Book – The Perfect Murder
Author – Peter James
Year – 2010
Genre – Crime
Pages – 127
This book is part of a series called Quick Reads. This is a fantastic little initiative whereby top authors have written books in aid of World Book Day which are shorter than usual, and retail for only £1.99. This gives people a chance to pick up an author that they have never heard of before, or just buy a new book for a bit of a cheaper rate, and as such gets the full thumbs up from me.
The book itself follows Victor and Joan, a married couple who do not get along at all. Living under the same roof, they both plot to kill the other in the perfect, undetectable murder. Of course, things don’t go to plan, and we find out why.
The book is pretty lightweight, and borrows pretty heavily from the entire concept of James M Cain’s Double Indemnity. The characters are forgettable and unlikable, and the ending is obvious from a million miles away. It isn’t terribly written, and considering it is supposed to be quite specifically a leisurely read, I suppose it would be a little mean to say that the whole book is ruined by either of these facts, but I was certainly left a little disappointed, and pleased that I could simply whip through it without really thinking.
If you’re a quick reader, then a simple little book to fill a train journey, but otherwise, I wouldn’t bother. Do however look up some more of these Quick Reads books, as they are definitely worth a shot.
5/10
Great review, I am sure I have come across this book before but not sure if it is in my TBR or I actually read it lol
Thank you. It shouldn't take too long to get through if you haven't read it yet. If you do read it, then get back to me and let me know what you think! 🙂