Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: The Book of Mirrors
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S): Chirovici, Eugen O.; Chirovici, Eugen Ovidiu
BIRTHDATE: 5/11/1964
WEBSITE: http://www.chirovici.com/
CITY: London, England
STATE:
COUNTRY: United Kingdom
NATIONALITY: Romanian
Lives in London, Bucharest, and NYC. * http://www.chirovici.com/bio/ * https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/oct/12/uk-romanian-author-eugene-chirovici-book-of-mirrors-english
RESEARCHER NOTES:
Title: Mr.
Email: info@pfd.co.uk
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/no93013190
HEADING: Chirovici, Eugen-Ovidiu
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PERSONAL
Born c. 1964; married, wife’s name Mihaela; children: a son.
EDUCATION:Bucharest’s Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, graduated 1988; University of Glasgow, postgraduate studies.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer, novelist, journalist. Began career as an economist; then f the National Courier, Bucharest, Romania, financial reporter, 1992-c. 2000; then B1 TV, Bucharest, Romania, project manager, 2000-02. Also was a contributor to BBC Romania and Radio Free Europe, 1990s; adviser to the Prime Minister of Romania, early 2000s; adviser to the Governor of the National Bank of Romania.
WRITINGS
Other novels include (titles in English), The Second Death, A Commando for The General, Black Powder, and Labyrinth.com. Author of more than 1,000 articles for periodicals in Romania and elsewhere.
SIDELIGHTS
E.O. Chirovici began writing stories when he was around ten years old. He studied to become an economist but eventually entered the field of journalism, working for a Romanian newspaper and then as project director for a television news stati0n in Romania. Chirovici has also served as an adviser to the prime minister of Romania and to the governor of the national Bank of Romania.
As a writer, Chirovici has written both nonfiction and fiction. Around 2012 Chirovici dedicated himself full-time to writing. Chirovici told Guardian Online contributor Dalya Alberge that his literary influences are “very classical” and include writers such as John Steinbeck, Ernest Hemingway, and William Golding.
A prolific writer of more than 1,000 articles, Chirovici is also the author of non-fiction books. In Rumors That Changed the World: A History of Violence and Discrimination, written as Eugen O. Chirovici, he examines how rumors have had social and cultural impacts over the ages and are especially critical as major factors leading to violence and discrimination. Chirovici explores basic questions about the sources of human influence in his book Gods, Weapons & Money: The Puzzle of Power.
Chirovici, whose first short story was published in 1989 in the Romanian literary magazine Vatra, is also a prolific fiction writer with more than ten novels, both for young adults and adults. His first novel, Masacrul, which means “The Massacre,” sold more than 100,000 copies in less than a year when it was published in 1991. That same year his political thriller titled Comando pentru genera, which means “A Commando for the General,” was published.
Despite the success of his first two novels, Chirovici would not have another novel published for 13 years as he became primarily involved in his career as a journalist. Chirovici, however, did return to novel writing and had both mystery novels and non-fiction books focusing on history economics, and foreign affairs published in Romania before he immigrated to Great Britain in 2012, partly because his son went to college in Great Britain and his wife had received a good job offer in England. Furthermore, because of the small Romanian market, it was difficult for Chirovici to make a living in his home country off his books alone.
After moving to England, Chirovici sought out an agent and also set his sights on writing his first novel in English. The novel, The Book of Mirrors, is believed to have garnered Chirovici more than $1 million dollars from various publishers in countries such as Germany, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom.
The Book of Mirrors revolves around the murder of a well liked Princeton University professor named Joseph Weider in the late 1980s. Years later a literary agent named Peter Katz in New York receives a manuscript titled The Book of Mirrors from a man named Richard Flynn,a copywriter for a Manhattan ad agency who was a student at Princeton at the time of the professor’s murder. The manuscript includes a powerful letter from Flynn in which he says he is haunted by the past and that the recent onslaught of memories has led him to write the memoir. Furthermore, Flynn indicates that the memoir will eventually include a revelation t about the professor’s murder in 1987.
The literary agent is extremely interested in the manuscript, believing it has the makings of a blockbuster true-crime book. Flynn’s memoir recounts his senior year at Princeton when he becomes intrigued with Laura Baines, a beautiful graduate student, and Weider. Furthermore, the book begins to delve into an affair between Baines and Weider before the tale abruptly ends with no further details about the affair or the murder.
The letter is enough to peak Katz’s interest. As depicted by Flynn, Weider specialized in relationships between trauma and memory. He was also secretly working for a government agency. As the story in the manuscript progresses, Baines is depicted as both a liar and manipulator whose presence brings about sexual jealousy and infighting. The literary agent Katz believes the memoir was leading to some kind of confession on Lynn’s part. When Flynn dies Katz hires a jaded investigative journalist named John Keller to pursue the story to its conclusion.
Keller’s investigation eventually takes him to the original police detective assigned to the case, Roy Freeman. The ex-cop is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease but, nevertheless, begins to investigate the murder again, determined to solve the case this time. Road blocks continue to arise, however, with contradictory testimonies, especially from one suspect who has retrograde amnesia, meaning the suspect has no memory of events that occurred before the onset of the amnesia.
“Told in alternating points of view, the reader is left vulnerable, uncertain who to trust,” wrote a Jenn’s Bookshelves Web site contributor. A Kirkus Reviews contributor remarked: “Chirovici deftly develops his theme … juxtaposing excerpts from Flynn’s manuscript with the current-day observations of Katz, Keller, and Freeman, gradually assembling the true narrative, mosaic like.”
Chirovici’s theme, according to Radhika Santhanam, writing for the Hindu Online, is that memory can be extremely unreliable and even manipulative. Santhanum noted: “What we choose to believe can often morph into the truth in our fuzzy heads and objectivity can become our own subjective realities, blurring the line between fiction and non-fiction.” Writing for the Glam Adelaide Web site, Leanne Caune noted: “As a psychological thriller, it will lead you to question every piece of information and conclusion that you come up with as you turn the next page.”
In the novel, Freeman’s investigation leads him to the Potosi Correctional Center in Missouri, where he conducts several interviews. Freeman soon believes he is on the verge of solving the murder. However, just when he thinks he will soon close the case, he is faced with the prospect that his conclusion is wrong.
“Chirovici writes very well, and the novel moves with a near-relentless momentum,” wrote a Civilian Reader Web site contributor, adding: “This is good, because who ever liked a thriller that plodded along? ” Calling The Book of Mirrors “richly and expertly crafted,” a Jenn’s Bookshelves Web site contributor went on to note: Chirovici “captivates his reader by revealing clues and truths slowly and deliberately, planned but not so that it seems forced or lacking in plausibility.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, December 15, 2016, review of The Book of Mirrors.
L’actualite, April 1, 2017, review of Reflets changeants, p. 57.
Publishers Weekly, December 5, 2016, , review of The Book of Mirrors, p. 49.
ONLINE
Civilian Reader, https://civilianreader.com (December 27, 2016), review of The Book of Mirrors.
Eugen Ovidio Chirovici Web site, http://www.chirovici.com (September 10, 2017).
Glam Adelaide, http://www.glamadelaide.com.au/ (March 3, 2017), Leanne Caune, review of The Book of Mirrors.
Guardian Online, https://www.theguardian.com/ (October 12, 2015), Dalya Alberge, “UK-based Romanian Author’s First Novel in English Becomes a Sensation: Murder Mystery The Book of Mirrors, Snapped up by Publishers in 18 Countries, Is Expected to Make Eugene Chirovici a Seven-Figure Sum.”
Hindu Online, http://www.thehindu.com/ (March 18, 2017), Radhika Santhanam, “Games of the Mind,” review of The Book of Mirrors.
Jenn’s Bookshelves, http://www.jennsbookshelves.com (February 17, 2017), review of The Book of Mirrors.
Liz Loves Books, http://lizlovesbooks.com (October 1, 2016), review of The Book of Mirrors
TheBookbag.co.uk, http://www.thebookbag.co.uk (January 2017), Megan Kenny, review of The Book of Mirrors.
I’ve been writing stories since I was around ten years old, although I did a lot of different things before deciding, three years ago, to throw my hat across the creek and become a full time writer.
I graduated from Bucharest’s Academy of Economic Studies in 1988 and then worked as an economist in my native town for a couple of years. I joined the press in 1992 as a financial reporter for The National Courier, a daily newspaper that was created immediately after the huge changes brought about by the Romanian Revolution.
Between 2000 and 2002, I was a project manager with a TV news channel called B1TV. In the 1990s, I was a contributor to BBC Romania and Radio Free Europe. I was an adviser to the Prime Minister of Romania for a year or so in the early 2000s, and then an adviser to the Governor of the National Bank of Romania for another couple of years after that.
I published my first short story in a Romanian literary magazine called Vatra in February 1989, and my first novel in June 1991. The book, whose title is The Massacre, was a huge success, selling over 100,000 copies in less than a year. It was followed just two months later by another bestseller, A Commando for The General, a political thriller set in Italy. But after that I published nothing for the next thirteen years. Why? Please read the paragraph above one more time. I guess that sometimes you forget who you really are and what career you are cut out for.
Anyway, I published ten novels and five non-fiction books (History, Economics, and Foreign Affairs) in Romania before leaving the country and settling in Britain in 2012. My son had graduated from the University of Cardiff and decided to settle in England, and my wife had received a very good job offer from a multinational company headquartered in the UK.
So, I said to myself: Why not give it a try? I collaborated with a couple of small presses in the States, before finding a literary agent, Marilia Savvides of Peters, Fraser, Dunlop (London). She opened for me the golden gates of the Big Five and one of my projects, The Book of Mirrors aroused great interest around the world.
I like reading a good book—although good books seem few and far between nowadays—walking the streets of cities that are new to me, chewing the fat with my friends, and watching movies. I don’t have any taboos or superstitions or eccentricities or expensive habits. I’ve been married for thirty years to the same woman, Mihaela, and we are still in love. Eugene, our son, who is now a young man, is a great guy and I’m glad he’s my boy.
Eugen O. Chirovici was born in Romania to a Romanian-Hungarian-German family.
He made his literature debut with short stories, and his first novel, The Massacre, sold over 100,000 copies in the early 1990’s.
After graduating from the Romanian Academy of Economics (post-graduate studies at the University of Glasgow and World Bank Group), he started his professional career as a journalist, running first a daily newspaper (The National Courier) and then a TV news channel (B1 TV) and becoming an established public personality in the process.
He has published over 1,000 articles in Romania and abroad, and is the author of several non-fiction books, including Rumors That Changed the World: A History of Violence and Discrimination (Rowman and Littlefield, 2014) and Gods, Weapons & Money: The Puzzle of Power (Nortia Press, 2014). He is the recipient of several important prizes for journalism.
Eugen has also published eleven novels (among them The Second Death, Black Powder and Labyrinth.com) and numerous short stories.
His writing encompasses fiction and non-fiction for adults and young adults.
Started with 2012 Eugen dedicated himself completely to writing.
He lives in Brussels, Belgium, with his wife, Mihaela, and is currently working on a new project.
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UK-based Romanian author's first novel in English becomes a sensation
Murder mystery The Book of Mirrors, snapped up by publishers in 18 countries, is expected to make Eugene Chirovici a seven-figure sum
Eugene Chirovici
Eugene Chirovici moved to Britain three years ago because his son was studying at Cardiff University. Photograph: David Levene for the Guardian
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Dalya Alberge
Monday 12 October 2015 02.00 EDT Last modified on Tuesday 2 May 2017 14.25 EDT
He came to live in Britain only three years ago, now Eugene Chirovici’s first attempt at writing a novel in English has become a global publishing phenomenon.
The Romanian author’s murder mystery, The Book of Mirrors, has been snapped up by publishers in 23 countries – with auctions having involved up to 11 publishers in each territory. Smaller countries such as Iceland, which tend to wait until an untested English-language book has proved itself in the UK and US, have also bought the novel before its publication in 2017.
Chirovici, 51, who lives in Reading, wrote 10 “literary mystery” novels in Romania over the past two decades, but the market was too small for him to live off his books and he worked as a journalist. Now he is expected to make a seven-figure sum from the publishing deals alone.
He said: “I’m not sure I realise what’s happening. It is very overwhelming and unexpected.”
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The author, who writes as EO Chirovici, was signed up by the first British agency he tried, Peters Fraser and Dunlop (PFD), after he was rejected by six US agents. Recalling their rejection letters, Chirovici said: “They didn’t explain why.”
Rachel Mills, of PFD, described The Book of Mirrors as “a really well-plotted murder mystery”. She added: “It is such an incredible novel, so sophisticated. You would never know it was written by someone whose first language wasn’t English.”
Marilia Savvides, who has only just become an agent at PFD, had fallen in love with it immediately and signed him up as her first author five weeks ago.
PFD began submitting the manuscript worldwide three weeks ago. An Italian publisher was in touch within three hours, while 11 German publishing houses fought for it. Nine wanted it in France and six in the UK, where it has been acquired by Century, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
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In a statement, Century’s editor, Francesca Pathak, described the book as a cross between Donna Tartt’s The Secret History and Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s The Shadow of the Wind. She said: “[It] is a truly brilliant book which grabbed me from the first page. This is going to be a huge debut launch for us.”
Set in the present day, Chirovici’s novel is a story about the murder of a charismatic professor at Princeton University in the late 1980s. It begins with a New York literary agent receiving a partial manuscript called The Book of Mirrors in which the author – a student at Princeton at the time of the murder – hints at a confession or a revelation about who committed the murder.
The writer dies before the literary agent has a chance to find out more, sparking a quest to solve the crime. Mills said: “The opening is really good. There’s a letter that comes with the manuscript ... saying this manuscript is going to tell you what really happened.”
Chirovici said that his literary inspirations are “very classical”, and include Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck and William Golding.
He came to Britain because his son was studying at Cardiff University and his wife had a great job offer as a financial analyst. “My intention was to become a full-time writer,” he said.
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9/6/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
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Print Marked Items
Reflets changeants
L'actualite.
42.4 (Apr. 1, 2017): p57.
COPYRIGHT 2017 MishMash Media
Full Text:
E.O. Chirovici est une star du polar en Roumanie. Dans son premier roman en anglais, il situe l'action à Princeton, au
New Jersey, oø un éminent professeur de psychologie est assassiné. Ce meurtre restera non élucidé jusqu'à ce que, 25
ans plus tard, un agent littéraire demande à un journaliste de relancer l'enquête. Découragé devant l'accumulation de
témoignages contradictoires, ce dernier refile la patate chaude à l'inspecteur qui avait autrefois été chargé de l'affaire.
Or, le retraité commence à souffrir d'alzheimer et, chaque jour, perd un peu plus la mémoire... Déjà publié dans 38
pays, ce roman est un triomphe. (Jeux de miroirs, par E.O. Chirovici, Les Escales, 320 p.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Reflets changeants." L'actualite, 1 Apr. 2017, p. 57. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA486754292&it=r&asid=66fd24e615928e1923b2e1b4f1d0073f.
Accessed 6 Sept. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A486754292
---
9/6/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1504713090996 2/3
Chirovici, E.O.: THE BOOK OF MIRRORS
Kirkus Reviews.
(Dec. 15, 2016):
COPYRIGHT 2016 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Chirovici, E.O. THE BOOK OF MIRRORS Emily Bestler/Atria (Adult Fiction) $26.00 2, 21 ISBN: 978-1-5011-4154-
6
Forget about it. Chirovici's (Gods, Weapons and Money: The Puzzle of Power, 2014, etc.) elegant murder mystery
hinges on the unreliability of memory. When literary agent Peter Katz receives a partial manuscript detailing the events
surrounding the brutal unsolved killing of a famous psychology professor some 27 years earlier, he becomes intrigued,
smelling true-crime blockbuster potential: the murdered psychologist was known for his work exploring the effects of
trauma on memory and was secretly working for a government agency; a brilliant, driven young woman working with
the professor lies and manipulates with chilling ease; and sexual jealousy and long-harbored resentments manifest in
terrible, unpredictable ways. Unfortunately, the author, a failed writer by the name of Richard Flynn, dies before he can
be questioned, and the remainder of his manuscript proves elusive. Katz begins an investigation, pulling cynical
investigative journalist John Keller into the fray and inspiring the murder's original investigator, retired police detective
Roy Freeman, to finally close the case. But tracking down the other players in the incident leads only to confusing,
contradictory testimony. Worse yet, a key suspect suffers from retrograde amnesia, and Freeman himself is suffering
through the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. Chirovici deftly develops his theme by alternating points of view,
juxtaposing excerpts from Flynn's manuscript with the current-day observations of Katz, Keller, and Freeman,
gradually assembling the true narrative, mosaiclike, from the disparate strands. The story lacks urgency--the crime in
question is decades old--but it nonetheless compels attention, as Chirovici draws his characters well and tantalizes the
reader with judiciously timed revelations. A smart, sophisticated murder puzzle sure to please the more literary-minded
aficionados of the form.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Chirovici, E.O.: THE BOOK OF MIRRORS." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Dec. 2016. General OneFile,
go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA473652446&it=r&asid=accea6e3875ab8823aba50b60bdca9d9.
Accessed 6 Sept. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A473652446
---
9/6/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1504713090996 3/3
The Book of Mirrors
Publishers Weekly.
263.50 (Dec. 5, 2016): p49.
COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
The Book of Mirrors
E.O. Chirovici. Atria/Bestler, $26 (288p) ISBN 978-1-5011-4154-6
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Early in Chirovici's intricately plotted first novel, New York literary agent Peter Katz is intrigued by a manuscript titled
The Book of Mirrors submitted by Richard Flynn, a copywriter for a Manhattan ad agency. It chronicles Flynn's time at
Princeton when as a senior he fell under the spell of a beautiful graduate student, Laura Baines, and of Joseph Wieder,
a famous professor, who was murdered just before Christmas, 1987. Flynn's memoir hints at a solution to the 27-yearold
crime, as well as an affair between Baines and Wieder, but ends abruptly before revealing the killer. Was this
Flynn's veiled confession? When Katz learns Flynn has died, he hires investigative journalist John Keller to find the
missing conclusion. Keller's research leads to retired police detective Roy Freeman, who handled the original case.
Recently diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's, Freeman launches his own investigation, believing it's his last chance
to do good. Faulty memories, outright lies, and secrets make it hard to know whom to believe. The action builds to a
crafty and believable resolution. Agent: Marilia Sawides, Peters, Fraser and Dunlop. (Feb.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"The Book of Mirrors." Publishers Weekly, 5 Dec. 2016, p. 49. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA475224841&it=r&asid=50a7ffbd32976a8c196c00ab4738a5e9.
Accessed 6 Sept. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A475224841
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A sophisticated and complex book, also a tad unnerving
A publisher’s instinct in recognising talent is the thread connecting Eugene Chirovici’s own story and his novel. E.O. Chirovici, a Romanian author who has tasted phenomenal success with his first book in English, The Book of Mirrors, was turned down by several literary agents before he found Peters Fraser and Dunlop. The agent at PFD who read the novel said in an interview that she fell in love with the work immediately.
So does New York-based literary agent Peter Kratz when he reads a partial manuscript submitted by a man called Richard Flynn. Attached to the manuscript is a gripping letter in which Flynn, who works at an advertising agency and has always dreamt of becoming a writer, says that a slice of his past had come back to haunt him “like a detonator”. Overwhelmed by the memories, he writes it all down and hopes it will get published. There are three protagonists in the story: Flynn; Joseph Weider, a celebrated psychology professor; and Laura Baines, the woman Flynn loves. Katz is intrigued by the seemingly honest and warm letter. He sits down to read the manuscript along with us.
Dramatic turn
Flynn’s story is set in Princeton in the late ’80s. An attractive, intelligent woman, Baines, who is studying psychology at the university, moves into Flynn’s apartment. She introduces him to her friend, one of the most important figures teaching at Princeton at that time, Professor Weider, and Flynn starts working at the professor’s library. Things take a dramatic turn when the professor is killed one night.
It is here that Flynn’s racy storytelling comes to an abrupt end, for his manuscript is incomplete. Katz is impatient to know the rest. So are we. Sniffing the potential for a bestseller here (and he isn’t wrong), Katz goes in search of Flynn, but finds that he is dead. Flynn’s partner says she knows nothing about a manuscript, and the case is still unsolved.
Who’s the killer?
Who killed Weider and why? Was Flynn’s manuscript fiction or the truth or a confession? As the original detective in the case, Roy Freeman, remembers Marcel Proust once saying: “Remembrance of things past is not necessarily the remembrance of things as they were.”
The Book of Mirrors is sophisticated and complex, but also a tad unnerving. “Memory is a complicated thing, a relative to truth, but not its twin,” said Barbara Kingsolver, the American novelist. Chirovici spins a story out of this, showing just how manipulative human memory can be.
What we choose to believe can often morph into the truth in our fuzzy heads and objectivity can become our own subjective realities, blurring the line between fiction and non-fiction. A journalist whom Katz hires to solve the case realises this when he is faced with contradictory, but convincing, versions of the story of the night of the murder.
Chirovici is a masterful storyteller. He makes every story ring like the truth to the reader. The three main characters are well etched, but the second half of the book falls rather short of the thrill of the first.
The book within the book is especially clever and elegant. A great whodunit (or a whydunit as he calls it), The Book of Mirrors is an ideal easy read. It can also serve as an antidote, I realised, as I lay sick in bed while being transported to the ’80s.
The Book of Mirrors; E.O. Chirovici, Random House, ₹599.
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The Book of Mirrors by E O Chirovici
The Book of Mirrors by E O Chirovici
Category: Crime
Rating: 3/5
Reviewer: Megan Kenny
Reviewed by Megan Kenny
Summary: The Book of Mirrors draws the reader into a tangled web of deceit, ambition and murder. An easy page turner with twists to keep you guessing until the final act.
Buy? Maybe Borrow? Yes
Pages: 326 Date: January 2017
Publisher: Century
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 978-1780895673
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The Book of Mirrors according to the back cover is a tale about the dangers of memory. This is echoed by the author who states that the fallibility of his own memory was the catalyst for writing this book. The key conundrum at the heart of the Book of Mirrors is - who is telling the truth? How can people involved in the same event tell such wildly different stories and why would they want to? As the author states, this is as much a whydunit as a whodunit and the reader is drawn deeper into a web of ruthless ambition, manipulation and revenge.
I enjoyed this book; it's an easy read and the story is interesting, particularly because various chapters are told from the point of view of different characters which gives the reader a chance to see the crime in question through the eyes of many of those involved. The chapters are short and snappy which makes it easy to rattle through and the story sets off at a gallop. However, the pace soon slows to a trot and the story does become sluggish in the middle. Whilst different chapters are devoted to distinct characters, it is sometimes unclear who is speaking until a particular name or event is mentioned because the tone of each individual is remarkably similar. There is little character development and you do reach the end with a sense of who cares?. I wouldn't say any of the characters are particularly likeable, even memorable and as one reaches the end there is a sense that perhaps Chirovici started the book with a strong idea of what he wanted to write and then lost his way and meandered to a conclusion which may have some screaming is that it?. The key questions raised in this book remain frustratingly unanswered, something which can leave a bitter taste after three hundred plus pages of build-up.
However, the frustration of an unanswered question may be the at the core of the tale, and may serve to remind us that often a series of coincidences simply align to make lives coincide and those who are ruthless enough swim and leave the weaker ones to sink. All that being said, I wouldn't recommend this book on the basis that it is a deep commentary on the banality of evil or the ruthlessness of ambition; I'd be more likely to recommend it to someone who was going on holiday and wanted something easy to follow and light on the finer details. Chirovici also has a peculiar idiosyncratic way of writing which includes so much unnecessary detail that I often found myself thinking hurry up!, however this is pure pedantry and shouldn't detract from the overall outcome of The Book of Mirrors, which is a satisfying page turner. That is the great strength and perhaps the biggest disappointment of this book; it takes the age old trope of a murder mystery and does little to produce something which deviates from the tried and tested. It is satisfying for those who want an easy page turner, slightly hollow for those of us who like a bit more mystery with their murder and a bit more resolution at the finale.
For those interested in further reading about murder, mystery and art you could try The Secret Supper by Javier Sierra. For those who may like to learn more about memory you could try Memory by Harriet Harvey Wood which examines everything from our ancestors understanding of memory to modern scientific theories.
Buy The Book of Mirrors by E O Chirovici at Amazon You can read more book reviews or buy The Book of Mirrors by E O Chirovici at Amazon.co.uk.
Buy The Book of Mirrors by E O Chirovici at Amazon You can read more book reviews or buy The Book of Mirrors by E O Chirovici at Amazon.com.
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Categories: E O ChiroviciReviewed by Megan Kenny3 Star ReviewsCrimeJanuary 2017ReviewsThrillers
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Review: The Book of Mirrors by E. O. ChiroviciThe Book of Mirrors by E. O. Chirovici
Published by Simon and Schuster on February 21st 2017
Genres: Crime, Fiction, Mystery & Detective, Private Investigators, Thrillers
Pages: 288
It isn't uncommon for Peter Katz, a literary agent, to receive a partial book submission. His most recent one, however, has him intrigued. A memoir, written by Richard Flynn, chronicles his time as an English student at Princeton in the late 1980s. His girlfriend at the time was a protege of the famous Professor Joseph Weider, a man who was brutally murdered in his home. The case is yet solved; Katz is certain that this book is either a confession by Flynn himself, or will at least provide clues to the identity of the real killer.
Desperate to obtain the rest of the manuscript, Katz learns that the author is dying in the hospital, the location of the remaining pages unknown. Katz relies upon an investigative journalist, John Keller, to research the events and piece together what happened that night in 1987. He reaches out to the original investigator assigned to the case, a man unfortunately recently diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimers. Spurred on by Keller's investigation and his need to put closure on this cold case before he loses his mind, the now-retired detective launches a fresh investigation on a two-decade old cold case, determined to uncover secrets left buried all this time.
What a thrilling read! The format, a book within a book in a sense, was completely mesmerizing. Never did I find myself confused or losing track of time or place; Chirovici’s elegantly written book was obviously carefully and expertly plotted. A key theme is memory: the investigator on the case is suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer’s, a key witness suffers from retrograde amnesia and, we learn, the murder victim himself was known for his work on trauma’s effect on memory.
Told in alternating points of view, the reader is left vulnerable, uncertain who to trust. Yet, somehow this doesn’t detract from the experience, rather, it fuels the intensity of the read. This murder has been a cold case for decades; there is no rushed timeline to get answers. That said, there is a distinct feeling of urgency as each of the key players in this most recent investigation close in on answers.
Most definitely one of the most richly and expertly crafted thrillers I have read in some time! The author captivates his reader by revealing clues and truths slowly and deliberately, planned but not so that it seems forced or lacking in plausibility. This is definitely a book that really makes you think, and leaves you thinking long after you’ve closed the final pages. It is one in which you will want to pick-up and reread, for something more is certain to be discovered. Highly, highly recommended.
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HomeReview: THE BOOK OF MIRRORS by E.O. Chirovici (Century)
Review: THE BOOK OF MIRRORS by E.O. Chirovici (Century)
December 27, 2016 Civilian Reader ReviewBook of Mirrors, Century, E.O. Chirovici, Most Anticipated 2017, Mystery, Thriller
chirovicieo-bookofmirrorsukAn interesting look at memory
When literary agent Peter Katz receives a partial book submission entitled The Book of Mirrors, he is intrigued by its promise and original voice. The author, Richard Flynn, has written a memoir about his time as an English student at Princeton in the late 1980s, documenting his relationship with the protégée of the famous Professor Joseph Wieder. One night just before Christmas 1987, Wieder was brutally murdered in his home. The case was never solved. Now, twenty-five years later, Katz suspects that Richard Flynn is either using his book to confess to the murder, or to finally reveal who committed the violent crime.
But the manuscript ends abruptly — and its author is dying in the hospital with the missing pages nowhere to be found. Hell-bent on getting to the bottom of the story, Katz hires investigative journalist John Keller to research the murder and reconstruct the events for a true crime version of the memoir. Keller tracks down several of the mysterious key players, including retired police detective Roy Freeman, one of the original investigators assigned to the murder case, but he has just been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. Inspired by John Keller’s investigation, he decides to try and solve the case once and for all, before he starts losing control of his mind. A trip to the Potosi Correctional Centre in Missouri, several interviews, and some ingenious police work finally lead him to a truth that has been buried for over two decades…or has it?
This novel has received a huge amount of pre-publication attention. Everyone, it seems — from reviewers to international buyers (the ARC proudly announces that the novel has been sold in 38 countries) — has been gushing over the story. It is clear why it’s getting so much attention: it starts off very well-written, and the first part in particular is quite gripping. It is, however, also rather flawed. I read this quickly (over two days), but ultimately it left me feeling somewhat dissatisfied.
The premise of the novel is interesting: a book sample is submitted to an agent, who gets hooked by what he finds. (Indeed, it was enough to make me hooked, too, and my first reading sessions lasted well into the night, as I read the “Sample Chapters”.) It is an account of events leading up to, but not including, the death of a famous psychology professor at Princeton University back in the 1980s. The agent, Peter Katz, reaches out to the author, but discovers that he has suddenly passed away. Peter decides to investigate not only the manuscript, but also the book’s implications. This first part of the novel is, after a quick introduction, comprised of the sample chapters submitted to the agent. The second part is from the perspective of Peter’s journalist friend, who is hired to investigate. The third and final part of the novel is told from the perspective of a retired policeman who was somewhat involved with the case back in the ’80s. (That’s all I’ll say about the plot.)
chirovicieo-bookofmirrorsusChirovici writes very well, and the novel moves with a near-relentless momentum. This is good, because who ever liked a thriller that plodded along? However, it also helps cover up some of the novel’s flaws, as we blow past things that, with hindsight, either didn’t quite work or were a bit thin.
I have no doubt this novel will be a success. It is a quick, interesting and easy read. However, I think the final result didn’t fully meet its potential, and I came away disappointed. I see what the author was trying to do, and he wrote a good novel. But, ultimately, there was little in the way of resolution (which, I know, was sort of the point). The middle section felt a little muddled, and my attention and interest waned while reading it. There was also a sense distance from all of the characters, almost as if the author didn’t want us to get too close to them (I may be over-reading, here). I never felt particularly invested in any of their fates, and as the novel progressed, I found myself less bothered by the prospect of discovering who had committed the murder.
Yes, all of their memories contradict each other’s in small ways, and it was interesting to see how they differed. But, ultimately I was left with a feeling of, “So?” It’s entirely possible that the novel is a victim of its hype — expectations have been raised so high, it was perhaps inevitable that I’d be a bit disappointed. Maybe it should have been longer, and written at a gentler pace? (It’s rare for me to wish the latter.)
So, to sum up: yes, it’s good. But there are other novels that have handled this kind of subject matter or structure better, and in a more engaging manner. I wanted to like this so much more than I did. If you’re looking for a quick, entertaining read, though, then The Book of Mirrors should suit your needs.
*
The Book of Mirrors is published in the UK by Century, and in North America by Atria/Emily Bestler.
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YOU ARE AT:Home»Entertainment»Books & Literature»Book Review: The Book of Mirrors, by E O Chirovici
Book Review: The Book of Mirrors, by E O Chirovici 0
BY LEANNE CAUNE ON MARCH 3, 2017 BOOKS & LITERATURE, BREAKING
A story told in three parts, this book is complex with overlaying facts and memories told through the eyes of four distinct characters.
At first, after reading the first part, I was very annoyed thinking that I had read a short story that finished abruptly and left me looking for answers. The author had cleverly conceived to then change tone and style as he changed focus character and began to further develop the scope and intrigue of the murder story, which is the basis of the book, in the second and third parts.
The plot twists its way around the vagaries of memory and shows how individual perceptions can unintentionally mask the truth. It begins with an unfinished manuscript that whets the appetite and weaves its way through the endeavours of three men to solve the murder and find the remaining portion.
As a psychological thriller, it will lead you to question every piece of information and conclusion that you come up with as you turn the next page. As the cover image suggests it is as if the story is made of slivers of mirror slowly coming back together to form a fractured yet whole image in its final stages.
The characters are all flawed in some way and are totally believable as people who you could meet on the street. Chirovici starts with a search for a lost manuscript, moves the story forward into looking for a real killer and uncovers other crimes as the story progresses. This is a sophisticated piece of writing that invites the reader to, as the slip cover states, ‘unearth the secrets of The Book of Mirrors and discover why memories are the most dangerous weapons of all.’
Reviewed by Leanne Caune
Rating out of 10: 8
Distributed by: Penguin Australia
Release Date: January 2017
RRP: $35 hardcover, $32.99 trade paperback, $12.99 eBook
E O Chirovici’s website
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TANTALISING
This is a sophisticated piece of writing that invites the reader to, as the slip cover states, ‘unearth the secrets of The Book of Mirrors and discover why memories are the most dangerous weapons of all.’
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One Sitting Reads: The Book of Mirrors by E.O Chirovici.
By LizLovesBooks | October 1, 2016 | Latest Reads
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Publication Date: 12th January 2017 from Randomhouse UK, Century.
Source: Netgalley
ONE MAN’S TRUTH IS ANOTHER MAN’S LIE.
When big-shot literary agent Peter Katz receives an unfinished manuscript entitled The Book of Mirrors, he is intrigued.
The author, Richard Flynn is writing a memoir about his time at Princeton in the late 80s, documenting his relationship with the famous Professor Joseph Wieder.
One night in 1987, Wieder was brutally murdered in his home and the case was never solved.
Peter Katz is hell-bent on getting to the bottom of what happened that night twenty-five years ago and is convinced the full manuscript will reveal who committed the violent crime.
But other people’s recollections are dangerous weapons to play with, and this might be one memory that is best kept buried.
The Book of Mirrors is a very clever novel. I do like one of those. It is also UTTERLY addictive – picked this up earlier today meaning to make a start on it and now here we are and I’m done. On the surface it is an old school murder mystery but like an onion every layer you peel away reveals another layer, perception is in the eye of the beholder and it is an immersive experience in that your own perceptions and realities will definitely inform what you read.
We start with a manuscript section sent to an agent. But is the story in it true? And what on earth actually did happen all those years ago considering the story is only half told? What follows is a multi viewpoint unravelling of an old crime, character driven in more ways than one, endlessly compelling and with a narrative you will start questioning all the way.
I particularly liked how the author plays with the theme of memory, of how our life experiences skew our viewpoint, that thing that makes eye witness accounts of the same incident so very varied. Whilst there is a police presence in The Book of Mirrors that is absolutely not its focus – I wouldnt like to call it a psychological thriller either, it is more about letting the characters speak and therefore reveal not only themselves but perhaps the truth behind a murder.
Really beautifully constructed to encompass nuance of plot and depth of character, The Book of Mirrors is one of those novels you know you are going to continue to think back on, to wonder about. It is a simple story in many ways, a story oft told within the human experience – what Mr Chirovici does though is highly effective, fascinating and potent storytelling. Hence I just lost my Saturday afternoon to it. Worth every minute.
Highly Recommended.
Find out more HERE
Follow the author on TWITTER
To purchase The Book of Mirrors clickety click right HERE
Happy Reading!
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« Ones to Watch in 2017 – Caraval Stephanie Garber.2016 Spotlight: Chasing Embers James Bennett »
One Response to One Sitting Reads: The Book of Mirrors by E.O Chirovici.
crimeworm October 1, 2016 at 9:59 pm
Sounds great! I think I’ve got this too from NetGalley; I’ll definitely check it out.
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