABC murders to Strangers on a Train.

Even worse, all the novels have been listed in a blog post from years before, written by a local book shop owner. But the question is, can he find out who the murderer is before the FBI can uncover his own secrets?

This was well written, pacey and edge of the seat stuff. I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book is a crime lovers dream!
Fast paced from start to finish, brilliant game of cat & mouse & fun to boot.
Try not to read it in one sitting I dare you.

I loved all the references my books to buy list has certainly grown.

This novel has left me feeling cold. It is probably the writer´s style, as i have realized before that I find his plots being a bit...overcooked, maybe? Quite ambitious, but never really that catchy. At least I somehow can not seem to be able to connect with his characters. So, it very well might be me:)

Here we have bookseller Malcolm, who has once published a blog post about the perfect murders, containing the book titles covering exactly that issue. And now...somebody is executing the described plots, it seems - that somebody is killing people. But why? Is he somehow trying to connect with Malcom? But...WHY?

There is an answer to that question, but it is hidden behind some layers. Malcolm, who narrates the book, is also telling the story of his life, mostly connected to the life and death of his wife, whom he loved very much. And her death is the key factor to the novel. I can not say more to not spoil the secrets, so I will only say that there is an Agatha Christie novel containing this master plot. And THAT novel definitely deserves a hommage (even I wish for more entertaining one).

Is there such a thing as a perfect murder? Malcolm Kershaw certainly thinks that the greatest literary minds can create such a thing. But can they be translated into the real world? Or at least Swanson’s version of the real world?!

Kershaw playing amateur detective made for an interesting read, pulling in favours and following the clues. I liked the way he went about the investigation, particularly with his wariness of Mulvey. Kershaw knows he’s involved and the more I read, the more I understood why he didn’t want to incriminate himself and stay one step ahead of the FBI agent.

Swanson/Kershaw’s list of books caught my eye to the extent I went and purchased three of the books a couple of days after finishing the read. I was genuinely surprised that the creator of Winnie The Pooh has a crime book to his name and I’m looking forward to reading that soon! Obviously any book that increases my TBR is a good thing (although my other half may disagree).

I really enjoyed Rules For Perfect Murders. I’m not sure if I enjoyed it as much as The Kind Worth Killing (I loved that book) but it’s a damn good read. I was befuddled who was the killer and why Kershaw was at the centre of it all. The climax was shocking and it’s one I wouldn’t have put money on!

This book was without doubt one of my most highly anticipated reads, because I don’t know about anybody else, but I’m a HUGE Swanson fan! And let me tell you... it didn’t disappoint. RULES FOR PERFECT MURDERS follows bookseller Malcolm, whom finds himself in the centre of an FBI investigation because a very clever killer has started using his list of the genres most unsolvable murders. The list was titled “Eight Perfect Murders” 👌🏼. ⁣
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𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝:⁣
– Super fast paced, totally addictive story line ⁣
– Really enjoyable and interesting characters. I love that the main character was a book seller! Tbh I loved that the whole book was based around books - super interesting.⁣
– This is the absolute perfect book for a crime and mystery fan like myself. I felt like a detective throughout the whole thing!⁣
– I just so loved the whole premise of the book and found it super unique in comparison to anything I’ve read before. ⁣
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𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞:⁣
– I’m really sad that I predicted who the killer was. I really need to stop trying to guess 😂⁣
– The ending wasn’t a knock out as I was expecting. I think mainly because I’d predicted part of it!⁣
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Other than that, I can’t fault this book - it was AMAZING.

I feel very undecided about this book, it was a clever idea, but think the author then tried to be too clever and knowing, and as I hadn't read all the books I felt a little left behind and out of the loop.

If you want to get away with murder, play by the rules

A series of unsolved murders with one thing in common: each of the deaths bears an eerie resemblance to the crimes depicted in classic mystery novels.

The deaths lead FBI Agent Gwen Mulvey to mystery bookshop Old Devils. Owner Malcolm Kershaw had once posted online an article titled 'My Eight Favourite Murders,' and there seems to be a deadly link between the deaths and his list - which includes Agatha Christie's The ABC Murders, Patricia Highsmith's Strangers on a Train and Donna Tartt's The Secret History.

Can the killer be stopped before all eight of these perfect murders have been re-enacted?

Enjoyed this book and read in one sitting.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

This one took a little time to get in to. Slower paced isn't always a good thing with this genre. Overall a decent read, but I prefer my thrillers to be fast paced to keep me hooked.

Fabulous plot which I could not put down. Brilliant characters, and twists and turns. Highly recommend to other fans of this genre!!

Firstly, I'd like to thank Netgalley and Faber & Faber for the eARC of this book for an honest review.

This isn't my first Peter Swanson book. I read Before She Knew Him a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it! I was definitely expecting good things! I thought that the idea behind this book was very unique with the murderer following a blog post of '8 Perfect Murders' written by the MC, Mal. I enjoyed following Mal's narrative and listening (audiobook) to how the story panned out. I loved that a lot of the book was set in the book shop Old Devils. It sounds like such a great place and with Nero the cat that lived there, even better.

I found that I always wanted to read this book. It didn't take me long to get through it as I was so intrigued to see how it would end. I liked how the narrator spoke to the reader and by the end we know why. I thought that the ending was really good. I didn't expect who it was. Also I was left with a lot of thinking when I finished this one. Peter Swanson always creates such brilliant unreliable narrators and Mal is another great one!

I don't like giving bad reviews this one was not bad as such just going over different books i.e: Agatha Christie's ABC murders etc and such you know who the killer is as the author tells you, so spoilers straight away, and you can see/read what is coming next Strangers on a Train where they each do the other person's murder. Then he tries to find out who this person is and why he has murdered him, A couple of times I did get a bit bored even fell asleep and have to go back a few chapters but need not have bothered. The ending was very flat as well, people gave good reviews on this but sadly it's not for me, a lack of excitement for a start, the book was not overly long and I did finish it.
I would like to thank Faber and Netgalley for an ARC copy to read.

This was so much fun and the perfect book for classic mystery fans. The plot is gripping, twisty and engaging and will grab the reader by the throat and refuse to let go. Highly recommended.

Malcom Kershaw runs a book shop in Boston. One stormy day, he’s questioned by an FBI agent about murders which seem to be copying the murders from novels. Years before, Malcom wrote an article for his blog about “the perfect murders” from novels. Is he a suspect?

The story is told from Malcom’s point of view and I found it quite a quick read.

I didn’t mind the characters and even liked the cat! 🐈

It’s difficult to say too much about the book without giving the story away.

The chapters are nice and short and the book isn’t too long either.

I enjoyed it and will look for more from this author.

Well that was interesting!
Peter Swanson I believe I have read before but then I've read so many books I may not have done. This is a good book with a great plot and characters .

This book was really interesting, a great concept, that I've not seen too much before.

Swanson's book THE KIND WORTH KILLING is one of my favourites, whereas ALL THE BEAUTIFUL LIES I wasn't so sold on. So I went into this one with a bit of an open mind. Glad I did, it is written well and the story is great. It's fun and unique and I look forward to reading another Swanson in the near future.

A new author to me, and I wish I had found him sooner. This is a gripping book with a tight, thrilling plot and great characters. Received from NetGalley and reviewed honestly.

I read this book ages ago and gave it 5/5 on Goodreads, but just realised I’d never submitted a review.

Having read a couple of Peter Swanson novels before and really enjoyed them, I was eager to read this new title. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It reminded me a bit of the movie ‘7even’ as it saw a serial killer emulating the ‘perfect murders’. Highly recommend this and Peter Swanson has to be one of the very best current crime thriller writers.

One thing I think everyone can agree on with this book is it split the readers. A lot of people loved it, a lot of people didn’t so much and then you have the people in the middle of the Venn diagram. That’s me, I am in the middle. But no matter what it definitely has you talking!

I thought it was a clever idea, a perfect kill list. Mal makes a list, we all do that, we all list our favourite books, favourite characters, genre etc. He made a list of the 8 perfect murders from different iconic, deemed so, books. This is all well and good and innocent until you travel to the dark web. Then the waters get muddy and well, the murders happened.

For the most part, I enjoyed the book, it was something different and I thought it a clever idea. I did get a bit lost with some of the characters but that could be because I was listening to it and it didn’t always hold my attention. When it did have my full attention I was right there Mal and Gwen trying to find out who “Charlie” was. The other thing, well I felt the ending was a bit flat. The showdown between Charlie and Mal, well we all saw that coming. I was surprised by some of the confessions though.

Everything is from Mal’s perspective and I don’t think we got enough time to warm to anyone. So when bombshells started to drop, I wasn’t all OMG! However, I liked the format of the book being through Mal’s voice as it is his memoir, it is his story, so he tells it as he wants it to be told and I respect that.

This is a short and sweet review because I don’t think I can add anything new and mainly because I can’t decide how I feel about it. I think I want to like it but I also feel that despite the cleverness and quirk of it, it is not a book I may remember.