Spurious Games
by David Jenkins
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Pub Date 28 Jul 2020 | Archive Date 16 Sep 2020
Troubador Publishing Ltd. | Matador
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Description
When a local chess player is discovered dead, Detective Inspector John Logos of Cornwall’s St Borstal Constabulary is called in to investigate what turns out to be a serial killer running amok in the sedate world of Cornish chess. The detectives quickly find themselves as pawns in the game of an arrogant mastermind calling himself ‘The Turk’ who taunts them with chess-related clues. Baffled, they call in Caradoc Pritchard, an eccentric Welsh Professor, and together they must work against the clock to predict the killer’s next move.
A literary novel of ideas masquerading as a whodunit, Spurious Games exhibits a consistently droll sense of humour that belies its essential seriousness as an extended riff on authenticity. Despite its roots in chess, there are a number of important ‘side shows’, all treated with equal ironic irreverence.
A Note From the Publisher
Available Editions
| EDITION | Ebook |
| ISBN | 9781838598259 |
| PRICE | US$4.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 200 |
Featured Reviews
Sarah-Hope P, Educator
Spurious Games offers an interesting, unexpected read. The author is writing on a number of levels, satirical, historical, plot-driven mystery, social commentary. This is something I rarely say, but—I am absolutely sure I didn't get as much as I might have out of this title. I was engaged by the central narrative, but could tell that I was missing asides and references to topics I'm not familiar with.
In all, this title is an engaging, but frustrating read.
Account D, Reviewer
this was a lot of fun to read, the characters were great and I loved the satirical element of the book. I think it really worked as a mystery.
Janet P, Reviewer
Three were many things I liked about this book. The writing was excellent. I liked how Jenkins has a very wide-ranging mind and connects many different things together in a way that reminds me of Umberto Eco. Ultimately, even though I liked it I wasn't satisfied with the book's ambiguous ending.
Readers should be very familiar with chess and chess problems because my lack of knowledge in these areas was a hindrance.
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