Zig Zag Girl - Couverture souple

PRAISE FOR THE MAGIC MEN MYSTERIES:   “Absorbing...Another great series.” —San Jose Mercury News   “Thoroughly enjoyable.” —The Guardian   “Clever, immensely likeable.” —The Wall Street Journal   “Enormously engaging.” —The Daily Mail   “Original, lively, and gripping.” —The Independent   “A wild ride full of mayhem, magic and murder.” —The Absolute   “Excellent...Evoking both the St. Mary Mead of Agatha Christie and the theater world Ngaio Marsh.” —Booklist   “Suspenseful.” —Publishers Weekly

Early Praise for The Zig Zag Girl:   “With a labyrinthine plot, a splendid reveal and superb evocation of the wafer-thin veneer of glamour at the bottom end of showbusiness, this is thoroughly enjoyable.” —The Guardian (UK)’s “Best Crime Novels Round-Up”   “An interesting change of direction for the talented Griffiths...Enormously engaging...Post-war Brighton, and its Theatre Royal are beautifully captured in all their seedy glory, and Griffiths’ plot is satisfyingly serpentine...Subtle, charming and very good indeed.” —The Daily Mail (UK)   “A colourful crowd of ventriloquists and sword-swallowers, a world lovingly re-created in this original, lively and gripping work.” —The Independent (UK)   “Elly Griffiths’ compelling novel The Zig Zag Girl takes readers on a wild ride full of mayhem, magic, and murder... Griffiths expertly weaves together Edgar’s past and present into one fascinating mystery that will have readers hooked from the very start... Capturing both the vibrant qualities of the theater community while also expertly capturing its dark side, Griffiths creates a world where nothing is as it truly appears to be.” —The Absolute (UK)   “One to look forward to.” —BookPage "Griffiths weaves a compelling tale rich with historical detail and a cast of eccentric characters." —Kirkus "Griffiths’s ability to imbue atmosphere and create fascinating characters continues to make her an author every mystery lover should be reading...This title may especially appeal to cozy and historical mystery fans." —Library Journal "The portrayal of the backstage life and the onstage performances of illusionists forms a fascinating backdrop to the main action. Brief flashbacks to the Magic Men’s wartime missions provide an equally gripping backstory. As the plot deepens, Griffiths’s tone darkens, leading to a series of surprise twists. Readers will look forward to seeing a lot more of Max and company." —Publishers Weekly

One of Entertainment Weekly’s 10 Great Fall Thrillers “Clever, immensely likeable . . . Captivating . . . The Zig Zag Girl is old-fashioned in the best ways.”—The Wall Street Journal “With a labyrinthine plot, a splendid reveal and superb evocation of the wafer-thin veneer of glamour at the bottom end of showbusiness, this is thoroughly enjoyable.”—Guardian, “Best Crime Novels Round-Up” “With her cast of quirky characters, her excellent plotting, and a twist that readers won’t see coming, readers will finish looking forward to the next trick up [Griffiths’s] sleeve.”—Mystery Scene   “An interesting change of direction for the talented Griffiths . . . Enormously engaging . . . Post-war Brighton and its Theatre Royal are beautifully captured in all their seedy glory, and Griffiths’s plot is satisfyingly serpentine . . . Subtle, charming and very good indeed.”—Daily Mail   “A colourful crowd of ventriloquists and sword-swallowers, a world lovingly re-created in this original, lively and gripping work.” —The Independent   “Elly Griffiths’s compelling novel The Zig Zag Girl takes readers on a wild ride full of mayhem, magic, and murder . . . Griffiths expertly weaves together Edgar’s past and present into one fascinating mystery that will have readers hooked from the very start . . . Capturing both the vibrant qualities of the theater community while also expertly capturing its dark side, Griffiths creates a world where nothing is as it truly appears to be.”—The Absolute   “One to look forward to.”—BookPage “Griffiths weaves a compelling tale rich with historical detail and a cast of eccentric characters.”—Kirkus Reviews “Griffiths’s ability to imbue atmosphere and create fascinating characters continues to make her an author every mystery lover should be reading. Lacking the usual forensics and druids of her previous series, this title may especially appeal to cozy and historical mystery fans.” —Library Journal “Engaging . . . The portrayal of the backstage life and the onstage performances of illusionists forms a fascinating backdrop to the main action. Brief flashbacks to the Magic Men’s wartime missions provide an equally gripping backstory. As the plot deepens, Griffiths’s tone darkens, leading to a series of surprise twists. Readers will look forward to seeing a lot more of Max and company.” —Publishers Weekly

One of Entertainment Weekly's 10 Great Fall Thrillers "Clever, immensely likeable...Captivating...The Zig Zag Girl is old-fashioned in the best ways." —The Wall Street Journal “With a labyrinthine plot, a splendid reveal and superb evocation of the wafer-thin veneer of glamour at the bottom end of showbusiness, this is thoroughly enjoyable.” —The Guardian’s “Best Crime Novels Round-Up” "With her cast of quirky characters, her excellent plotting, and a twist that readers won't see coming, readers will finish looking forward to the next trick up [Griffiths's] sleeve." —Mystery Scene   “An interesting change of direction for the talented Griffiths...Enormously engaging...Post-war Brighton, and its Theatre Royal are beautifully captured in all their seedy glory, and Griffiths’ plot is satisfyingly serpentine...Subtle, charming and very good indeed.” —The Daily Mail   “A colourful crowd of ventriloquists and sword-swallowers, a world lovingly re-created in this original, lively and gripping work.” —The Independent   “Elly Griffiths’ compelling novel The Zig Zag Girl takes readers on a wild ride full of mayhem, magic, and murder... Griffiths expertly weaves together Edgar’s past and present into one fascinating mystery that will have readers hooked from the very start... Capturing both the vibrant qualities of the theater community while also expertly capturing its dark side, Griffiths creates a world where nothing is as it truly appears to be.” —The Absolute   “One to look forward to.” —BookPage "Griffiths weaves a compelling tale rich with historical detail and a cast of eccentric characters."  —Kirkus "Griffiths’s ability to imbue atmosphere and create fascinating characters continues to make her an author every mystery lover should be reading. Lacking the usual forensics and druids of her previous series, this title may especially appeal to cozy and historical mystery fans." —Library Journal "Engaging...The portrayal of the backstage life and the onstage performances of illusionists forms a fascinating backdrop to the main action. Brief flashbacks to the Magic Men’s wartime missions provide an equally gripping backstory. As the plot deepens, Griffiths’s tone darkens, leading to a series of surprise twists. Readers will look forward to seeing a lot more of Max and company." —Publishers Weekly

“Captivating.” —Wall Street Journal “An absorbing read, the debut of another great series.” — San Jose Mercury News   “A labyrinthine plot, a splendid reveal, and superb evocation of the wafer-thin veneer of glamour at the bottom end of showbusiness . . . Thoroughly enjoyable.” — Guardian   Brighton, 1950. A girl is found cut in three, and Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens is convinced the killer is mimicking a famous magic trick—the Zig Zag Girl. The inventor of the trick, Max Mephisto, served with Edgar in a special ops troop called the Magic Men that used stage illusions to confound the enemy. Max still performs, touring with ventriloquists, sword-swallowers, and dancing girls. When Edgar asks for his help with the case, Max tells him to identify the victim quickly; it takes a special sidekick to do the Zig Zag Girl—words that haunt Max when he learns the dead girl is Ethel, one of his best assistants to date.   Another death, another magic trick, and still no killer. But when Edgar receives a letter warning of another “trick” on the way—the Wolf Trap—he knows the Magic Men are in the killer’s sights.   “Enormously engaging . . . Griffiths’s plot is satisfyingly serpentine.” —Daily Mail   “Readers will finish looking forward to the next trick up [Griffiths’s] sleeve.” — Mystery Scene   Elly Griffiths is the author of the Ruth Galloway and Magic Men mystery series. She is the recipient of the Mary Higgins Clark Award and her work has been praised as “gripping” (Louise Penny), “highly atmospheric” ( New York Times Book Review), and “must-reads for fans of crime fiction” (Associated Press).