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The Mystery of the Crooked Man
A distinctive murder mystery with an unforgettably spiky protagonist, for fans of The Twyford Code, Magpie Murders and Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Meet Agatha Dorn, cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green, the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist. She becomes an overnight sensation, basking in the limelight of literary stardom.
But Agatha's newfound fame takes a nosedive when the 'rediscovered' novel is exposed as a hoax. And when her ex-lover turns up dead, with a scrap of the manuscript by her side, Agatha suspects foul play.
Cancelled, ostracised and severely ticked off, Agatha turns detective to uncover the sinister truth that connects the murder and the fraudulent manuscript. But can she stay sober long enough to catch the murderer, or will Agatha become a whodunit herself?
__________
'Not your usual cosy, and that's exactly what I loved! Spencer tip-toes on that line between traditional and modern with a delicate charm and deftness of touch to create a juicy whodunnit. Simply brilliant!' Jonathan Whitehall, author of The Bingo Hall Detectives
'With a prickly protagonist and a plot that's twistier than a bag full of corkscrews, this one will keep you guessing until the end' Fiona Leitch
'An intriguing story and an engaging narrator whose sharp wit kept me turning the pages' Frances Brody
__________
Meet Agatha Dorn, cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green, the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist. She becomes an overnight sensation, basking in the limelight of literary stardom.
But Agatha's newfound fame takes a nosedive when the 'rediscovered' novel is exposed as a hoax. And when her ex-lover turns up dead, with a scrap of the manuscript by her side, Agatha suspects foul play.
Cancelled, ostracised and severely ticked off, Agatha turns detective to uncover the sinister truth that connects the murder and the fraudulent manuscript. But can she stay sober long enough to catch the murderer, or will Agatha become a whodunit herself?
__________
'Not your usual cosy, and that's exactly what I loved! Spencer tip-toes on that line between traditional and modern with a delicate charm and deftness of touch to create a juicy whodunnit. Simply brilliant!' Jonathan Whitehall, author of The Bingo Hall Detectives
'With a prickly protagonist and a plot that's twistier than a bag full of corkscrews, this one will keep you guessing until the end' Fiona Leitch
'An intriguing story and an engaging narrator whose sharp wit kept me turning the pages' Frances Brody
__________
303 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 2, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews
March 27, 2025
3.5 stars rounded up for a mystery book that is something of a homage to golden age mystery writers including Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle and others. The blurb sets the story line:
"Meet Agatha Dorn, cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green, the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist. She becomes an overnight sensation, basking in the limelight of literary stardom."
But Agatha's life takes a turn for the worse when the lost manuscript turns out to be a hoax. She begins to suspect that her friend Murgatroyd's death was not suicide, as previously ruled by the police.
She starts investigating and is threatened by someone she suspects of murder. There are multiple twists and turns in this quirky cozy mystery. However, I did not like Agatha's constantly drinking herself into unconsciousness.
This mystery is set in London, England.
One quote by Agatha: "I could investigate Murgatroyd's death myself.
That sounded like a a good idea for about a second, before I thought, Would I listen to myself? As if I were the protagonist of the imbecilic James Patterson book on Murgatroyd's nightstand."
Thanks to Pushkin Vertigo for sending me this eARC through Edelweiss.
Pub. date April 29, 2025
"Meet Agatha Dorn, cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green, the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist. She becomes an overnight sensation, basking in the limelight of literary stardom."
But Agatha's life takes a turn for the worse when the lost manuscript turns out to be a hoax. She begins to suspect that her friend Murgatroyd's death was not suicide, as previously ruled by the police.
She starts investigating and is threatened by someone she suspects of murder. There are multiple twists and turns in this quirky cozy mystery. However, I did not like Agatha's constantly drinking herself into unconsciousness.
This mystery is set in London, England.
One quote by Agatha: "I could investigate Murgatroyd's death myself.
That sounded like a a good idea for about a second, before I thought, Would I listen to myself? As if I were the protagonist of the imbecilic James Patterson book on Murgatroyd's nightstand."
Thanks to Pushkin Vertigo for sending me this eARC through Edelweiss.
Pub. date April 29, 2025
June 21, 2024
A mystery which is a bow towards Agatha Christie and following which Christie's fans will find a lot of clues regarding her life and works. It is a rather cozy mystery since it avoids gory descriptions. The protagogist is a woman who experienced some trauma, both in her childhood and in her adult life but who is determined to track down the Crooked Man. There are twists and turns which leave you guessing, at least they worked for me, and the end was rather unexpected. A good weekend read, especially during summer.
*Many thanks to Tom Spencer, Bolinda Audio, and NetGalley for a free aduiobook in exchange for my honest review.*
*Many thanks to Tom Spencer, Bolinda Audio, and NetGalley for a free aduiobook in exchange for my honest review.*
December 17, 2024
This is Tom Spencer swimming in the Sea of Agatha Christie and having so much fun at the beach playing the the murder mystery tropes. We have it all, the unlikeable narrator who we should not like but really grows on us. Red herrings are firmly a species in this sea along with The Crooked Man who is or isn't according to the tangled threads we are asked to untangle.
I quite enjoyed this and am left with a smile on my face.
An ARC kindly provided by author/publisher via Edelweiss.
I quite enjoyed this and am left with a smile on my face.
An ARC kindly provided by author/publisher via Edelweiss.
January 12, 2025
I'll admit to still being somewhat bewildered by the plot of this book despite having finished it and had it explained by several different characters at the end.
I am very bad at working out whodunnit in any mystery novel. Unfortunately, Agatha Dorn (the protagonist of this mystery) might actually be worse.
Agatha works as an archivist during the day but her real passion is the work of Gladden Green, a mystery writer from the early 20th century. On finding an unpublished Green Agatha decides to circumvent the usual checks and has the novel published, giving herself a percentage of the royalties.
Of course disaster is just around the corner for Agatha, who has a massive inferiority complex, when the novel is discovered to be fake. This coincides with the loss of a former girlfriend.
Agatha finds herself in noone's good books but plans to find out whether the Green really is fake and also what happened to Murgatroyd, her deceased ex.
So the actual plot is explained at length at the end but throughout the book you will notice that Agatha misses some incredibly easy clues. In fact she spends most of thr book blundering about getting everything wrong. But maybe that's the point. A useless amateur detective to counter the amateur detectives of the Christie novels which this appears to be some form of homage to.
You'll notice that throughout the book the names of characters are taken straight from several Christie novels - A Murder is Announced is particularly heavily plundered.
So perhaps I've read this book all wrong. Perhaps this wasnt so much a pastiche of Christie's work as it was a parody. I'll leave you to decide. I wasn't particularly keen on the verbose style of the prose but that's a personal opinion.
Not really for me but it passed a few hours even if I was as puzzled at the end as I was at the beginning.
Thankyou to Netgalley for the advance review copy.
I am very bad at working out whodunnit in any mystery novel. Unfortunately, Agatha Dorn (the protagonist of this mystery) might actually be worse.
Agatha works as an archivist during the day but her real passion is the work of Gladden Green, a mystery writer from the early 20th century. On finding an unpublished Green Agatha decides to circumvent the usual checks and has the novel published, giving herself a percentage of the royalties.
Of course disaster is just around the corner for Agatha, who has a massive inferiority complex, when the novel is discovered to be fake. This coincides with the loss of a former girlfriend.
Agatha finds herself in noone's good books but plans to find out whether the Green really is fake and also what happened to Murgatroyd, her deceased ex.
So the actual plot is explained at length at the end but throughout the book you will notice that Agatha misses some incredibly easy clues. In fact she spends most of thr book blundering about getting everything wrong. But maybe that's the point. A useless amateur detective to counter the amateur detectives of the Christie novels which this appears to be some form of homage to.
You'll notice that throughout the book the names of characters are taken straight from several Christie novels - A Murder is Announced is particularly heavily plundered.
So perhaps I've read this book all wrong. Perhaps this wasnt so much a pastiche of Christie's work as it was a parody. I'll leave you to decide. I wasn't particularly keen on the verbose style of the prose but that's a personal opinion.
Not really for me but it passed a few hours even if I was as puzzled at the end as I was at the beginning.
Thankyou to Netgalley for the advance review copy.
April 15, 2025
I had high hopes when I saw this book sitting on the shelf at my local library. Cantankerous archivist Agatha Dorn discovers a lost manuscript by famous author of detective fiction Gladden Green, and lets her newfound fame get to her head, only to be brought down to earth rudely when the manuscript turns out to be a hoax. She then turns detective when she suspects that her former partner, Murgatroyd, did not commit suicide but was killed, when Agatha finds a scrap of the manuscript by Murgatroyd's bed.
Alas, Agatha was a most unlikeable character with no redeeming qualities whatsoever (unlike, say, Ove in A Man Named Ove, Agatha Raisin or Eudora Honeysett in The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett). She's self-centred and self-absorbed, smug and not very bright, truth be told. But unappealing protagonist aside, this just wasn't a very well-written book. The plot was a little incredible with too many threads that were not very well woven together and the prose didn't help. This is the first time I've had to skim a murder mystery just to make it to the end.
Alas, Agatha was a most unlikeable character with no redeeming qualities whatsoever (unlike, say, Ove in A Man Named Ove, Agatha Raisin or Eudora Honeysett in The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett). She's self-centred and self-absorbed, smug and not very bright, truth be told. But unappealing protagonist aside, this just wasn't a very well-written book. The plot was a little incredible with too many threads that were not very well woven together and the prose didn't help. This is the first time I've had to skim a murder mystery just to make it to the end.
May 3, 2024
Literary skulduggery…
Agatha Dorn is an archivist at the Neele Archive, a library of rare manuscripts and first editions, situated in central London. Agatha specialises in the work of Gladden Green, the greatest of the Golden Age mystery novelists, whose books starred a foreign detective, Père Flambeau, and have been the subject of a hugely successful series of TV adaptations. Once upon a time, Gladden Green mysteriously vanished for a couple of weeks, turning up in the Pale Horse inn in Harrogate. Critics still argue over why she disappeared – mental breakdown, or wicked revenge on her unfaithful husband, Archie? But now Agatha has discovered a manuscript in a box of papers left to the archive, which seems to be a lost novel Green dashed off during her hiatus. ‘The Dog’s Ball’ will be a literary sensation, but the launch will become swamped in mystery, corruption, skulduggery and death...
How many Christie references did you count in that mini-blurb? The whole book is full of them, very cleverly used and often hilarious. I chuckled my way through this, and was torn between rushing through it because I couldn’t wait to find out what happened and reading it slowly to savour the fun and play spot-the-reference. It is in no way a Christie pastiche, thankfully. It is entirely modern in style and the plot, while it has aspects of impossible crimes and whodunits, is based firmly in the contemporary world. At first, the Christie references were a bit jarring – so blatant and not always entirely respectful of either Christie or her legacy, but rightly or wrongly I decided that anyone who knew her work so well must love her!
Agatha is self-centred, opinionated and cantankerous, drunk much of the time and hungover most of the rest. I couldn’t stand her for the first twenty pages or so, and by the end I adored her! She’s also intelligent, witty, sarcastic and determined, and even quite brave sometimes (though that may be because of the gin). To cap it off, she’s an extreme grammar pedant, who will always say for whom rather than who for, and who asterisks out all the swear words. I felt I’d found a soul mate!
The actual plot gets progressively more convoluted as it goes along. It all centres round whether the manuscript is genuine or fake, but there’s much more to it than that. Unscrupulous business people, a possible buy-out of the Neele, ambitious co-workers, ex-girlfriends, Agatha’s childhood nightmares about the Crooked Man seeming to come real, people going missing and other people dying – it’s complicated! It does all work out in the end, but I must admit I had to read the last couple of chapters twice to get a firm grasp on who dun what to whom and why! But there’s a lovely mix of humour and growing tension, and I had fun guessing (wrongly) who would turn out to be the baddie(s).
The book works fine on its own merits – Agatha is a wonderful creation, the humour gives it the tone of a cosy despite a few rather tragic aspects, and the plot held my interest even as I became ever more confused. But it’s even more fun if you happen to be a Christie fan! I found myself laughing at all kinds of odd moments of recognition – like Agatha’s old friend (partner? Even Agatha is unsure about that) being called Murgatroyd. Or like her brutal (but funny) depiction of Gladden Green’s literary executors and their money-grasping editorial control over every aspect of her posthumous career – not unlike my own opinion of the Christie estate and how they milk her legacy. Despite the slyness of some of the humour, it reads like an affectionate tribute to the acknowledged Queen of Crime, and I loved every moment of it. I do hope Agatha finds herself immersed in more trouble some time…
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
Agatha Dorn is an archivist at the Neele Archive, a library of rare manuscripts and first editions, situated in central London. Agatha specialises in the work of Gladden Green, the greatest of the Golden Age mystery novelists, whose books starred a foreign detective, Père Flambeau, and have been the subject of a hugely successful series of TV adaptations. Once upon a time, Gladden Green mysteriously vanished for a couple of weeks, turning up in the Pale Horse inn in Harrogate. Critics still argue over why she disappeared – mental breakdown, or wicked revenge on her unfaithful husband, Archie? But now Agatha has discovered a manuscript in a box of papers left to the archive, which seems to be a lost novel Green dashed off during her hiatus. ‘The Dog’s Ball’ will be a literary sensation, but the launch will become swamped in mystery, corruption, skulduggery and death...
How many Christie references did you count in that mini-blurb? The whole book is full of them, very cleverly used and often hilarious. I chuckled my way through this, and was torn between rushing through it because I couldn’t wait to find out what happened and reading it slowly to savour the fun and play spot-the-reference. It is in no way a Christie pastiche, thankfully. It is entirely modern in style and the plot, while it has aspects of impossible crimes and whodunits, is based firmly in the contemporary world. At first, the Christie references were a bit jarring – so blatant and not always entirely respectful of either Christie or her legacy, but rightly or wrongly I decided that anyone who knew her work so well must love her!
And so I became a Gladden Green enthusiast and then, once I arrived at the Neele, a Gladden Green expert – though on the sly, since I do not really like the idea of anyone knowing that anything matters to me very much. I especially did not want them knowing about my love of what they might wrongly consider the subliterary corpus of a conceited old sow.
For I should say, even now, people mostly do not take Gladden Green seriously. But then, people are idiots.
Agatha is self-centred, opinionated and cantankerous, drunk much of the time and hungover most of the rest. I couldn’t stand her for the first twenty pages or so, and by the end I adored her! She’s also intelligent, witty, sarcastic and determined, and even quite brave sometimes (though that may be because of the gin). To cap it off, she’s an extreme grammar pedant, who will always say for whom rather than who for, and who asterisks out all the swear words. I felt I’d found a soul mate!
Crime bookshops smell weird, because of all that cheap paper in one place. The crime-fiction subculture is a world in which, my career in Green notwithstanding, I have never had much interest. There is something vaguely pornographic about it. When one talks to hard-core crime people, one invariably has the impression that they would much rather be listening to a description of the mutilated body of a young girl than whatever one is saying.
The actual plot gets progressively more convoluted as it goes along. It all centres round whether the manuscript is genuine or fake, but there’s much more to it than that. Unscrupulous business people, a possible buy-out of the Neele, ambitious co-workers, ex-girlfriends, Agatha’s childhood nightmares about the Crooked Man seeming to come real, people going missing and other people dying – it’s complicated! It does all work out in the end, but I must admit I had to read the last couple of chapters twice to get a firm grasp on who dun what to whom and why! But there’s a lovely mix of humour and growing tension, and I had fun guessing (wrongly) who would turn out to be the baddie(s).
The book works fine on its own merits – Agatha is a wonderful creation, the humour gives it the tone of a cosy despite a few rather tragic aspects, and the plot held my interest even as I became ever more confused. But it’s even more fun if you happen to be a Christie fan! I found myself laughing at all kinds of odd moments of recognition – like Agatha’s old friend (partner? Even Agatha is unsure about that) being called Murgatroyd. Or like her brutal (but funny) depiction of Gladden Green’s literary executors and their money-grasping editorial control over every aspect of her posthumous career – not unlike my own opinion of the Christie estate and how they milk her legacy. Despite the slyness of some of the humour, it reads like an affectionate tribute to the acknowledged Queen of Crime, and I loved every moment of it. I do hope Agatha finds herself immersed in more trouble some time…
Was I a crazy woman, haphazardly but unmistakably drifting down and out, sick, unemployed, drunk, obsessed with solving a murder that had never occurred? Or was I a maverick, pursuing truth and justice when no one believed in me, even at the cost of my own well being? I should have bought myself a cat way back, when Nancy got the curator's job at the Neele, and saved myself all this anguish. But then I would have had (ugh!) hairs and poo and cat puke all over my flat at the Gatehouse – I understand there are things called hairballs that cats produce. I didn't even want to think about those. No, a cat was not a price I would have been willing to pay, even in retrospect.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
August 30, 2024
This book refuses to catch your attention. Too much rambling going on for more than 50 pages. Can't even find a hook to go on further. The main character is dull and bitter. It seems like I'm reading about her office politics in the first half. When will the story even begin? Hard pass! Wouldn't recommend.
December 20, 2024
I really wanted to love this - a modern day spoof Agatha Christie with easter eggs galore - but it was a slog to follow the unlikable characters painfully slow deductions
June 29, 2025
I have one of those dirty-secret confessions for my @Goodreads friends:
I have never read Agatha Christie.
Even so, I recognized the salute to Dame Agatha in this novel.
Agatha Dorn is a drone at a literary archive. She is an expert in the works of Gladden Green, a mystery writer from the mid 20th century (a not-subtle doppelganger for Dame Agatha). Agatha is a prickly person at best, overfond of gin, and really only has one friend left, her ex-lover Amy Murgatroyd, whom she calls Murgatroyd.
Agatha gets passed over for an expected promotion at the archive, but Agatha gets a call from a gentleman, claiming that his wife has inherited a box with the long-suspected "missing novel" from Ms. Green, supposedly written during her "disappearance" to a hotel for nearly two weeks (another salute to Dame Agatha). Is this actually the real, missing novel? Agatha craves the fame that "finding" the lost novel would bring, plus she needs to find a full-time nurse for her dementia-riddled mother, Clara. So..the archive certifies the novel's authenticity b/c of Agatha's insistence that it is the real thing, and Agatha becomes a minor personality in the literary world; It goes directly to her head, and she becomes even more insufferable.
But then, a call questioning the authenticity of the novel. And devastating news from Murgatroyd: she has terminal cancer. When Murgatroyd is found dead, with a plastic bag over her head and a helium tank nearby, even the police assume suicide. But Murgatroyd left a cryptic message for Agatha on her phone. And Agatha found a page of the newly-found novel in Murgatroyd's nightstand... how on earth did it get there?
Is the Crooked Man - the monster from Agatha's childhood (imagination, or real?) -- after Agatha again, at the height of her fame? Did he cause Murgatroyd's death? Is he responsible for Agatha's boss' disappearance? The loss of her career, good name, and even posh apartment?
All Agatha has her own gut instinct that Murgatroyd did not kill herself. And someone seems out to not just destroy Agatha's career, but to snuff out her life as well.... will Agatha pull out of her gin haze long enough to save her own life; find Murgatroyd's murderer; AND decipher the mystery of the missing novel?
I was of two minds about finishing this book. I have a really hard time reading books when the protagonist is unlikable. Not only is Agatha unlikable, she is LOATHABLE, and there are really no other redeeming minor characters either. Also, since this is SUCH a salute to Agatha Christie -- and I'm not a fan of 30's-type mysteries or noir -- I almost put it down about 30% in. But I hung with it, and started having trouble putting it down once I was about 80% in, so even with all my caveats, "The Mystery of the Crooked Man" still rates high three stars from me, rounded up to four.
I have never read Agatha Christie.
Even so, I recognized the salute to Dame Agatha in this novel.
Agatha Dorn is a drone at a literary archive. She is an expert in the works of Gladden Green, a mystery writer from the mid 20th century (a not-subtle doppelganger for Dame Agatha). Agatha is a prickly person at best, overfond of gin, and really only has one friend left, her ex-lover Amy Murgatroyd, whom she calls Murgatroyd.
Agatha gets passed over for an expected promotion at the archive, but Agatha gets a call from a gentleman, claiming that his wife has inherited a box with the long-suspected "missing novel" from Ms. Green, supposedly written during her "disappearance" to a hotel for nearly two weeks (another salute to Dame Agatha). Is this actually the real, missing novel? Agatha craves the fame that "finding" the lost novel would bring, plus she needs to find a full-time nurse for her dementia-riddled mother, Clara. So..the archive certifies the novel's authenticity b/c of Agatha's insistence that it is the real thing, and Agatha becomes a minor personality in the literary world; It goes directly to her head, and she becomes even more insufferable.
But then, a call questioning the authenticity of the novel. And devastating news from Murgatroyd: she has terminal cancer. When Murgatroyd is found dead, with a plastic bag over her head and a helium tank nearby, even the police assume suicide. But Murgatroyd left a cryptic message for Agatha on her phone. And Agatha found a page of the newly-found novel in Murgatroyd's nightstand... how on earth did it get there?
Is the Crooked Man - the monster from Agatha's childhood (imagination, or real?) -- after Agatha again, at the height of her fame? Did he cause Murgatroyd's death? Is he responsible for Agatha's boss' disappearance? The loss of her career, good name, and even posh apartment?
All Agatha has her own gut instinct that Murgatroyd did not kill herself. And someone seems out to not just destroy Agatha's career, but to snuff out her life as well.... will Agatha pull out of her gin haze long enough to save her own life; find Murgatroyd's murderer; AND decipher the mystery of the missing novel?
I was of two minds about finishing this book. I have a really hard time reading books when the protagonist is unlikable. Not only is Agatha unlikable, she is LOATHABLE, and there are really no other redeeming minor characters either. Also, since this is SUCH a salute to Agatha Christie -- and I'm not a fan of 30's-type mysteries or noir -- I almost put it down about 30% in. But I hung with it, and started having trouble putting it down once I was about 80% in, so even with all my caveats, "The Mystery of the Crooked Man" still rates high three stars from me, rounded up to four.
August 21, 2025
The Mystery of the Crooked Man is narrated in first person, that person being Agatha Dorn, who the publicity material describes as a "cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict." Agatha is really not someone I want to spend a lot of time with, but as a character in a novel she has her "charms," including bluntness, brusqueness, suspicion, and both self-aggrandizement and self-doubt. If I ever meet her real-world equivalent, I'm going to run for it, but I actually would read another novel featuring her if one were to appear.
The plotting here is a bit like a switchback trail, zigging and zagging back and forth and alternating between laborious climbs and chaotic downhill tumbles. The mystery at the heart of this novel is dealt out in small bits, and there's no panoramic view. Gradually readers see—and then sometimes reject—connections between disparate elements, but a "whole" doesn't emerge until the end. Characters who seem to play one role suddenly take on roles contradicting their personality and motivations as expressed up until that point.
To sum it up, this is a well-paced mystery with a generous helping of surprises and a central character one feels increasingly empathetic toward as the novel progresses. It's also a treat for anyone who enjoys mysteries of the Miss Marple sort. Spencer is clearly doing some riffing on Agatha Christie tropes, which makes the novel enjoyable in a spot-the-reference sort of way.
I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.
The plotting here is a bit like a switchback trail, zigging and zagging back and forth and alternating between laborious climbs and chaotic downhill tumbles. The mystery at the heart of this novel is dealt out in small bits, and there's no panoramic view. Gradually readers see—and then sometimes reject—connections between disparate elements, but a "whole" doesn't emerge until the end. Characters who seem to play one role suddenly take on roles contradicting their personality and motivations as expressed up until that point.
To sum it up, this is a well-paced mystery with a generous helping of surprises and a central character one feels increasingly empathetic toward as the novel progresses. It's also a treat for anyone who enjoys mysteries of the Miss Marple sort. Spencer is clearly doing some riffing on Agatha Christie tropes, which makes the novel enjoyable in a spot-the-reference sort of way.
I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.
December 2, 2025
On paper it looks like the sort of book I would like, but nope nope nope. It tried too hard, had a bad plot, confusing writing, was boring, and a predictable ending. And in my opinion portrayed women in an insulting way. Did I miss anything?
May 1, 2024
3.25*
In this standalone mystery we meet Agatha Dorn, a cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green (Agatha Christie coded), the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist and overnight fame. This newfound fame takes a nosedive when the novel is exposed as a hoax, and when her ex-lover turns up dead, with a scrap of the manuscript by her side, Agatha suspects foul play.
Agatha turns detective to uncover the sinister truth that connects the murder and the fraudulent manuscript but to do so she has to uncover family secrets and most importantly stay sober for long enough to investigate.
This was a solid mystery story that has obvious great affection for the Golden Age of crime whilst remaining modern, current and also very very bookish which I really enjoyed. The story and mystery as a whole was inventive with a 'denouement' that I didn't see coming which was a great surprise.
I didn't however like the character of Agatha. She is designed to be an outsider and prickly - a mix in my mind of Sally Diamond (Strange Sally Diamond) and Eleanor Oliphant (Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine), unfortunately for me she leaned more towards Eleanor (a book I really disliked) than Sally (a book I loved). I found her lacking an empathetic interior that allowed me to see beyond that stiff and difficult exterior. I think if you enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant then this characterisation will work for you but sadly it didn't for me.
Despite that I found the story to overall be an engaging and fun read. There's some memorable supporting characters and I did like how we got to know more about Agatha as the story unfolded. Readers of cosy mysteries and classic crime will likely enjoy this and I was glad that we had a fully self-contained story that was resolved in an engaging, twisting and satisfying way.
Thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo for a digital review copy of "The Mystery of the Crooked Man" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.
In this standalone mystery we meet Agatha Dorn, a cantankerous archivist, grammar pedant, gin afficionado and murder mystery addict. When she discovers a lost manuscript by Gladden Green (Agatha Christie coded), the Empress of Golden Age detective fiction, Agatha's life takes an unexpected twist and overnight fame. This newfound fame takes a nosedive when the novel is exposed as a hoax, and when her ex-lover turns up dead, with a scrap of the manuscript by her side, Agatha suspects foul play.
Agatha turns detective to uncover the sinister truth that connects the murder and the fraudulent manuscript but to do so she has to uncover family secrets and most importantly stay sober for long enough to investigate.
This was a solid mystery story that has obvious great affection for the Golden Age of crime whilst remaining modern, current and also very very bookish which I really enjoyed. The story and mystery as a whole was inventive with a 'denouement' that I didn't see coming which was a great surprise.
I didn't however like the character of Agatha. She is designed to be an outsider and prickly - a mix in my mind of Sally Diamond (Strange Sally Diamond) and Eleanor Oliphant (Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine), unfortunately for me she leaned more towards Eleanor (a book I really disliked) than Sally (a book I loved). I found her lacking an empathetic interior that allowed me to see beyond that stiff and difficult exterior. I think if you enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant then this characterisation will work for you but sadly it didn't for me.
Despite that I found the story to overall be an engaging and fun read. There's some memorable supporting characters and I did like how we got to know more about Agatha as the story unfolded. Readers of cosy mysteries and classic crime will likely enjoy this and I was glad that we had a fully self-contained story that was resolved in an engaging, twisting and satisfying way.
Thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo for a digital review copy of "The Mystery of the Crooked Man" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.
February 28, 2025
Thank you to the author, Steerforth Press/Pushkin Vertigo and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I wanted to like this book so much - Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, P.D. James and Ngaio Marsh are some of my favorite authors - and there are plenty of Christie-flavored Easter eggs hidden in the plot. However, overall I found it was a long and slow slog to follow the massively unlikable characters muddling their way more by chance than anything else to deductions, with many detours and way too many threads. Sorry, but this was not my cup of tea.
I wanted to like this book so much - Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, P.D. James and Ngaio Marsh are some of my favorite authors - and there are plenty of Christie-flavored Easter eggs hidden in the plot. However, overall I found it was a long and slow slog to follow the massively unlikable characters muddling their way more by chance than anything else to deductions, with many detours and way too many threads. Sorry, but this was not my cup of tea.
July 15, 2025
Unfortunately, I was not really a fan of this one. I did persevere to the very end, but even that left me feeling flat and slightly disappointed.
I had no connection to / with / for the protagonist, Agatha Dorn; the story line was like a tangled ball of wool where neither end provided any narrative lifeline; the multiple references to Agatha Christie and her works bordered on ad nauseam (and smacked of laziness in the creativity department).
A homage or pastiche to Agatha - not from where I was sitting in my reading chair.
I had no connection to / with / for the protagonist, Agatha Dorn; the story line was like a tangled ball of wool where neither end provided any narrative lifeline; the multiple references to Agatha Christie and her works bordered on ad nauseam (and smacked of laziness in the creativity department).
A homage or pastiche to Agatha - not from where I was sitting in my reading chair.
October 13, 2025
Did anyone read this before it was published?! The writing was bad. There were too many loose ends in the plot. The plot was bad. The main character was poorly written and thought-out. Has Spencer ever spoken to a woman before? Has he been in a fandom before? Has he read any Agatha Christie's books before and not her Wikipedia page? This book was a poorly thought-out and written ode to Agatha Christie. Since it's so bad, I can't even call it an ode. It's a farce.
February 24, 2025
Agatha was the most unlikeable character with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. She's self-centered and self-absorbed, smug and not very bright, truth be told. But unappealing protagonist aside, this just wasn't a very well-written book. The plot was a mess of too many threads that were not very well woven together and the prose didn't help either.
December 8, 2025
DNF - I think the success of the Maid has led to the idea that the main character can be quirky and borderline unlikeable, but still an enjoyable read. This attempt just fails, with no mystery in the first 25% and nothing about Agatha that made me want to continue.
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss.
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss.
May 4, 2024
Not very impressed as I didn't like the main character at all.
April 16, 2025
This got a good write up in the NYT. The plot is crazy and the main character is just annoying. I wasn't really in the mood for an eccentric, cranky heroine / unreliable narrator.
June 16, 2025
I prefer books that feature likeable characters
December 7, 2025
"Part of the problem was, the more I found out, the more confusing it all got." 142
"I can't make sense of it ..." 143
These lines from the book about sum it up. A convoluted twisted plot that made no sense except that it was clear who the ultimate villain was going to be.
"I can't make sense of it ..." 143
These lines from the book about sum it up. A convoluted twisted plot that made no sense except that it was clear who the ultimate villain was going to be.
May 1, 2025
While this book was well-written and superbly narrated on the audio book version, I am not a fan of unlikeable, stupid main characters. I had a hard time getting to the end because I found no one to root for. The protagonist (really, antagonist) simply stumbles her way to a solution of the mystery in a wholly unsatisfying way.
July 1, 2024
Happy publication day 🎉🥳🥂
And now for something a little different.
I’m supposed to despise Agatha Dorn, I know this, I know it as-well as I know that she’d read my review and rip me a new one for my grammar and spelling. Reader, I loved her. She’s bitter, acerbic, anal, pedantic, self absorbed and awful. She suffers no fools and seems to care for no one.
This is a smart and funny crime novel. The story doesn’t detract much from the blurb, but that’s intended as a compliment. It didn’t need to, it carried along on a wave of cantankerous Agathaisms, gin procured headaches. Murder,suicide, lies, deception and betrayals. I laughed a lot more than I expected, and I just know the author had a great time writing this.
“People who wear as much tie die as her are supposed to be at one with the universe”
“Life is very different for the beautiful”
Excellent work, fantastic narration.
Many thanks to Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audio arc.
And now for something a little different.
I’m supposed to despise Agatha Dorn, I know this, I know it as-well as I know that she’d read my review and rip me a new one for my grammar and spelling. Reader, I loved her. She’s bitter, acerbic, anal, pedantic, self absorbed and awful. She suffers no fools and seems to care for no one.
This is a smart and funny crime novel. The story doesn’t detract much from the blurb, but that’s intended as a compliment. It didn’t need to, it carried along on a wave of cantankerous Agathaisms, gin procured headaches. Murder,suicide, lies, deception and betrayals. I laughed a lot more than I expected, and I just know the author had a great time writing this.
“People who wear as much tie die as her are supposed to be at one with the universe”
“Life is very different for the beautiful”
Excellent work, fantastic narration.
Many thanks to Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audio arc.
July 1, 2025
I wanted to love this book! The plot is interesting but the execution is tough. Agatha is difficult to warm to, as the description promises, but I began to find her frustratingly inept. I think callousness in a character works best when they're also clever or smart. Agatha is neither. Her drunken behavior became annoying and by the time the eyepatch came out I was losing interest. The manuscript mystery had so much potential, unfortunately the other mysteries and the lack of direction or progress hindered it all. I genuinely think I would've liked this book so much more if they'd not named a character Murgatroyd.
June 13, 2025
Should have been fun but the plot was extremely convoluted. Would read something else by Spencer.
June 16, 2025
This is my kind of beach read.
dnf
August 11, 2025DNF'ed @ page 139.
This book is a mess. Not only is the story convoluted, the narrator rambles too much, making it hard to follow.
This book is a mess. Not only is the story convoluted, the narrator rambles too much, making it hard to follow.
March 12, 2025
Great thanks to Bolinda Publishing, Libro.fm, and the American Library Association for the ALC. Please note that this review is of the audiobook version that is not currently an option on GoodReads.
What a delightful book! This was clever in the absolute best of ways - it was packed with all sorts of references to the Golden Age of Detective Fiction but never once did it feel like the homage was getting in the way of the story, and more than that it never felt you needed to "get" any of the references. For all the bits I did pick up on (the combined nod to Agatha Christie's Poirot and G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown amused me greatly), I've no doubt that there were probably things I didn't catch at all... and I don't feel I was cheated out of anything, or that the story was "fan service." They were true Easter Eggs; little treats you find only if you're looking.
What's more, the author managed to pull off a rare feat for me - I don't care for unlikable protagonists. And yet I found myself enamored with Agatha Dorn, despite all her pedantry, prickly mannerisms, and frequent rudeness. She was just sympathetic enough to get me to want to see her succeed; often in spite of herself. And really, it's the characters that make this one shine. Even the smallest of side characters felt dynamic and multidimensional. Kudos have to go here to narrator Claire Warrillow, who brought Agatha Dorn to life with her performance.
The central mystery is propped up by the flaws of the protagonist, and I mean that as a compliment. Agatha Dorn is not a detective of any sort, and so her slow unveiling of the mystery is a believable component of her characterization. She doesn't put clues together because she doesn't always know they are clues; how could she? She is also, without getting into spoilers, a bit of an unreliable narrator... which she herself is aware of. Yet another layer of solid characterization.
I really loved this and I very much look forward to what the author does next.
What a delightful book! This was clever in the absolute best of ways - it was packed with all sorts of references to the Golden Age of Detective Fiction but never once did it feel like the homage was getting in the way of the story, and more than that it never felt you needed to "get" any of the references. For all the bits I did pick up on (the combined nod to Agatha Christie's Poirot and G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown amused me greatly), I've no doubt that there were probably things I didn't catch at all... and I don't feel I was cheated out of anything, or that the story was "fan service." They were true Easter Eggs; little treats you find only if you're looking.
What's more, the author managed to pull off a rare feat for me - I don't care for unlikable protagonists. And yet I found myself enamored with Agatha Dorn, despite all her pedantry, prickly mannerisms, and frequent rudeness. She was just sympathetic enough to get me to want to see her succeed; often in spite of herself. And really, it's the characters that make this one shine. Even the smallest of side characters felt dynamic and multidimensional. Kudos have to go here to narrator Claire Warrillow, who brought Agatha Dorn to life with her performance.
The central mystery is propped up by the flaws of the protagonist, and I mean that as a compliment. Agatha Dorn is not a detective of any sort, and so her slow unveiling of the mystery is a believable component of her characterization. She doesn't put clues together because she doesn't always know they are clues; how could she? She is also, without getting into spoilers, a bit of an unreliable narrator... which she herself is aware of. Yet another layer of solid characterization.
I really loved this and I very much look forward to what the author does next.
January 12, 2025
What an absolute delight. I picked up THE MYSTERY OF THE CROOKED MAN on a whim and found myself reading it in its entirety in a single afternoon. This cozy mystery follows archivist Agatha Dorn after her discovery of an unpublished mystery by a (barely) fictionalized version of Agatha Christie. She has an elderly mother with dementia who she really doesn't like very much, an estranged older brother, and a former partner who is still entangled in her life. She has, to put it mildly, a very full plate.
Yes, our sleuth Agatha Dorn is not exactly likable - the blurb describes her as 'cantankerous' and I cannot think of a better use of that adjective. And yet, she grows on you. She's an unconventional protagonist and all of her various quirks make her a very good fit for the pacing of this mystery. The book itself is a tongue-in-cheek homage to Agatha Christie with references that avid Christie readers will recognize. Places, character names, etc. are all little nudges.
I regret that the blurb gives a way a little bit too much, and that we don't have more development around Agatha's relationship with her former partner (aptly named Amy Murgatroyd, for fans of Christie's A Murder is Announced). Otherwise, this was a joy from cover to cover.
If you anxiously wait for another in the Marlow Murder Club series or if you're particularly fond of Christie's Tommy and Tuppence, this deserves a place on your list. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance copy. All opinions are entirely my own.
Yes, our sleuth Agatha Dorn is not exactly likable - the blurb describes her as 'cantankerous' and I cannot think of a better use of that adjective. And yet, she grows on you. She's an unconventional protagonist and all of her various quirks make her a very good fit for the pacing of this mystery. The book itself is a tongue-in-cheek homage to Agatha Christie with references that avid Christie readers will recognize. Places, character names, etc. are all little nudges.
I regret that the blurb gives a way a little bit too much, and that we don't have more development around Agatha's relationship with her former partner (aptly named Amy Murgatroyd, for fans of Christie's A Murder is Announced). Otherwise, this was a joy from cover to cover.
If you anxiously wait for another in the Marlow Murder Club series or if you're particularly fond of Christie's Tommy and Tuppence, this deserves a place on your list. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance copy. All opinions are entirely my own.
December 27, 2024
I want to love this book. It’s a good take on the mystery genre with a crotchety protagonist and a surprise “whodunnit.” However, the distinctively British slang and culture references went over my head and sometimes left me confused about what was actually being said. Also, it is difficult to like the main character, and that makes it harder to care if she solves the mystery or not.
3.5/5 stars
3.5/5 stars
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