Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Murder in the Family

Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

Murder in the Family by Cara Hunter

21 reviews

lizeylu's review against another edition

mysterious

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.25

I felt like this book had so much potential to be super cool as the concept of “solving it before the experts” is a fun idea but wasn’t really applicable. There were so many plot twists which I can see is fun and keeps the story going but it’s impossible to predict as the twists are so far fetched.

Spoiler:
I felt like there wasn’t much information put into the actual story when we found out in the end so it ended up not feeling very solved. There were also so many loop holes and loose ends. The timings were also super confusing?? The show was recorded in May - July but broadcasted in October but somehow the audience was reacting to the story and somehow Ian Wilson was following the show in July even though it hadn’t been released yet?? Just not very clear and the mistakes really knock the fourth wall down. I also really disliked that all the experts were involved in some way, like I felt that a similar story could be really well done with unbiased experts. It just wasn’t necessary to the story to involve them imo.

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lauren023's review against another edition

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mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

A disappointment. I was very excited for this book but it was tedious and I had predicted the outcome already within the first fifty pages. The characters spent a lot of time fighting which didn’t add anything to the plot and would have cut the book down by half.

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kolee_c's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

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juliacarlini's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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phil266's review against another edition

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dark mysterious relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Great book! Twists are insane. Liked the format of it being like a series of evidence. Fun read!

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minimicropup's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

The Energy: Accusatory, dogmatic, sensationalized

The Scene: 🇬🇧 Campden Hill neighbourhood and filming studio in London, UK

The POVs: The investigators cast by the true crime streaming docuseries, the producers and staff on the show, and the family and interviewees of people connected to the featured cold case.

🎬 Tale-Telling: No chapters, everything is presented as a screenplay/transcript of the show. It was structured almost like a movie or play, since each time someone spoke, we first got their name and any expressions or body language, as if directing an actor (even when they were filming and it wasn’t the edited episode). I enjoyed the more intimate peeks via email, texts, and articles.

👥 Characters: With this story-telling method I recommend a notebook nearby (not just for the clues). We are introduced to the investogators via their photo and CV/resumes, and that’s all we get to start. And no pictures for the producers, staff, or family, even as they appear on camera. It made those characters feel half-established. I didn’t get a sense for any of the characters because they all read the same, so I needed those headlines to know who was speaking and it affected the pacing for me.

🤓 Reader Role: Audience member Googling during the ad breaks. Since we are privy to non-Googleable insider evidence like text messages and emails, we usually have slightly more information than the cast or viewers.

🗺️ Ambiance: The book mimics a show, which I usually love, but it felt awkward and stilted for me. Title screens and occasional floor plans or autopsy reports (just listing what the investigators already said) were included but it made me more frustrated than if it had been excluded. The characters were discussing things I couldn't wait to see but we never get to!

🔥 Fuel: The mystery of who killed the stepfather drives the plot, introducing twists about suspects with each new clue and new theories. As the story unfolds, the investigator drama takes over.

🚙 Journey: Adjusting to the novel’s format took a moment, but once I got used to it and remembered who was who, it was an interesting story. I gave it my undivided attention, but it ended up feeling like I was watching a TV show with volume off, closed-captions on, on the worst internet connection. It started off feeling like a real Netflix or Discovery+ show, but by the end I felt like this show would have been cancelled if it wasn’t marketed properly.

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🐺 Growls: The screenplay format should have been a tail wag. But it failed in the visuals. The author teased us by discussing documents and images I really want to see but instead we literally got things like a basic map of Canada. It felt half-assed in terms of the documentation and photos that were prepared for readers.

🐕 Howls: I had one prediction for the killer early on and was correct. The reverse red herring strategy made it obvious, as well as the epistolary ‘hints’, and the melodramatic distraction about people connected to the case that felt contrived (though I didn’t predict that). During the story I was curious, but by the end I felt disappointed.

🐩 Tail Wags: The investigatory pace and finding clues police could miss was an engaging way to build a story without diluting the mystery with unnecessary details.

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Mood Reading Match-Up:

Metafiction true crime meets reality TV docuseries melodrama
Whodunnit cold case puzzle, sleuthing alongside investigators
Screenplay style writing where we are watching a TV show via novel
Light themes around secrets, true crime, family dynamics, money can’t buy happiness, ambition, and conceit

Content Heads-Up: Suicide (implied; off page). Murder. Violence (bludgeoning). Adult/minor relationship (recalled; off page). Theft (identity, money). Car accident (hit and run; brief recall, off page). Infidelity (recall, off page).

Rep: Heterosexual relationships. Black and White Brits and Americans. Cisgender.

👀 Format: Kindle

“Reviews are my musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶 refined by my AI bookworm bestie ✨”

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thebiblioboo's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I thought this was an unhinged ride and the format of the book was super interesting and engaging!! there's a lot of twists all throughout and just when you think you have it figured out, you don't. however, the ending was lacking for me so I docked a star.

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monarcadelibros's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

At first, I thought I'd really like this book and fly through it. While the story is fun, the formatting really distracted me and the arguments going in circles really prevented me from finding any motivation to finish.

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martinkid45419's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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