The Amber Maze by Christopher Bowden is crafted so beautifully, you’ll find yourself questioning your own mysteries in this wonderful noir fiction.

The plot:

While staying in a Dorset cottage, Hugh Mullion finds a mysterious key down the side of an antique chair. No one can say how long the key has been there or what it opens.

Hugh’s search for answers will unlock the secrets of the troubled life of a talented artist, destined to be hailed a neglected genius fifty years too late. And no secret is darker than that of The Amber Maze, from whose malign influence he never escaped.

The trail takes Hugh from Edwardian Oxfordshire to 1960s Canden Town, where the ghosts of the past are finally laid to rest.

I was hanging on every word

A truly refreshing read. Whilst this is fast-paced, for my readers of thrilling-mysterious, you will not find plot twists to make you gasp, just those to make you think. I really loved creating my own theories behind The Amber Maze, and thoroughly enjoyed the ending, the surprises along the way, and how it all came together.

It is a very short read and at the perfect length. Bowden’s way of writing, with longer, complex sentences, really dragged me into the story, and I was hanging on every word.

The beginning did seem slightly elaborate to me; why did the protagonist have such an obsession over finding out what was behind the key?

Saying this, The Amber Maze is the second book in which Hugh features, so I’ll be picking up the first book, The Purple Shadow, to see any similarities and the start of a wonderful character.

Bookmark That approved. A wonderful noir fiction.

The Amber Maze, Christopher Bowden, RRP £8.99 (paperback); Book Depository 

Publication Date: 6 September 2018

Pages: 166

Publisher: Langton & Wood

Genre: Noir Fiction/ Mystery