abbyb11's review
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
Thank you Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!
I had such a fun time with this cozy small town murder mystery. The story follows Annie Adams as she tries to solve the murder of her Great Aunt Frances. Great Aunt Frances spent her life trying to prevent her own murder which leaves no shortage of suspects. The cast of characters was entertaining and I loved exploring Great Aunt Frances's backstory through her diary entries. The diary gave a duel timeline element to the story that was really enjoyable. You'd think as much as I like cozy mysteries I'd be better at solving the crimes, but I'm not. I didn't solve this one ahead of the reveal, but that never bothers me. I actually enjoy the big reveal when I'm not expecting the answer. Overall, I would recommend this to all readers who love a murder mystery full of family secrets but that doesn't include any blood or gore.
I had such a fun time with this cozy small town murder mystery. The story follows Annie Adams as she tries to solve the murder of her Great Aunt Frances. Great Aunt Frances spent her life trying to prevent her own murder which leaves no shortage of suspects. The cast of characters was entertaining and I loved exploring Great Aunt Frances's backstory through her diary entries. The diary gave a duel timeline element to the story that was really enjoyable. You'd think as much as I like cozy mysteries I'd be better at solving the crimes, but I'm not. I didn't solve this one ahead of the reveal, but that never bothers me. I actually enjoy the big reveal when I'm not expecting the answer. Overall, I would recommend this to all readers who love a murder mystery full of family secrets but that doesn't include any blood or gore.
mcmorrdog's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
niaamore's review
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
| Favorite Quote | “It looks like Frances has decided that I’m not the right daughter anymore.” Pg. 20
| My Review | A cozy murder mystery set in the English countryside, following two cases set in the past and present. Fans of Knives Out and Agatha Christie have a new murder to solve!
Annie Adams receives a letter from her Great Aunt Frances asking to meet at her country estate. She soon learns of the prophecy that Frances lived by, predicting her own murder. Upon arriving, Annie finds the dead body of Frances, and all the evidence she obsessively kept detailing her own murder and a missing old friend. Annie must now unravel the mystery of her great aunt’s death, and potentially solve a cold case from the past.
I loved the premise, and the mix of two mysteries told through two narratives really added depth and atmosphere. Although the story was intriguing, I did find the cast of characters way too big. I couldn’t keep up with the relations and motives of each of them, and it made it hard to solve the case along with Annie. The ending was satisfying, but the many characters left some threads that were never tied. That being said, it was still a page-turner that is sure to keep you on your toes.
Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for this ARC.
| My Review | A cozy murder mystery set in the English countryside, following two cases set in the past and present. Fans of Knives Out and Agatha Christie have a new murder to solve!
Annie Adams receives a letter from her Great Aunt Frances asking to meet at her country estate. She soon learns of the prophecy that Frances lived by, predicting her own murder. Upon arriving, Annie finds the dead body of Frances, and all the evidence she obsessively kept detailing her own murder and a missing old friend. Annie must now unravel the mystery of her great aunt’s death, and potentially solve a cold case from the past.
I loved the premise, and the mix of two mysteries told through two narratives really added depth and atmosphere. Although the story was intriguing, I did find the cast of characters way too big. I couldn’t keep up with the relations and motives of each of them, and it made it hard to solve the case along with Annie. The ending was satisfying, but the many characters left some threads that were never tied. That being said, it was still a page-turner that is sure to keep you on your toes.
Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for this ARC.
mrst's review
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
daniking's review
5.0
"But above all, I want to solve this puzzle. And I’ve been called on to do just that, the one thing I can’t help doing already. I’m needed. Me. Annie Adams, aspiring murder mystery writer. And I get the sense that something happened here. Not just with Great Aunt Frances yesterday, but a story spanning decades."
Annie Adams is an aspiring writer who is in between jobs. She gets a letter summoning her to her wealthy and reclusive Great Aunt Frances's home, Gravesdown Estate, in the English countryside of Castle Knoll. What was supposed to be a meeting regarding Frances's will turns out to be (quite literally) deadly,
Francis Adams received a cryptic and deadly prophecy in the summer of 1965 and spent decades trying to find out who would supposedly murder her. It was the same year that her childhood friend Emily disappears into thin air. When Frances ends up being murdered it is up to her niece, who never met Frances, to solve her murder.
Castle Knoll isn't so much the sleepy and quaint country town as it appears--there are many secrets and betrayals being kept, and Annie might not only solve her great aunt's murder--but finally find out what happened to Emily after all this time.
I devoured this book! There were so many twists in this book that had me up until the middle of the night because I just had to know what happened next. The author does a great job of giving a picturesque detail of what Castle Knoll and Gravesdown Estate look like.
What made the book even more intriguing is how far Frances went into investigating everyone she had connections with to try to solve her prophesied murder. There were many people who would have something to gain from her death, but who was utterly responsible and did it have any correlation to Emily's disappearance?
"Because I knew, deeper than I’ve ever known anything, that our fates were intertwined—Emily’s and mine. I couldn’t shake the belief that underneath everything, I was really just Emily in disguise."
This book is worth putting on your TBR and I have a feeling we are not done with Castle Knoll and Annie quite yet!
Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton Books for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. You can purchase How to Solve Your Own Murder on March, 24, 2024!
Annie Adams is an aspiring writer who is in between jobs. She gets a letter summoning her to her wealthy and reclusive Great Aunt Frances's home, Gravesdown Estate, in the English countryside of Castle Knoll. What was supposed to be a meeting regarding Frances's will turns out to be (quite literally) deadly,
Francis Adams received a cryptic and deadly prophecy in the summer of 1965 and spent decades trying to find out who would supposedly murder her. It was the same year that her childhood friend Emily disappears into thin air. When Frances ends up being murdered it is up to her niece, who never met Frances, to solve her murder.
Castle Knoll isn't so much the sleepy and quaint country town as it appears--there are many secrets and betrayals being kept, and Annie might not only solve her great aunt's murder--but finally find out what happened to Emily after all this time.
I devoured this book! There were so many twists in this book that had me up until the middle of the night because I just had to know what happened next. The author does a great job of giving a picturesque detail of what Castle Knoll and Gravesdown Estate look like.
What made the book even more intriguing is how far Frances went into investigating everyone she had connections with to try to solve her prophesied murder. There were many people who would have something to gain from her death, but who was utterly responsible and did it have any correlation to Emily's disappearance?
"Because I knew, deeper than I’ve ever known anything, that our fates were intertwined—Emily’s and mine. I couldn’t shake the belief that underneath everything, I was really just Emily in disguise."
This book is worth putting on your TBR and I have a feeling we are not done with Castle Knoll and Annie quite yet!
Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton Books for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. You can purchase How to Solve Your Own Murder on March, 24, 2024!
dig_the_plot's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Francis, Emily and Rose live in Castle Knoll and on February 10, 1966 they visit a fortune teller and she tells Francis her future contains dry bones. In a year’s time the girls have drifted apart and one of the girls has disappeared….and it wasn’t Francis. Fast forward to present time and Francis has called for her great niece Annie to be present for the reading of her wishes at the time of her death. But before they can speak with Francis they find she has been murdered. I struggled with this one. I loved the plot. It seemed different from anything else I had read but I was so bored with it. The book moved so slow. The author just didn’t deliver on the story. It’s told in a dual timeline and I had a hard time keeping up with all of the characters. The story alternates between Frances’s diary in 1965 and present day Annie trying to solve Frances murder. I really did enjoy the diary excerpts. At first I cared about who killed Frances and then it took so long to get to the clues that I found I really didn’t care who killed her. I skipped a whole bunch to get to the end and didn’t feel like I missed out on anything.
bookitbean's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
How To Solve Your Own Murder is a cozy mystery that gives Clue-like vibes. Frances Adams receives a fortune at a county fair about how her life will end. She becomes obsessed with solving this mystery, but ultimately cannot outrun her fate. Her great niece, Annie Adams then becomes enamored with solving this mystery and things get quite dangerous along the way.
I really liked the dual timelines and POVs that are narrated by Frances and Annie. I found them both to be fascinating MCs and enjoyed reading both of their voices.
I did have a bit of a hard time with the amount of characters and all of their connections to keep track of, but what would a proper "whodunnit" be if not for a laundry list of suspects?!
Towards the ending, there's a bit of telling vs. showing leading to the resolution, but overall found it to be a fun and fast read. And I think the reveal was also a bit performative as you might expect in a dinner theater, murder mystery style and I can appreciate that approach here. I was immediately consumed by the mystery and eager to figure out how everything tied together.
Thank you Penguin Group Dutton and Netgalley for this ARC. The publication date for this book is March 26, 2024.
barelybythebook's review
4.0
Thank you NetGalley for providing me a copy of this novel.
I want to first start off with saying I highly appreciate a good murder mystery novel, and this did not disappoint. I was captivated from the very beginning, and intrigued to find out who was behind the murder of Great Aunt Frances.
I enjoyed the dual POV’s in the story, as we were launched between past and present in a pleasing and easy to follow manner.
One of my concerns with the story is that we got to spend a lot of time in Annie’s mind, and sometimes I believe there was a lot more telling than there was showing. However, it made the storyline straight to the point and I appreciate that I didn’t get too overwhelmed with following the story. Sometimes murder mysteries can be tangled up with too much information, but this storyline was cohesive.
Also, there were a lot of characters in this novel. I enjoyed the bits and pieces we were able to get from each one, but I almost wish that the story had focused a little more on certain characters. To me, they just felt mostly distant, which truly could have been the point since most of them were in the past. However, the characters in the present fell somewhat flat to me as well. I would have enjoyed getting to know present-day Archie and Walt and even Crane a bit more. This was not necessarily a flaw to the story, but I do believe the large cast made it difficult to zero in on certain characters so we could get to know them a bit better. I also found that with the killer, we could have gotten to know them a bit more. I feel like they could have been fleshed out better, as I saw myself surprised and confused when the unmasking came to.
This was a pleasant and quick read and I thoroughly enjoyed it until the end. It was one of those stories you couldn’t put down until you found out the truth. Perrin is a talented writer and I look forward to seeing more work from them in the future.
readinglibraesq's review
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Thank you to Dutton and NetGalley for this ARC! As someone who leans more toward thrillers versus classic “mystery” stories I didn’t know how I’d feel about this one but man I was so pleasantly surprised at this one. Great writing, lovable characters, a cozy setting, and I genuinely had no idea who did the crimes until it was revealed. I want more of these folk in this town!! Will be recommending this one to all my mystery lovers!
hannahendricks's review
4.0
How to Solve Your Own Murder was the perfect cozy mystery for fans of The Thursday Murder Club! The characters were all wonderfully written, especially the protagonist Annie. The plot was intriguing and kept my attention throughout the whole book. I wish we got a little bit more about the murderer but even despite that I thoroughly enjoyed this book!