This is my third Janice Hallett novel and now I'm waiting for number four. I loved The Appeal, not so much The Twyford Code, but this new one is another five-star read. Once again, the novel is made up of emails, WhatsApp messages, texts, transcripts, and sections from 'novels' and 'play scripts'. Everything designed to keep the reader alert. Amanda Bailey is a writer of true crime fiction and for her latest book she is researching the Alperton Angels. This was a group - a cult - who eighteen years previously, under the leadership of Gabriel, who convinced two vulnerable teenagers that they were angels and that he and his followers were archangels. He also convinced them that their child was the antichrist and as such needed to be destroyed when the planets were aligned. The child and the teenagers survived, Gabriel was jailed for life and the followers died in a murder suicide. Now that the 'baby' is eighteen, Amanda plans to track it down and write about the events from his/her perspective. What follows are the emails to contacts as she tries to find the adult teenagers and the eighteen-year-old 'baby' and the responses she receives. We also have transcripts of recorded meetings and telephone conversations brilliantly written by her assistant, Ellie, whose little asides are brilliant. However, when Amanda finds that her nemesis, Oliver, is also planning to produce a similar book for a rival publisher, she finds that she is forced - by her own publisher - to work with him so that the two books can be complimentary rather than competing.
As a reader, you follow the clues and what we get is not just a story of the Alperton Angels, we also get a story of manipulation, deception and rivalry, and, there are also hints of the unexplained as well as lots of twists and turns. A brilliantly enjoyable read

A thrilling mystery that draws you in. Janice Hallett writes in such a way that you are immediately emersed in the story.

We follow Amanda and Oliver as they compete to uncover exactly what happened on the night of the apparent Alperton Angels suicide.

The book explores themes such as jeleousy, teen runaways, coercive control and murder/suicide with ease. It's also highlights the price that can be payed if you stop at nothing to reach a goal without heeding any warnings.

Definitely a must read!

I loved The Appeal and The Twyford Code and I couldn't wait to read Janice's latest novel. I was not disappointed! What an absolutely clever and addictive novel this is! I was hooked from the very start and again loved the very different format that the book was written in. Janice is certainly writing masterclasses in mystery-writing and I cannot wait to read more by her! A thrilling, multi-layered and hugely fascinating novel. Thank you so much to Viper for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this.

Another masterpiece by the incredible Janice Hallett!

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels takes Amanda and Oliver, journalists investigating a crime that happened years previously, and tells the story of their research.

Hallett has such a way of drawing you in to a story with many different strands that come together so neatly and perfectly at the conclusion. Even when sometimes I was thinking 'what on earth is this?' a few chapters later my mind would be blown as it was explained.

Brilliant. And I'm already excited for her next book!!

I should probably start this by saying I also loved the appeal and the twyford code but I really loved this one. It’s the story of Amanda Bailey who is writing a true crime novel and it’s written as a series of transcripts, pages from a book/ play, messages like her other books. All I can say without ruining it for you is that this book made me feel like a detective: picking up on all the little clues and trying to piece it all together!
Read through netgalley but would have purchased and I bought the last two of her books with my own money.

loved janice hallett's first book! didn't like the second! so i was going in to this very open minded, no idea what to expect. it took me a while to get into it! and keeping track of who was who but i really fell into it and read it quickly, wanting to know what happens next, and then the ending had me reevaluating everything and i loved it all

Once again Hallett has me hooked, I absolutely love her writing style and the way she develops her stories. I was gripped from the get go and it had me guessing throughout. So impressed!

Thank you NetGalley and Viper for the eARC, excited to read this early!

That was so gripping, loved it! 4.5 stars

I really enjoyed Janice Hallett's previous two books, and The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels is written in the same style: a combination of messages, emails and interview transcripts. Pieced together, they tell a very compelling story.

There are several mysteries in the book: the main one - the cold case of the Alperton Angels, which Amanda is investigating; the box with all her research printed out (who printed it and why); Amanda and Oliver's history. All of this made for a very gripping story, as it was all slowly revealed.

I thought it was great how Janice Hallett managed to make her characters so distinct although all we had to go on were messages and conversations. Very cleverly done.

Would be a full 5 star read, but there was one part that felt a little rushed, however it's too much of a spoiler to discuss. Might just be me being sceptical, though.

Overall, really enjoyed it - a little bit more than The Appeal or The Twyford Code. I think it's safe to say that I will read any future book by Janice Hallett, since I liked all three so far.

Janice Hallett has absolutely knocked it put of the park once again. As someone I can only describe as the Agatha Christie for millennials she has an absolute knack of keeping you on the edge of your seat all the way through. I devoured this book in less than 24 hours. A botched police investigation, a tenacious author, and a 20 year old cult. What more could anyone want in a story?

Janice thank you for reminding me of how much I love your storytelling. You are amazing and I can’t wait until this is published!!! As always thank you NetGalley for the ARC. Has to be my favourite read of the year (& possibly the last 30 years!)

Please keep your eyes open for this one guys. Publication date is 19th Jan 2023.

I found this book infuriatingly difficult to read, the WhatsApp/email/correspondence layout was hard to follow and impossible to get into the story line. It's a shame because the premise sounded good.

The mysterious case of the alperton angels with thanks to netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I finished this book almost a week ago and I am still thinking about it. This is my first Janice Hallett book and I really loved it. The mystery is told through WhatsApp messages and emails between the characters. I will admit this style of storytelling did take me a while to get used to but once I did I couldn't put the book down. It was really fresh spin on a suspense novel. I found myself googling to find out did this case actually happen. A journalist wants to write a book about a group of people who believed themselves to be angels where 4 bodies were found in a warehouse in the early 2000s. I urge everyone to pick up and read

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels will have you guessing from start to finish. The last 40% was amazing and I couldn't put it down. I love books with emails/texts/articles etc as its format.

Murder Mysteries are the go to genre for my students right now and after loving The Appeal and The Twyford Code, this is sure to be another smash hit for Janice Hallett.

I was absolutely blown away by 'The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels' - every time I thought I had a tiny grasp on what was happening, bam, the rug was pulled from under my feet and I was just as confused, all over again.

Janice Hallett's calling card is to tell amazing stories in a way that you almost dont realise you're being told; in The Appeal, it was through legal letters, emails and diary entries, in The Twyford Code, we read transcripts of taped conversations and excerpts from books - and now in TMCOTAA - we have a whole new type of evidence being presented to us, Whats App conversations, film scripts,, newspaper articles and more - each piece of the story adding more to what we know but always leaving us tantalisingly wanting more.

The story of the Alperton Angels is one of a strange end-of-days cult established in London, where the member' believe that a baby is the anti-Christ, and they have to kill it. But the teenage mother, Holly, escapes the cult with the baby and they disappear from the world's radar. 18 years later, the baby is soon to be an adult and the world's media is poised to find out more about what happened to them and their mother. The story is brought together by a crime writer, Amanda Bailey, who is investigating the Alperton baby for her new book, and the chapters are WhatsApp conversations, excerpts from books, phone conversations etc - there's no 'traditional' story telling in there.

I buddy-read this and was so glad I did, as we both spotted different clues or hints to how the story was going to unfold - and I would definitely read it again even knowing the ending, as it is so deftly written and composed. I am just aware that any review I write will not do it justice, I dont have the words to describe how brilliant it is. I have no idea what Janice will come up with next but I am pretty sure its going to blow my socks off again!

A bundle of documents consisting of transcripts of conversations, printouts of WhatsApp messages, copies of emails, pages from novels and extracts from a screen play outline a journalists investigation into the Alperton Angels. Eighteen years ago a young girl escaped a religious cult, the Alperton Angels. With her she had a baby the cult were going to sacrifice. While the incident sparked public interest and a number of books and TV programs little is known about the individuals involved. As journalist Amanda Bailey delves into the case she begins to discover a series of alarming discrepancies.

Fans of previous novels by Janice Hallett will have an idea of what to expect in The Mysterious Case Of The Alperton Angels. This time round we have a mystery story based on a wide variety of media, a kind of The Appeal and The Twyford Code combined. Once you get used to the style for each type of medium you fly through the story. You have a sense of being an accomplice trying to solve the mystery and that keeps the pace moving.

There are a lot of characters to keep track of, the main ones being journalists Amanda Bailey and Oliver Menzies. Forced to collaborate we slowly discover that they work in a cut-throat business and that they have history. We don't actually find out much about their previous encounters until late in the story, this then causes a few of the pieces in the puzzle to fit together.

As the investigation unfolds we come across lots of conflicting information. This could be a result of faulty memories since the events happened 18 years ago. There's even questions raised about the actual date of the events. Or is there something more sinister happening? Is there a conspiracy? As people close to the case suddenly begin to die you do wonder if there is some kind of cover-up, or is it "other worldly"?

Manipulation is a big theme throughout. The ring leader of the cult was able to manipulate people to do what he wants and even though he's in prison he's still able to exert that same power over some people. We also discover that Amanda uses manipulation regularly to get what she wants. This also results in some tactless comments which are very funny.

There are so many twists and turns along the way your head is spinning by the end. I honestly don't know how Janice Hallett manages to keep track of the various plots as she's writing. All the threads are tied up neatly at the end, at which point you want to go right back to the beginning and start double checking everything you've read.

I have read the other two books by this author. It is an entirely unique way of writing a book but somehow it works. This was probably my favourite of the three, it was an intruiging mystery that kept you hooked. I liked the cult theme and the themes of the paranormal. All in all a good read.

Absolutely loved this one. Janice Hallett continues to write books in such a unique way that just pulls you in. This compelling story about murders years ago and our heroine trying to track down the baby from that time takes many twists and turns. Red herrings abound before it finally reaches a surprising conclusion. Would read the next book in a heartbeat.

Simply superb

I love Janice, have done since I read The Appeal.

Her writing style is brilliantly unique and Alperton Angels delivers a cracking story.

Mysterious, are there other worldly thing at play or are there more logical explanations?

Told through emails and whatsapp messages, we again are made into detectives, trying to decipher just what is happening and what has occurred in previous events.

I'll be honest, I couldn't work it out.

The plot, flawless.

And the ending left me with my mouth wide open.

If you haven't read once of Hallett's books yet, then you can't go wrong with this novel!

Amanda Bailey, best selling true crime author is searching for inspiration for her next novels when her agent points her to the 2003 case of the Alperton Angels. This is a small cult led by ‘Gabriel’ who convinces a young couple their baby is the Anti-Christ. The group hits the headlines and remains there after four people end up dead with the teenage couple surviving as does the baby. The whereabouts of these three becoming a mystery that people have obsessed about ever since and as the baby is about to turn eighteen there is renewed interest in the finding them. Amanda is now on the case using all her ingenuity and contacts to find the elusive ‘baby’. Sadly for her, so is Oliver Menzies, a rival in more ways than one and with whom Amanda has history. Unfortunately for her, she is forced to collaborate. Can the pair find the truth? It’s harder than they could ever imagine as weird anomalies and discrepancies occur, there are numerous smokescreens, blind alleys and red herrings with the truth being beyond their wildest dreams.

As usual, the author uses a mixture of media to tell the startling and dramatic story such as email, WhatsApp, book extracts, transcripts and so on. I enjoy this form of storytelling and what is so clever is that you get a strong sense of the characters. There’s mega competition between Amanda and Oliver, Amanda proves to be a bloodhound, exhaustive in her investigative skills, combined with a bit of Rottweiler but when the need arises she can be more of a golden retriever. Oliver becomes very gullible and gets utterly sucked in by some very bizarre ideas. I love the banter between Amanda and her assistant Ellie who adds plenty of humour. Whenever Ellie appears you know there’s going to be fun!

I think this novel takes a little while to get going but that’s because this is Janice Hallett’s most ambitious novel to date. It’s quite a convoluted plot but she skilfully makes it an easy one to follow. The case is strange if not weird and you get plenty of eye poppers along the route to the truth. The plot becomes thicker if not murkier, extremely mysterious and at times a bit woo-woo via angels and demons and so on. I find myself on the edge of my seat as the conspiracy deepens becoming infinitely more dangerous with so many things not adding up. It gets increasingly dramatic and startling with some of the discoveries with an ending that is maybe unsurprisingly given what we learn though I love the ultimate dilemma!

Overall, a clever novel which I thoroughly enjoy. What a great cover too.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Serpent’s Tail/Viper/ Profile Books for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Does a new series of holiday reads about high profile criminal cases with a new focus sound intriguing? Author Amanda Bailey certainly thinks so, and having been given the opportunity to write about the Alperton Angels, a cult whose  crimes gripped the nation almost twenty years earlier, is keen to look into the mystery which has always surrounding it.

As a true-crime writer Amanda knows how to conduct an investigation, has contacts in all the right places, and confidence in her own abilities, but nothing that has gone before can prepare her for what she finds herself involved in as new facts are revealed. When another author admits he is also writing about the Angels, from a similar angle, the competition is immediately fierce, especially as they have a less than amicable history. Will they be able to fulfil their brief or will the secrets they are both sure remain be more than they can handle?

Wow, what a book! Janice Hallett writes original novels in a way that makes you read another page, and another page over and over. This time it also entices readers with a synopsis which starts:

'Open the safe deposit box. Inside you will find research material for a true crime book. You must read the documents, then make a decision. Will you destroy them? Or will you take them to the police?'

If this was real life I like to think I would do the right thing but having completed this book I can't be sure! I thoroughly enjoyed the storyline and was invested from the start. The gradual reveal of what happened was brilliantly handled and although the reader moves through the different strands of the investigation alongside Amanda the discoveries and eventual conclusion were totally unexpected and nothing like I thought would happen.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. As a huge fan of crime novels this was an original and compelling read which is very easy to award 5 stars and recommend unreservedly.