Author has a simple solution for the problem with murder mysteries
LONDON -- Period detective stories can sometimes be frustrating because they're oh so predictable.
You invest time in your favourite amateur sleuth only to find them confront a suspect who readily admits everything without putting up a fight.
This all too familiar problem has been summed up brilliantly by one Twitter user.
Author Alexis Hall tweeted some very useful advice to characters who find themselves accused of murder in the 1920s.
Hall begins the series of tweets by setting the scene in an English country house in the 1920s; reminiscent of an Agatha Christie murder mystery.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
The plot's dénouement features a dramatic confrontation in an opulent drawing room.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Hall points out that this is a highly important moment for anyone who stands accused of murder.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Instead of admitting to the crime, why not just deny it completely?
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Hall admitted that this theory definitely did not arise from him reading an awful lot of Agatha Christie novels over the holidays.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Simple as that.
Topics X/Twitter
Rachel Thompson is the Features Editor at Mashable. Rachel's second non-fiction book The Love Fix: Reclaiming Intimacy in a Disconnected World is out now, published by Penguin Random House in Jan. 2025. The Love Fix explores why dating feels so hard right now, why we experience difficult emotions in the realm of love, and how we can change our dating culture for the better.
A leading sex and dating writer in the UK, Rachel has written for GQ, The Guardian, The Sunday Times Style, The Telegraph, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Stylist, ELLE, The i Paper, Refinery29, and many more.
Rachel's first book Rough: How Violence Has Found Its Way Into the Bedroom And What We Can Do About It, a non-fiction investigation into sexual violence was published by Penguin Random House in 2021.
