Moonflower Murders: A Novel
New York Times Bestseller • Now a MASTERPIECE mystery series on PBS!
Bestselling author Anthony Horowitz brings back his famous literary detective Atticus Pund and Susan Ryeland, hero of Magpie Murders, in an inventive, labyrinthine story that is “catnip for classic mystery lovers” (Time magazine).
Retired publisher Susan Ryeland is living the good life. She is running a small hotel on a Greek island with her long-term boyfriend Andreas. It should be everything she's always wanted. But is it? She's exhausted with the responsibilities of making everything work on an island where nothing ever does, and truth be told she's beginning to miss London.
And then the Trehearnes come to stay. The strange and mysterious story they tell, about an unfortunate murder that took place on the same day and in the same hotel in which their daughter was married—a picturesque inn on the Suffolk coast named Farlingaye Hall—fascinates Susan and piques her editor’s instincts.
One of her former writers, the late Alan Conway, author of the fictional Magpie Murders, knew the murder victim—an advertising executive named Frank Parris—and once visited Farlingaye Hall. Conway based the third book in his detective series, Atticus Pund Takes the Cake, on that very crime.
The Trehearne’s, daughter, Cecily, read Conway’s mystery and believed the book proves that the man convicted of Parris’s murder—a Romanian immigrant who was the hotel’s handyman—is innocent. When the Trehearnes reveal that Cecily is now missing, Susan knows that she must return to England and find out what really happened.
Brilliantly clever, relentlessly suspenseful, full of twists that will keep readers guessing with each revelation and clue, Moonflower Murders is a deviously dark take on vintage English crime fiction from one of its greatest masterminds.
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Community Reviews
Slow beginning, middle and countless times I wanted to just stop reading. I used to love Anthony Horowitzâs literary works. I have faith so I persevered. I am so glad I did because at the 80% mark, thatâs when it really picks up. The ending is what made me really love it and it really felt like "Murder, She Wrote." If the ending wasn't so delicious, I would have given it three stars. It's really a 3 1/2 stars but we have to bump it up since there isn't half stars on this forum. It shouldn't have take 80% (page 290) of the way before I get vested and interested.
Thereâs been a murder of Frank Parris. The arrested suspect is Stefan Codrescu. He already has a criminal record and heâs sleeping with...both of the sisters!!! You read correctly. Stefan is in love with Cecily but heâs also sleeping with Lisa, who he refers to as âbi+ch.â He detests how Lisa blackmails him to sleeping with her and how when Lisa found out heâs sleeping with her sister, Cecily, Lisa spread lies about him stealing and the finally before Cecilyâs marriage to Aiden, Lisa fired Stefan.
The scene plays out, somebody bashes Frank Parrisâ brains to the point of unrecognizability on Cecily and Aidenâs wedding day. The door was locked from the inside so that means, the killer had someone who has the keys to the rooms of the hotel. Stefan was seen walking in that corridor late in the evening when Cecilyâs and Aidenâs pre-wedding party for the staff that was taking place, as per Derek. Stefan supposedly got too drunk so he headed up earlier than the rest. He could have snuck in and grabbed a set of keys off the front reception desk. After all, Frank Parris is rich, he should have lots of money with him. Quick score since Stefan was fired. A couple of weeks earlier, Lionel Corby saw two people having sex. Lionel thought it was Aiden at first but then realized it wasnât because Aiden has the astrological sign of the Leo tattoo on his back that looks more like a lizard. He didnât see who the girl was but Lionel relized it was Stefan having sex and since everyone knew he was having sex with Lisa, he didnât think much of it. Only, when Lisa heard about it, that's when she realized he was still sleeping with her sister, Cecily because that person was not her. Enter dramatic music, please. See, everything shows Stefan has nefarious motives and he is not to be trusted. That foreigner! (Thatâs an important clue to the story.)
Eight years later, things at the hotel are back to normal. Cecily and Aiden MacNeil have a beautiful daughter, Roxana; Pauline and Lawrence Treherne have a thriving hotel (Cecilyâs parents), Lisa Treherne is still a bi+ch, Lionel Colby is still doing spa session and maybe a little more, at the hotel, Melissa (Alan Conwayâs ex-wife) has sessions with Lionel at the spa and she saw Alan Conway at the hotel when he came to inquire about the death of his friend Frank Parris 8 years earlier. Only on July 10th, Lawrence receives a frantic phone call from Cecily outside of her home and at her office cryptically stating she knows who really killed Frank Parris. Then she disappearsâ¦.
Angela Langsburyâs beloved character of Jessica Fletcher of âMurder, She Wroteâ was not available to solve this crime so Pauline and Lawrence decide to go to Crete and get Alan Conwayâs editor (Susan) to get on the case and solve it. Lawrence even offers to pay for expenses for Susan to solve the mystery of âwhere is Cecily?â Now for those of us who read, âMagpie Murders,â we know Susan is with Andres but they are having a bit of financial troubles, trouble in the loverâs paradise and to be blunt, moving to Crete wasnât all that was cracked up to be for Susan. She misses her job as an editor and England and the fact that the Inn was Andreasâ dream and not hers. The amount of bills mounting up were too much and the spark between Susan and Andreas is just getting ⦠stale. When she received this offer, she jumped at the chance. Afterall, who knows Alan Conway better than himself and of course, his ex, Melissa who he had left for the much younger man when he decided to come out. Now I ask you, if you were Melissa and your husband who is now an acclaimed author, left you because he met Frank Parris who lead him down the garden path of gay bars and pathhouses, and countless sex with young men, paid of course, wouldnât you want to bash the man responsible for the demise of your marriage? Ewwww, I wouldnât because thatâs just something that happens in movies or real life but oh so gruesome. Yuck! Let me purge that out of my mind.
Thereâs a lot of reading of the book âAtticus Piind Takes the Caseâ and Susan finally getting to meet Stefan in jail. That part is most riveting and most telling and the turning point of when I started to finally connect with Susan, Stefan (yes, it was brief but so poignant) that I really started enjoying the book. Prior, I kept forcing myself to read it claiming, this is Anthony Horowitz. Heâs a great author. Stefan tells Susan that he is a lowly immigrant from Romania. He states that his life was over the minute he stepped into this county. He truly felt that if he could kill himself tomorrow, he would âexcept for the one brightness in my life, the one dawn that gives me hope.â p306. (Pssst, this was another clue.)
Stefan shows Susan a letter he received from Cecily dated June 10th the day before she disappeared. She wrote how sorry she was for the long silence and that she thought it was better that way. She writes how she knows for a fact that Stefan is innocent of Frank Parrisâ murder and how she could not understand why he took the blame. She goes on to explain in her letter, how a man named Alan Conway came to the hotel after the murder had happened and spoke to the staff to get a better understanding as to what happened to his friend, only to read about it in his latest book, Atticus Piind Takes the Case. Cast of characters are definitely them but their names have changed. She concludes the letter with , âWith love, Cecily.â Regardless of everything, Cecily still loved Stefan. The fact that she wrote she knew who killed Frank Parris puts her in danger but she didnât think she was. When Susan finished reading the letter, she wanted to take it to Detective Chief Superintendent Locke, but this enraged Stefan and said, âheâs the reason why Iâm in here.â Stefan continued his tale of how Detective Chief Superintendent Locke was the one who convinced him to confess, persuading Stefan âthat things would go easier if he'd pleaded guilty since all the evidence was against him.â Stefan, mind you, already had a criminal record. Supposedly, they found the money, and bloodstains in Stefan's room. If he'd sign to the confession, Locke would put in a good word for Stefan. Big mistake! Look where it landed Stefan!
So the answer lies within the book, Atticus Piind Takes the Case. "In Atticus Piind Takes the Case, The two deaths happened for very different reasons and, of course, it turns out that there are two killers. I was almost certain that what I was dealing with was simpler, that Cecily had been silenced for exactly that reason that her parents had suggested to me. She knew too much. p275
Extra Good Stuff that I can't keep to myself:
Frank Parris introduced Alan Conway to rent boys when working in London. They were very young men who let older men do what they want to them for money. The oddest part was, it turns out Frank Parris wasnât just gay. He had a fascination with bondage, S&M and stuff.
Then comes the part of Stefan stating how much he hated England and how he was doomed the minute he stepped foot into England. âI would kill myself tomorrow and I would except for the one brightness in my life, the one dawn that gives me hope.â p306. He fathered Roxana with Cecily and is the real biological father. Aiden had told Susan that it was Cecily who had chosen the name. Cecily knew who the real father was and Roxana is a very popular name in Romania. It also means âbrightnessâ or âdawn.â When Lisa found out the Stefan was having sex with her sister, Lisa wanted revenge. What better way than killing two birds with one stone than to set up Stefan and have him fired and therefore getting rid of him?
Cecilaâs letter to Stefan indicated she found her answer on the first page. After reading that, we realize the clue really was on the first page. It was the dedication page. Alan Conway, being one who thinks he is of superior mind, likes to play mind games. His dedication was to Frank and Leo. Iâll give you a hint, Leo is not always short for Leonard or Lionel. It could be the astrological sign as in Leo to Cecilaâs Sagittarius. Cecila was very into the horoscope even as far as naming the dog, Bear after the constellation. When Alan Conway made that dedication, it was to Frank as a loving tribute but served as a warning to Leo, who was a rent boy back in the days.
Thereâs been a murder of Frank Parris. The arrested suspect is Stefan Codrescu. He already has a criminal record and heâs sleeping with...both of the sisters!!! You read correctly. Stefan is in love with Cecily but heâs also sleeping with Lisa, who he refers to as âbi+ch.â He detests how Lisa blackmails him to sleeping with her and how when Lisa found out heâs sleeping with her sister, Cecily, Lisa spread lies about him stealing and the finally before Cecilyâs marriage to Aiden, Lisa fired Stefan.
The scene plays out, somebody bashes Frank Parrisâ brains to the point of unrecognizability on Cecily and Aidenâs wedding day. The door was locked from the inside so that means, the killer had someone who has the keys to the rooms of the hotel. Stefan was seen walking in that corridor late in the evening when Cecilyâs and Aidenâs pre-wedding party for the staff that was taking place, as per Derek. Stefan supposedly got too drunk so he headed up earlier than the rest. He could have snuck in and grabbed a set of keys off the front reception desk. After all, Frank Parris is rich, he should have lots of money with him. Quick score since Stefan was fired. A couple of weeks earlier, Lionel Corby saw two people having sex. Lionel thought it was Aiden at first but then realized it wasnât because Aiden has the astrological sign of the Leo tattoo on his back that looks more like a lizard. He didnât see who the girl was but Lionel relized it was Stefan having sex and since everyone knew he was having sex with Lisa, he didnât think much of it. Only, when Lisa heard about it, that's when she realized he was still sleeping with her sister, Cecily because that person was not her. Enter dramatic music, please. See, everything shows Stefan has nefarious motives and he is not to be trusted. That foreigner! (Thatâs an important clue to the story.)
Eight years later, things at the hotel are back to normal. Cecily and Aiden MacNeil have a beautiful daughter, Roxana; Pauline and Lawrence Treherne have a thriving hotel (Cecilyâs parents), Lisa Treherne is still a bi+ch, Lionel Colby is still doing spa session and maybe a little more, at the hotel, Melissa (Alan Conwayâs ex-wife) has sessions with Lionel at the spa and she saw Alan Conway at the hotel when he came to inquire about the death of his friend Frank Parris 8 years earlier. Only on July 10th, Lawrence receives a frantic phone call from Cecily outside of her home and at her office cryptically stating she knows who really killed Frank Parris. Then she disappearsâ¦.
Angela Langsburyâs beloved character of Jessica Fletcher of âMurder, She Wroteâ was not available to solve this crime so Pauline and Lawrence decide to go to Crete and get Alan Conwayâs editor (Susan) to get on the case and solve it. Lawrence even offers to pay for expenses for Susan to solve the mystery of âwhere is Cecily?â Now for those of us who read, âMagpie Murders,â we know Susan is with Andres but they are having a bit of financial troubles, trouble in the loverâs paradise and to be blunt, moving to Crete wasnât all that was cracked up to be for Susan. She misses her job as an editor and England and the fact that the Inn was Andreasâ dream and not hers. The amount of bills mounting up were too much and the spark between Susan and Andreas is just getting ⦠stale. When she received this offer, she jumped at the chance. Afterall, who knows Alan Conway better than himself and of course, his ex, Melissa who he had left for the much younger man when he decided to come out. Now I ask you, if you were Melissa and your husband who is now an acclaimed author, left you because he met Frank Parris who lead him down the garden path of gay bars and pathhouses, and countless sex with young men, paid of course, wouldnât you want to bash the man responsible for the demise of your marriage? Ewwww, I wouldnât because thatâs just something that happens in movies or real life but oh so gruesome. Yuck! Let me purge that out of my mind.
Thereâs a lot of reading of the book âAtticus Piind Takes the Caseâ and Susan finally getting to meet Stefan in jail. That part is most riveting and most telling and the turning point of when I started to finally connect with Susan, Stefan (yes, it was brief but so poignant) that I really started enjoying the book. Prior, I kept forcing myself to read it claiming, this is Anthony Horowitz. Heâs a great author. Stefan tells Susan that he is a lowly immigrant from Romania. He states that his life was over the minute he stepped into this county. He truly felt that if he could kill himself tomorrow, he would âexcept for the one brightness in my life, the one dawn that gives me hope.â p306. (Pssst, this was another clue.)
Stefan shows Susan a letter he received from Cecily dated June 10th the day before she disappeared. She wrote how sorry she was for the long silence and that she thought it was better that way. She writes how she knows for a fact that Stefan is innocent of Frank Parrisâ murder and how she could not understand why he took the blame. She goes on to explain in her letter, how a man named Alan Conway came to the hotel after the murder had happened and spoke to the staff to get a better understanding as to what happened to his friend, only to read about it in his latest book, Atticus Piind Takes the Case. Cast of characters are definitely them but their names have changed. She concludes the letter with , âWith love, Cecily.â Regardless of everything, Cecily still loved Stefan. The fact that she wrote she knew who killed Frank Parris puts her in danger but she didnât think she was. When Susan finished reading the letter, she wanted to take it to Detective Chief Superintendent Locke, but this enraged Stefan and said, âheâs the reason why Iâm in here.â Stefan continued his tale of how Detective Chief Superintendent Locke was the one who convinced him to confess, persuading Stefan âthat things would go easier if he'd pleaded guilty since all the evidence was against him.â Stefan, mind you, already had a criminal record. Supposedly, they found the money, and bloodstains in Stefan's room. If he'd sign to the confession, Locke would put in a good word for Stefan. Big mistake! Look where it landed Stefan!
So the answer lies within the book, Atticus Piind Takes the Case. "In Atticus Piind Takes the Case, The two deaths happened for very different reasons and, of course, it turns out that there are two killers. I was almost certain that what I was dealing with was simpler, that Cecily had been silenced for exactly that reason that her parents had suggested to me. She knew too much. p275
Extra Good Stuff that I can't keep to myself:
Frank Parris introduced Alan Conway to rent boys when working in London. They were very young men who let older men do what they want to them for money. The oddest part was, it turns out Frank Parris wasnât just gay. He had a fascination with bondage, S&M and stuff.
Then comes the part of Stefan stating how much he hated England and how he was doomed the minute he stepped foot into England. âI would kill myself tomorrow and I would except for the one brightness in my life, the one dawn that gives me hope.â p306. He fathered Roxana with Cecily and is the real biological father. Aiden had told Susan that it was Cecily who had chosen the name. Cecily knew who the real father was and Roxana is a very popular name in Romania. It also means âbrightnessâ or âdawn.â When Lisa found out the Stefan was having sex with her sister, Lisa wanted revenge. What better way than killing two birds with one stone than to set up Stefan and have him fired and therefore getting rid of him?
Cecilaâs letter to Stefan indicated she found her answer on the first page. After reading that, we realize the clue really was on the first page. It was the dedication page. Alan Conway, being one who thinks he is of superior mind, likes to play mind games. His dedication was to Frank and Leo. Iâll give you a hint, Leo is not always short for Leonard or Lionel. It could be the astrological sign as in Leo to Cecilaâs Sagittarius. Cecila was very into the horoscope even as far as naming the dog, Bear after the constellation. When Alan Conway made that dedication, it was to Frank as a loving tribute but served as a warning to Leo, who was a rent boy back in the days.
Continuing with the story-in-a-story format as he did in Magpie Murders, Anthony Horowitz has written another mystery with layers upon layers to uncover. It kept my interest to the end, though I certainly didn't pick up on all the clues that our protagonist, Susan Ryeland, weaves together neatly at the end. If you enjoy Agatha Christie novels, you're sure to enjoy this one! Given that Horowitz is a screenwriter, his novels easily play out like movies in my mind as I read them, and I'm hoping movies will be made of this series.
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