Cabaret Macabre

by Tom Mead

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Cabaret Macabre is the third Joseph Spector locked room historical mystery by Tom Mead. Due out 16th July 2024 from Penzler, it's 291 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

This is such a stylish and well written historical mystery. Stage magician Joseph Spector joins forces with Scotland Yard inspector Flint to solve several "impossible" crimes. Readers who enjoy figuring out whodunnit before the sleuths will find a bunch of fiendishly clever interlocking puzzles. It's very complex and convoluted, but readers should probably just relax and enjoy the ride. 

The writing is top shelf; engaging and smooth. The characters are believably rendered and the plotting is well engineered and sophisticated. The whole is redolent of the time period without being clunky or archaic. It's full of country houses, upper crust British society, a body in a frozen lake and a shooting through a window which leaves a man dead but doesn't break the window. The story is much enhanced by the stage magic and misdirection woven in. It's clear the author understands the magic behind the illusions.

Four and a half stars. A good addition to a well written classic-style historical series. For fans of Golden Age classic mysteries, this is a good one. The classic great authors of the period aren't producing any more stories, and it manages to evoke the time period without being derivative or overwrought.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.