Outwitting Holmes

  

  Sometimes I figure out what happens/had happened before the protagonist does, and oh my goodness, it's one of the best feelings ever. It makes me feel like I'm a genius like Sherlock Holmes. Even if the main character completes the puzzle later, the story can still be interesting as long as the suspense is managed right.

  Anyhow, I've been reading a lot of mystery books recently, and I've realized there are certain ways you can predict the ending. Obviously, this is in terms of stories, and there are more variables in real life, so you can't figure it all out (Kaz Brekker knows, and he's one of the smartest characters). So, let's run the points down, shall we?

  1. If it's a whodunnit mystery, the culprit has probably been introduced by the first third of the book. From my experience, that's usually what happens. Sure, sometimes authors introduce the 'bad guy' five pages before the book ends, to make both you and the characters feel stupid, but that's just annoying. There's no real fun to it. Foreshadowing is much more interesting to read about. 

  2. The plans are probably not airtight. This is for all sides of the story. If a character lightly mentions something that's wrong, chances are, that will be used later on and prove to be of more trouble than it's worth. Basically, coincidences aren't that common, so if something's there, it's there for a reason. Whether that's actually important or just done to derail you, that depends on the author. 

  3. The first suspect, the one most clues seem to lead to, is probably not the one. They're usually there as red herrings, which are basically pieces of information that are intended to be misleading. The chances that the characters would figure out what happened that fast is pretty low. However, it can happen, especially when there are other things planned for the rest of the book. There's nothing more scary than when everything seems to be figured out but there's still half the book left. Something. Is. About. To. Happen. 

  4. There's usually a huge cast. Or locations mentioned. Or reasons for the occurrence. Whatever the mystery is about, there are going to be a bunch of them to confuse you. The one that's the real deal might be very lightly mentioned, but still seem somewhat sinister. Even if it's overshadowed by a more important component, it might be more crucial.

  5. The main thing is probably ruled out. It's usually not on the suspect list for that long, or the characters completely forget about it. Even if they think it might be something, they usually cross it off with an understandable reason, but it's not that strong in the long run. 

  Well, with all that being said, you can't always know what turn something might take, but you can guess. Outwitting Holmes might be impossible in real life, but we can pretend we can in the land of stories. After all, sometimes illusions aren't that bad. However, sometimes I wish I could read with an empty mind. Anyhow, good luck on your journey as a thriller reader, fellows. 

  I know I haven't been posting consistently, if at all, but I've been having a hard time coming up with ideas I actually stuck with. Sorry about that. Maybe I'll make a more flexible schedule later on, but we'll see. Anyways, did you ever have a theory that turned out to be right? Let me know! Hopefully I'll be seeing you guys next time!

Note: Not sponsored and just my opinions. If I said something offensive, please let me know!