‘I want to believe you’, she said quietly. ‘I really do.’ Her grip tightened on Robyn’s wrist. ‘It was one of you. I know it. The others will all know it.’
Murder on Lake Garda, Tom Hindle
(No spoilers)
I haven’t slept much due to not being able to put that book down last night.
If I wouldn’t call Hindle the heir of Agatha Christie like marketed on the book, Murder on Lake Garda is without a doubt a page turner. The pace of the plot keeps you turning and desperate to know more.
I had previously read The Murder Game from Hindle and enjoyed the style of the author for a lighter atmosphere and softer characters, more english. On the contrary, Murder on Lake Garda is actually darker, filled with tension and danger rather than mystery. If most crime books focus on the investigation following a crime, the danger does not end after the murder, making the story very alive and suspenseful.
The plot follows a wedding party plagued by secrets and resentments: a jealous friend, a secretive boyfriend, a suspicious pregnant wife, a burned-out assistant, a desperate mother, a cruel bride, a vengeful bridesmaid and a deceptive father. When a crime is comited during the wedding ceremony on Lake Garda, everyone point fingers and guns at each other. Why? Because the victim was so despicable any guests had a motive.
What I liked about this book was the pace and how it made me feel when the characters were at the wrong place at the wrong time, when the police did not come or when guests misbehaved. I would find myself irritated and suspicious of the characters, when in crime books I usually feel like a spectator.
If this narrative is brilliantly carried, I found the murderer and the motive being a tint too evident as I guessed it early on, just as I had for the Murder Game. As a crime book amateur, it triggers me that any novel involving a murder is marketed as a Christie-worthy story. What made Agatha Christie a brilliant crime writer was her talent to investigate a crime and give us all the clues so cleverly the reader cannot interpret the said clues. Her writing mastered misdirection: in the same way a magician direct your attention while he’s playing the trick, Agatha Christie sprinkled clues while you’re paying attention to something else. In both Murder on Lake Garda and the Murder Game, I spotted the trick right away.
For the author’s defense, having read the Guest List form Lucy Folley and A Murder is Announced from Christie just recently, I was quite seasoned with bloody weddings and the art of hiding behind a name.
Still, that book is a solid recommandation for the reason that it feels very alive and you feel the danger at all time, and for writting a murderer different than what we usually experience in crime.
From the same author, I recommend The Murder Game, and if you love bloody weddings and tormented guests, have a look at The Guest List from Lucy Foley. If you are a mood reader, this is a great pick if you’re travelling to Northern Italy or attending a wedding, but also the type of books one can devour on a vacation or a plane ride.
Chapter 26.
Chapter 26 
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