Death on the Caldera
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- HUF2,790.00
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- HUF2,790.00
Publisher Description
It's Murder on the Orient Express – with witches!
A thrilling blend of fantasy and classic murder mystery, this rollicking adventure with a wide cast of suspects is ideal for those who love both Agatha Christie and V. E. Schwab, and are drawn to stories that take place in a vivid fantasy world.
The Linde siblings—Kellen, Davina, and Morel—are anxious to return to the kingdom of Halgyr before their father dies, leaving Kellen to assume the throne as king. They book tickets on a luxury express train, expecting a swift journey home—but disaster strikes when the train engine explodes, stranding the siblings atop a caldera bubbling with volcanic magic.
The crash triggers Davina's latent witch powers, but her magic disrupts her ability to remember what she was doing when the explosion took place. While a witch would be the prime suspect for the explosion, the only ones who knew Davina might become one are her brothers—who never warned her, driving her away from them. And, to add insult to injury, somebody is bumping off the surviving train crew and passengers. But it can't be Davina, can it?
While the surviving passengers try to determine who sabotaged the engine and catch the killer, the fractured siblings attempt to stay one step ahead, concealing not only Davina's powers but their own secrets. Luckily, they aren't the only shifty characters on the train. But that small degree of good fortune quickly sours when powerful men turn up dead, suggesting the saboteur is still at work. And who better a mark for the murderer than the heirs to a foreign throne?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Paxman's jittery debut attempts to combine international political intrigue, family responsibilities, witchcraft, social prejudices, and Agatha Christie pastiche—with uneven results. With the King of Halgyr's health rapidly failing, his three children—Kellen, a diplomat; Morel, a soldier; and Davina, a rebellious feminist—head home from rival empire Balter on a luxury train crossing a volcanic caldera. Then the engine explodes, halting their progress and, starting with the conductor, the train's occupants begin to drop dead, their throats slashed. Corrupt politicians, drug smugglers, and a neurotic religious novice complicate Kellen's attempts to find the murderer amid acts of upsetting violence in an eerie volcanic landscape. Each of the travelers is hiding a dark secret, though Paxman's narrative favors Kellen's youthful lover, Genna; her precocious daughter Rae; and Davina, who, it's revealed, is a witch. The excessive story lines become jumbled, and the constantly shifting interpersonal alliances lead to overly simplistic character revelations. This inflated attempt at genre-bending will frustrate fantasy and mystery fans alike.
