With a title like that, I was immediately hooked. I'm a huge fan of traditional - and what can be fairly bleak - fairy tales. This is Grimm in the best way - it's a strange and twisted murder mystery, with the best logical explanation for anyone to build a gingerbread house. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I enjoyed this book immensely. Wonderfully Dickensian names, completely twisted logic, weirdly gorgeous descriptions - it's a totally bonkers dark fairy tale, with fantastic twists and turns and an unexpected ending. I am already looking forward to further jiggery pokery!
I'm rarely able to read more than the first chapter of a book but Mortal End seems to have been written for people like me. It is delivered in bite size chapters which end almost as soon as they've begun; enticing me to 'just read one more chapter'. Easy to read and yet containing the largest collection of formerly unknown 'big words' I've ever encountered it's also suitable for the more book savvy. Despite it's subject matter it is light-hearted in it's delivery and the clever way the writer expresses herself is a joy to behold.
What a delight this book was, like walking into a medieval painting. My imagination was taken for the ride of its life as descriptions of these gross and yet, for me, delightful characters, piled onto the pages, one after the other. Incredibly clever use of language which further enhanced the sense of being in another world. This is crime fiction like no other! Fairy tales for grown ups with just enough humour to see you through the dark.
Funny, very descriptive and imaginative. I have never read anything like it, what an unusual read but so cleverly written and which took me back to my childhood at various stages, although i must say this is definitely adult humour. After reading MortelEnd i believe there should be more and that Mrs M-Messer should be on the path to a sequel.
Toula Mavridou-Messer has one of the most creative minds I have ever come across, in fact, her imagination knows no bounds!
Love the incredibly clever mind of Toula Mavridou-Messer. Excited to read her next book as well!
What a fun, deliciously dark tale. A quick read cleverly filled with mystery and humour that takes you into the underground world of Mortal End and it's bleak, devilish goings on. Toula has created some extraordinarily bizarre characters that keep you hooked in this intriguing whodunit. A good read.