Brilliant book - one of the best dysfunctional families blended with murder/puzzles, I have ever read.

The sarcastic narrator, ability to trusty no one, and the crazy events combined to make this one of my favorite books of the year.

Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone is a propulsive who-done-it mystery, with shifting perspectives. I thought there were maybe a few too many characters, it was hard to keep track.

Ernie’s family gathers to celebrate his brother Michael’s release from prison but Michael show up with a coffin. More deaths, Michael’s arrested again., family secrets come out, and a classic gather-everyone-to-reveal-the-killer later, all is revealed. Ernie breaks the fourth wall throughout the story which, to the right reader will be an added bonus.

DNF at 35%

Although I found the synopsis and cover (which is gorgeous) intriguing, the story failed to fully connect with me. Even with a dead body and an unknown killer on the loose, it just felt like a wealth family of rich people behaving badly with no real plot. Sadly I needed to let this book go.

Thank you to Mariner Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

The title of this book really got me interested in it. Very clever whodunit.
Ern, short for Ernest, writes books advising people how to write mystery books. The author talks to you in the book as if you were there. You can’t help but chuckle when he talks about his weird family. There are a few murders to keep you wondering just what the heck is going on. There are several characters so you need to pay attention to who’s who. I found the book to be just what I was looking for. I will have to check out his previous books.
Thank you to #BookClubGirlEarlyReads and #NetGalley for my early ebook copy of this book.

The title of this book really drew me in, as others have said. However, I couldn’t get into it like I had hoped. I felt like the story line was confusing because it kept jumping back and forth from past to present, and there were so many characters that I was getting confused on who was who and whose perspective we were hearing from. There was a narrator but I wasn’t sure if it was his version of the story the whole time. I expected this to be more of a thriller and did not realize it was considered a humor book. That’s not something I would typically read and I should have paid more attention to that when I chose it. I just do not think I was the specific audience for this book. But I want to thank NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read it and I hope others enjoy it more than I did!

How-to author Ernie Cunningham narrates this *extremely* clever murder mystery that delves into deaths past and present at a tension-filled family reunion at a remote ski resort. that ends up in the middle of a murder investigation. I did not expect how this turned out!

The title alone was compelling enough for me to pick up this book. However, when I started reading it I realized it wasn't at all what I thought it would be. There's a lot going on but also nothing at all — even Ernest's asides and witty humor couldn't keep me intrigued long enough to read more than 2 chapters at a time. It really didn't get good until the last 3 chapters, but by then I was already lost and couldn't be redeemed.

A classic murder mystery with a twist. So much fun, tongue in cheek humor and quirkiness! The title lives up to its name, not a spoiler….the author tells you this I the first two sentences.

4.5 Stars. This was a delightfully fun mysterious romp involving family. The author's voice is clever and fun. He often breaks his narrator role with asides to the reader. The mystery and how it is solved is fun to see as he gives us glimpses into the clues he laid out all book. This book reminds me of the movie Knives Out. Family stuck in a remote location with some good, some bad, and some mysterious motives. With a title like that, the book had a lot to live up to and it succeeded fabulously! Highly recommend!

Ernie Cunningham does not pull any fast ones, he’s a straight shooter. Or well at least he tries to be. This twisted little murder mystery will make you laugh and keep you guessing despite Ern’s insistence that you are being told everything. Readers who like a light hearted tone to their stories will enjoy the puzzle of this one.

Benjamin Stevenson has written a witty, interesting, engaging, challenging story of murder, mayhem, family, chaos, relationships, communication and lack thereof. Come to think of it, I'm going to go read it again!

Th title alone got me interested in this book and it didn't disappoint. Very entertaining story about a family reunion at a ski resort,. Very clever plot as you find out who everyone has killed. The book is filled with humor, clever twists. Be sure to pick this one up.

Thank you NetGalley and Mariner Books for the copy of Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone.
I wish I had noticed that it was sorted under Humor and Satire before I requested it, so that's my fault. The writing was too precious for me and full of lengthy descriptions. Maybe the author thought it would sound like he was actually telling me a story in real life, but to me a lot of it was just rambling, with bizarre ‘asides’ that alluded to things from the book he wrote on how to write a book. I kept reading because the story was full of interesting characters, but I skimmed the paragraphs filled with descriptions. This was definitely a cozy mystery, not a thriller, so if that’s your genre, you would probably like it. For me, there wasn’t enough action until the very end, and that, along with the writing style made this book not for me. 3 stars because it was my fault I picked the wrong genre.

Everyone in the Cunningham family has killed someone, so it’s no surprise when they come together for a family reunion, the body count starts to go up.

EVERYONE IN MY FAMILY HAS KILLED SOMEONE by Benjamin Stevenson is clever, witty, and just a fun time!

It’s narrated by Ernest Cunningham (a writer of ‘how to write a mystery book’ books), and he is charming, trustworthy(?), and breaks the fourth wall with the absolute best banter! I was literally reading passages aloud to my partner because I thought they were so brilliant!

I rolled my eyes a bit when it came to the actual murders and the reasoning behind them (would have been five stars otherwise), but HIGHLY recommend you read this one (or listen!) when it hits shelves!

I’m already looking forward to anything else Stevenson writes in this style because it’s something I’ve realized I desperately need in my life!

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Mariner Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Publication Date: January 17, 2023

Thank you NetGalley, Mariner Books, and Benjamin Stevenson for the advanced copy of Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone in exchange for my honest review.

Naturally I had just finalized my 2022 Top 10 Books list right before starting this book, and now I need to re-evaluate because this book absolutely belongs on that list. (I'm counting it as 2022 even though it doesn't release in the US until 2023)

I was not expecting how *funny* this book was! The humor was perfectly sprinkled throughout, and the voice of our main character, Ernest, was so conversational that I flew through the pages. I definitely didn't see all the twists and turns coming, and I was completely satisfied with the ending.

This very much has the feel of a locked-room mystery, a touch of Knives Out, and a sprinkle of Sherlock Holmes. I cannot wait to see what this author comes up with next!

has that 4th wall self-referential humor that really gets me yk
the narrator really sold the book for me and the twists and turns kept me hooked
been so long since i read a mystery that just ENJOYED ITSELF!!!

This was a great escape of a book. I enjoyed both the style of writing and the story itself. Ernest was completely charming in his storytelling and I found myself wondering how things were going for him and his family, when I was away from my book. Thank you #Netgalley for sharing an advanced reader copy with me.

The title of this book first caught my eye, and from there, it was an intriguing read. There is a wide cast of characters, such that it takes a moment to keep everyone straight, and an intriguing premise - can it really be true that everyone in the narrator's family has killed someone?

The book is divided into sections based on each family member, and Ernest Cunningham, our narrator, provides the backstory. The family has been brought together for a sort of family reunion, awaiting the arrival of Michael, who was recently released from prison. A winter storm adds to the setting of the ski resort where the family has gathered, and the dead body found in the snow, the catalyst to start the story. Little clues are released in each section, and Ernest presents them in a sort of call back to the Ten Commandments of Detective Fiction. He plays with the reader in a humorous way, sharing when he plans to reveal the next clue or pointing out why something may be important.

This was a cleverly written novel with just enough mystery and humor to keep the reader engaged.

Thank you to Mariner Books for the opportunity to read and review.

This was a wild ride from start to finish, and part of that is because it isn't clear exactly what the story is going to be about until you're already invested. I went into this thinking it was going to be a kind of memoir of a fictional murderous family and their kills, and although it was a bit of that, all of those stories are fit within an overarching story of another set of murders at the ski resort the Cunningham's latest family reunion is at.

Stevenson points out and follows each of Ronald Knox's rules for a good "Golden Age" mystery, while also lightly satirizing the murder mystery genre, and telling a compelling family story all at once, while the major spoiler is the title of the book. It's a well-written, witty mystery that, although it could've been a little bit longer (maybe, maybe not), was fun and kept me on my toes the whole way through!