Terrific. Alex Pavesi knows the genre inside out. One of the year's most entertaining crime novels

Dizzying, dazzling - a potent potion of a thriller, a brew of bibliophilia (think The Shadow of the Wind), wire-taut tension (The Talented Mr. Ripley), and plot swerves so sharp and sudden you risk whiplash with each turn of the page, as bold as the best of Michael Connelly and Lisa Gardner. When did you last read a genuinely original thriller? The wait is over.

So, so clever. A twisty story and an education in the maths of murder mysteries, Agatha Christie would take her hat off to this one - bravo!

Alex Pavesi is a lively writer . . . It feels like a game of Clue-do-ku

An elegantly structured, intellectually challenging and completely unique thriller that grips like a vice

This is both a wonderfully tricksy debut and a loving tribute to the golden age of crime fiction

It's rare for me to read a book in a single day, but I couldn't put Eight Detectives down. Compelling, clever, and beautifully-constructed. It deserves to be huge. I genuinely wanted to applaud at the end

A brilliantly twisty thriller. I adored this clever, game-playing book - it's like Agatha Christie for bibliophiles

A box of delights . . . Pavesi's revelations are completely unexpected, right up to the end

An absolute triumph of a novel. I read it in two greedy gulps. Intelligent and compelling storytelling. Utterly brilliant

This super-smart homage to the Agatha Christie tradition is a must. Stylish, ingenious and great fun

Has an intricacy rare in modern crime fiction. Alex Pavesi deserves huge applause for his plot, constructed with all the skill of the old masters

In Eight Detectives, Alex Pavesi constructs a remarkable puzzle that turns readers into literary detectives with every new twist. Both a celebration and a reinvention of mystery fiction

Masterfully told in a unique way - this is sure to get you thinking

An absolute juggernaut of a novel.

This debut novel, constructed with clockwork precision, has an understated creepiness that gets under your skin

Alex Pavesi's Eight Detectives is a delightfully inventive and enjoyable debut which plays fascinating games with the classic murder mystery and puts a fresh spin on the notion of whodunit. Bravo!

So clever and a lot of fun, fans of Golden Age crime fiction (of which I am one) will love this unique tale with a modern twist

Alex Pavesi has written one of the most creative detective novels of the year...if not of all time. Sharp writing, crisp dialogue, and the end will leave you reeling. An incredible debut novel!

A fantastic read. Utterly original, yet reads like a long-lost golden age classic. The author surprises from the first chapter, is always one step ahead, and constantly gives you this feeling that something macabre is happening behind your back! Bravo

I have never read a book quite like this. It's original, clever and compelling - and the revelations at the end took me totally by surprise.

I loved this intelligent and inventive novel and I'm sure that it will find legions of fans amongst aficionados of classic crime. It's the most fun I've had in ages

An ingenious exploration of the crime genre

An enthrallingly layered literary mystery

A brilliantly conceived novel . . . "I didn't see that coming", you'll say

Ingenious . . . perfect for fans of Agatha Christie

A clever read

[An] impressive evocation of the golden age of crime fiction

A very stylish novel revealing not only the unreliability of witnesses, but also the voyeurism in much crime reporting, crime investigation, and yes, in those of us who enjoy crime fiction

Book of the year
True Crime Story by Joseph Knox, a provocative mix of real and fictional crime in which the author himself investigates the disappearance of a student named Zoe. But is she a real or fictional character? With a fragmentary narrative style, this is something new in the overcrowded crime genre

Joseph Knox cements his reputation as one of the best of the new guard of British crime writers with True Crime Story, in which one Joseph Knox - a deliciously unflattering self-portrait - becomes entangled in the investigation into the disappearance of a student. It's a meta-fictional trick that helps to create a genuine (and genuinely pleasurable) sense of unease.

A thrilling mystery with a strong emotional heart

Ingeniously constructed, with real flesh-and-blood characters and cliff-hanging suspense