Book Review: The Big Over Easy

Reviewed By: Cheryl - RAM

The Big Over Easy     Amazon US HC Amazon UK PB Amazon UK HC Amazon Canada HC
Jasper Fforde
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Fantasy   Police Procedural
Series: A Nursery Crime

'The Big Over Easy' is the first book in Fforde's new Nursery Crime series, and fans of the Thursday Next series can look forward to a different but hilariously absurd series of tales.

Jack Spratt, a detective in charge of the Nursery Crime Division in Reading, is not a famous or respected figure. He has a bit of a problem with giants, or at least, with very tall people. And solving nursery crimes does not attract all-important positive publicity to the police department. Convictions are very hard to achieve - most recently, in a high-profile case, three pigs have been acquitted of murdering Mr. Wolff. The entire Nursery Crime Division is in danger of being disbanded, and Jack of being forced into early retirement.

When Humpty Dumpty, a very popular but secretive egg, is found dead, Jack and his new and ambitious sergeant Mary Mary investigate. At first, the death appears to be accident or suicide, but as the investigation progresses, more and more of Mr. Dumpty's extremely complicated life is revealed, casting doubt on the original assumptions about the cause of his death.

Even worse, the extremely famous and highly unscrupulous Guild detective DCI Friedland Chymes develops an interest in Mr. Dumpty's death when it appears that the investigation might develop into something suitable for publication.

Full of puns, word play and solemnly-reported absurdities, this book is in some ways even more entertaining than those in the Thursday Next series. Mystery readers will like the references to well-known characters and plot devices. I enjoyed 'The Big Over Easy' enormously, and recommend it highly.

Cheryl - RAM

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Cheryl - RAM