I am sorry it was a DNF for me. The formatting wasn’t working for me. I couldn’t get interested. I tried. I do feel like others will love it. It wasn’t for me though.

One of the most unique true crime books I've ever read, because of the format! Written like a script for a true crime documentary, complete with pictures, forensics files, texts, maps, and more create a completely immersive experience as you try to solve the murder along with everyone else in the story. The only con I had with the book, is that there was A LOT of information and a lot of characters, and some of the facts can get washed out with the format the way it is. It can be quite confusing if you don't pay attention to the details. Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and hope it paves the way for more unique format written books!

This book was a major miss for me. I was super intrigued by the format - it’s written as a Netflix series so you’re reading the screen notes and discussions and interviews. That would be fine but I just didn’t think this would make a good show. A group of people sitting around talking about and trying to solve a cold case - it would be like if the Serial podcast recorded all there behind the scenes discussions instead of the finished episodes. It just wasn’t interesting for me. The story line also got really convoluted and the pace never really picked up. And the ending made no sense to me

This book is an interesting read with a lot of twists and turns. A group of experts from various fields has been assembled to look into an unsolved 20-year-old murder case. The stepson of the victim was the driving force behind getting the filmmakers interested. He was only 10 years old at the time of the murder and was the only one at home when his stepfather was murdered out in the garden of the luxurious London home. While the police followed various leads over the years, the killer was never identified, and the case has gone cold. The events in the story presented in an unusual fashion. The events being investigated by the team are revealed as the TV show is being recorded and shown on TV. As each episode is filmed or shown, the scenes are described as if we are also viewing the episodes. After each episode (most of which end on a "big reveal"), we are shown a TV critic's reactions to the previous episode in a newspaper column. Then there are online discussions that are taking place in fan forums devoted to the show. There are also email and text exchanges between various characters.

I really liked the way the events were presented in this fast-paced format. All of the twists and false leads got a bit confusing after a while. There were elements of some other famous books and cases thrown in that were a nice homage. While I liked the format, it was a bit difficult to read everything in an e-book. The forum posts were in a very light font that was almost illegible (and I wasn't able to enlarge the page at all to see it better). I'm not sure why the font was so pale. All of the reveals would have made for a good TV show, I'm sure, but they all became a bit too over the top. There was also a lot of, "This person is the killer! We've solved it" followed by "No, they couldn't have done it." Then, "This person is the killer!"" and so on until the final "This person is the killer!" which wasn't refuted (although I'm sure it could have been as all the others were, but I suppose the book had gone on long enough by that point). How the victim ended up where he was really wasn't explained very well and all of the reveals which turned out to not lead much of anywhere were frustrating. I did have to keep reading to find out who the killer was, but it wasn't entirely a satisfactory ending in my opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the eARC! I was ecstatic to receive this arc and couldn’t wait to read an epistolary style thriller. The concept was ambitious and I enjoyed the style choice of using the transcripts from the fictionalized reality show. Unfortunately, at times I became frustrated as it seemed like more & more information was added and nothing was building upon itself. While there were some minor clues in the beginning it seemed like a lot of filler until the final chapter where the reveal was made. I appreciated the twists and thought the concept was clever, but I didn’t enjoy the ending. It wasn’t satisfying and felt abrupt and undeservedly tragic.

what a unique premise. At first I was concerned that the experts looking back on a 20 year old case would not be fully developed and I would have trouble distinguishing each one. Was I wrong! Each expert had a distinctive voice and expertise. The cliffhangers fit the motivations of the characters because they were so well depicted. I loved this book and want to read everything by Cara Hunter.

This is SO fun because of the unique format. The idea of the book is amazing, but I found myself confused because of all the characters for most of the book. I throughly enjoyed it though!

Unless your fully awake and invested in starting a book, do not start this one. The amount of info thrown at you in the first couple chapters, if you aren’t paying attention, will confuse you for days. Trust me, I was a wee bit tired when I started this and had to restart a couple times to get my people and their jobs straight 🤦🏼‍♀️. (I wrote this immediately after starting and restarting). Fast forward to my thoguhts after finishing 👇🏻.

Alright, the amount of people introduced never reduces. There are so many characters and points of view in this book, if you’re listening it’s a bit hard to follow. However, there are multiple narrators so that helps a bit. This was a unique point of view in a book. This is basically a screen play of a true crime series being recorded. There are descriptions of the scenes happening, if you have the physical book, there are graphs/maps/charts.

There were twists throughout the whole novel, I didn’t think what happened would happen! I enjoyed the unique writing of a screenplay and felt like I was in the room with them filming. Overall, this novel kept me guessing to the final 2%.

I had a very hard time getting into this book, and it's mainly because of how it was written. It was so difficult to read it as a script of a TV show. I could not connect with any characters on any level because I was so focused on the reading of the story.

I'm obsessed with cold cases and this psychological thriller sucked me right in. Told through transcripts, texts, articles and other elements from the investigation, it's like a podcast or true-crime show in book form and felt so real. It's twisty and entertaining and will keep you on your toes until the very end.

Thanks to William Morrow for the copy to review.

Murder in the Family presents a gripping premise of a cold case murder, a fictional true crime series, and a family haunted by secrets. The story hooks readers with the promise of a shocking thriller and the possibility of uncovering the truth surrounding Luke Ryder's unsolved murder.

The concept of a sensational Netflix series dedicated to investigating and potentially solving a famous cold case adds an intriguing layer to the narrative. The anticipation of re-examining testimony, re-interviewing witnesses, and delving into the evidence keeps readers engaged, wondering if justice will finally be served.

The dynamics within the family, particularly the conflicting testimonies of Guy Howard's mother and his two half-sisters, contribute to the overall suspense of the story. The inclusion of media attention and a high-profile police investigation adds a sense of urgency.

However, since this is a synopsis, it is difficult to gauge the execution of the story or the depth of character development. A successful thriller often relies on well-rounded and relatable characters to generate empathy and investment from readers. Strong character development can enhance the impact of the twists and revelations that this type of story often relies on.

If you are a fan of true crime narratives, the blending of a fictional true crime series with a cold case investigation may pique your interest. The concept of uncovering long-held secrets and the emotional impact it may have on the involved family creates an enticing premise for a thriller.

Overall, Murder in the Family promises to be an engaging and suspenseful story, intertwining the worlds of crime, media, and a family desperate for answers. Whether it lives up to its potential depends on the execution of the plot and the development of its characters!

I love true crime podcasts so this book was right up my alley. It was well written and I loved the visual effects.
Many thanks to William Morrow and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

In a case that gripped the nation, Luke Ryder was found murdered in his garden. The murder has not been solved, but the case was too big to forget. Will the murder be solved, or will someone else be killed?

Six episodes. One Killer
Who killed Luke Ryder?

To be honest, when I first started reading this book, I thought it was going to be a DNF. The format was very different from any novel I have ever read. It was tricky to read it on my e-reader, but once I changed over to my iPad, it was a go! Stay with it and you will have a tremendous ride with this thriller.

The synopsis of this book is that it is a 6 episode thriller on Netflix, involving a 20-year-old cold case. Who killed Luke Ryder? Well, that depends on where you are in the novel. There is a cast of characters involved in trying to solve this case. They have varied backgrounds (detectives, psychologist, journalist, and a lawyer). This cast is to look at the evidence from 20 years ago. This allows them to follow leads that they discover along the way.
There is much finger-pointing, accusations, lying, withholding information, and deceitfulness among the production team and the so-called experts trying to solve this case.
The narrative consists of emails, interviews, newspaper articles, maps and some photographs. The book reads like a script of a play, so it ends up going quickly. There are numerous twists and turns throughout the book, concluding with one big one at the end.
This was my first time reading anything by this author. I would definitely try another.
Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, this was great. I loved the format, which was different than anything I’ve read before. It’s well organized and easy to follow. I did have to read on my iPad because their were some text that was to small to read on my kindle. I loved that there was so much information given by different people. How the twists kept coming and how they were so surprising each time. This book had me reading non stop for two days. My favorite type of book to read. It’s hard to say more without giving anything away. Def one of my favorite books of the year.

When I first started reading this book I found the format rather distracting. It reads like a play, with additional materials such as newspaper clippings, forum posts, etc. However, as the story started unfolding and getting more and more interesting, I realized that it actually was the perfect way to present the story. In fact, it actually added to the enjoyment of following the twists and turns (of which there were many). There are quite a few characters to keep track of, but each has a contribution to solving what happened to Luke Ryder, whose murder years earlier is the subject of the story. It's a good, entertaining whodunit.

The format of the book made it difficult to follow and choppy. I didn’t feel the characters were well developed or relatable. The premise of the story was solid but the reality TV setup left lots to be desired.

Murder in the Family’s unique storytelling format captured my attention. Press releases, emails, articles, interviews, text messages, profiles, online forums, transcripts, and more

The premise: the making of a Netflix true crime documentary that examines a 2003 unsolved murder in West London.

This was a unique murder mystery. The format and some surprise discoveries held my interest. I definitely would not want to read all of my fiction in this format, though, and I’m ready for some first person narrative next.

“True crime reality TV” with some friction between the investigative team

Personal stories coming to light that raise question—does true crime go too far?

The format is interesting but a deep connection to the characters is lacking.

If you’d like to read in print a fictional true crime documentary, pick this one up. I’d say audio could be fun since so much interviewing and transcripts, but some of the other documents would be nice to see in print. So maybe a mix of both? I read on Kindle and some of the docs were hard to see and it would have been nice to read those parts on a print copy. I would not recommend ebook for that reason.

This review is posted on Instagram @beginandendwithbooks and on Goodreads Michelle Beginandendwithbooks

I was so impressed with this book. This is the first time I read book that includes specific details and pictures. The writer Cara Hunter did an amazing job at keeping me engaged, trying to guess who the victim and the killer was. I have no bad feedbacks about this book. This book is simply one of the best criminal case I have solved. I recommend it if you like mystery, thriller, and of course criminal cases.

Murder in the Family is my first time reading Cara Hunter and it just so happens that this is her first standalone as well! If her series is anything like this book, I can already tell I will love them, and not only was the pacing on point, but the whodunnit was completely shocking as well. I really enjoyed the format and while it won't be for everyone, it was definitely for me, and it really shines on audio. This really does read like true crime, and if I didn't know any better, I would have thought it was based on a true murder. I loved the Netflix series element, and they just took that to the max by using a full cast on audio and adding extra elements you won’t see from reading the book. The book itself is so unique, and I loved the use of mixed media and the way that it was written like the show, with not only broadcast details but filming as well. There is also everything from emails to diagrams, and this added so much interest to the story for me.

The audiobook has Lisa Armytage, Olivia Dowd, Rupert Farley, James Goode & Colin Mace as narrators, and even though there are 5 of them, this still doesn’t cover the number of different viewpoints and different aspects of the storyline. Somehow though, they mixed these 5 up so much (and clearly there is talent involved as well) that it felt like I was listening to an even larger cast! Murder in the Family has twists and turns as it goes along, and the format helped to keep the pacing very quick for me. I did say the whodunnit was shocking, but of course, I know there will be readers who won’t be shocked, and I am just happy I was one of them. This made me an instant fan of Hunter between both the writing and the uniqueness, and I will be here for anything she writes from now on.