Hardcover, 371 pages
English language
Published Nov. 29, 2023 by HarperCollins Publishers.
This was a fun read that didn't take itself too seriously, written in a style that's a departure from the norm and allows the book to stand out as a result.
Another reviewer says that the journey is better than the destination. I'd agree, and the journey was good enough that I'll forgive it that.
There's at least one other book in the series, and whether or not I want to read it too is the real test for me. I do, and I will.
This was fun and funny but was very very self-conscious the whole time.
There is so much going on.
A whodunit mystery novel. A tale about family. A big loving pastiche of both of those. A novel about the rules of good mystery novels. A meta tale outside the tale of the authorās perception of their story. A lotta fourth wall breaking. Mini stories of how each family member kills someone.
This author is swinging for the parking lot! These bites are a bit big for them to chew though. The breezy tone and the constant chatter to the reader kept me from loving anyone enough to fear or care.
I thought of The Unworthy - i finished it recently. It was shorter but only had a few elements - itās a brutal story told through hidden diary entries. And you care. Augustina Bazterrica gives you a focus to care ā¦
This was fun and funny but was very very self-conscious the whole time.
There is so much going on.
A whodunit mystery novel. A tale about family. A big loving pastiche of both of those. A novel about the rules of good mystery novels. A meta tale outside the tale of the authorās perception of their story. A lotta fourth wall breaking. Mini stories of how each family member kills someone.
This author is swinging for the parking lot! These bites are a bit big for them to chew though. The breezy tone and the constant chatter to the reader kept me from loving anyone enough to fear or care.
I thought of The Unworthy - i finished it recently. It was shorter but only had a few elements - itās a brutal story told through hidden diary entries. And you care. Augustina Bazterrica gives you a focus to care about and leaves you wondering.
This is fun! But so scattered that itās easy to breeze past the truly awful elements and not feel them.
A very clever, silly, book that is more about family than murder. I still canāt figure out who died on page 250 though (actually I think after a few days Iāve figured it out. The person doing it wasnāt speaking at the time though)
There's a solid mystery underlying this novel, and as the title betrays, it also indulges in a meta-narrative that is delivered by the narrator of the story. The mystery/thriller that is the core of this book would work really well on its own with plenty of twists, turns, revelations, and clues sprinkled in so that the savvy can start to put together the picture, and yet it adds in more with interesting narrative choices, such as telling you near the beginning what chapters people die in and acknowledging the novel as an already completed, written work. There was a good deal more going on in this story than I had expected at the start, and by the end, I was really enjoying it.
I listened to the audiobook, and the 4th wall was broken a lot throughout and I'm not sure if that happens in the book as well because the breaking was all referencing listening to the audiobook. This is fully presented as an active telling of the story by the "author" Ernest. I really enjoyed this presentation of the story!
I kept putting this one off because of the hype, and I'm a little sad that I did, because I found this to be such a fun read! The comedic timing, the dry and dark humor, just everything was chef's kiss. I don't even know what else to say about it, I absolutely loved it and will be getting a copy to keep on my shelf.
Read it!
It was a good mystery. The journey was better than the destination.
I enjoyed the meta elements and the author abided by the rules from the Golden Age as promised. I guessed the whodunnit pretty early, but couldnāt figure the why at all, or the other big reveal about them. Itās probably all there, woven in throughout the narrative, but honestly, Iām not here for picking apart clues from detailed accounts of fictional characters. This book taught me that while I do enjoy a good whodunnit, I much prefer the cozy subgenre just for all of the coziness, with a bit of mystery solving tacked on.
The motives for why the whodunnit did it felt pretty flat to me, probably the biggest disappointment. It would have cost more stars had I not been so entertained throughout to just let the payoff fizzle like that. I guess itās probably harder to ā¦
It was a good mystery. The journey was better than the destination.
I enjoyed the meta elements and the author abided by the rules from the Golden Age as promised. I guessed the whodunnit pretty early, but couldnāt figure the why at all, or the other big reveal about them. Itās probably all there, woven in throughout the narrative, but honestly, Iām not here for picking apart clues from detailed accounts of fictional characters. This book taught me that while I do enjoy a good whodunnit, I much prefer the cozy subgenre just for all of the coziness, with a bit of mystery solving tacked on.
The motives for why the whodunnit did it felt pretty flat to me, probably the biggest disappointment. It would have cost more stars had I not been so entertained throughout to just let the payoff fizzle like that. I guess itās probably harder to thread the needle of playing fair and having a compelling motive, but honestly any of the other suspects would have a more satisfying motive, but misdirection and all. Basically the writing was too good up to and beyond the payoff, such a scathing take, I know.
Solid listening experience on libro.fm and the narration by Barton Welch was well paced and immersive.
