The Mystery Writer, by Sulari Gentill, is a clever cozy mystery by this masterful writer. In this new novel the protagonist is, again, an aspiring writer—Theodosia Benton—who quits law school in Australia and joins her lawyer brother Gus in Lawrence, Kansas, USA. She’s hoping to finish her novel, and looking for the encouragement of her beloved brother.
Theo becomes involved with a writer at a local cafe, who also is involved in some secret underground society. A murder occurs, and Theo plunges into solving the case with Gus and his friend Mac assisting.
There is a lot going on here in the storyline, with side plots involving the actions of a quasi-legitimate publishing house and the antics of doomsday preppers in the Midwest. The locale rings true, as I’ve been in Lawrence and visited the university there.
Despite the uneven plotting, the characters drive this story. Theo and Gus are attractive characters, and exhibit a warm sibling dynamic. They engage in clever repartee, like real adult siblings, and are warmly supportive of each other.
I appreciate the intelligent prose in this novel, and warmly recommend it to readers who enjoy a little fun amongst the characters and an intriguing mystery to unravel!

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press/Sourcebooks and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

Interesting read, when Theo Benton leaves school to pursue a career as a writer, she ends up going to her brother, Gus. Gus is worried about the trust that she will lose if she quits school. Theo goes to this little cafe called Benders as it is also a bar to work on her unfinished novel and this is where it starts to get interesting when she meets Dan Murdoch and she ends up falling down the rabbit hole so to speak.

When there is a murder, Gus and Theo are in deep.

This is a whirlwind of a story one that has several layers that leaves you on the edge of your seat anxiously awaiting to find out what's next.

I highly recommend this read to those that love a good mystery.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

As a whole, this book took me for a ride - but I'm not sure I enjoyed ALL of the twists and turns. I struggled to connect to our main character, Theodosia Benton, and in turn found myself less invested in the risks that were presented to her throughout the story. I was more invested in her brother, Gus, who seemed even more fleshed out...perhaps intentionally? Theo's relationships seemed very surface level, I was left grasping for an understanding of her connection with many of the people in the book, Dan Murdoch and Mac, mostly. But with so much "suspense" riding on the back of Theodosia, and my lack of emphasis on fight or flight for our main character, the story fell a bit flat. I'll contradict that with the following statement: the myriad of layers weaved into the plot lends to its fast paced nature that kept me turning the page. I then continually kept asking myself if the layers were well written, or if they were too convenient and led to cop outs? Overall, I think I would say the complexity of layers was to the book's benefit. I love how the book touches on social issues of our current reality - corruption and conspiracy as my top two standouts. The reader's guide at the end was also nice to see. This story makes you think. I can't say that my read of this was life-changing, but it was a good time and I think would lend itself well to people who write.

Perhaps this was just…not the book for me. I’m sure others will love it, and there are some 5 star ratings, but I struggled to connect to it and it honestly felt like a chore to read at times.

It was difficult for me to connect to Theo, and I felt like she was incredibly oblivious and naive for someone who was being educated to be a lawyer. I also feel like the “preppers” side stories and overall theme was superfluous; it felt like the author was trying to accomplish too much, and it resulted in a disjointed and crowded feel. I did, however, love Mac, Jac, and Horse.

The books started out slow, had better pacing and more mystery in the second third, then the final third of the book became unbelievable and rushed. Overall I think the story could have been shorter and cleaned up a bit. I do give the author credit for the intricacies of the ideas; it was a good premise, just fell flat on delivery (at least for me).

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (2.75 rounded up)

Thank you Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When Theo decides to leave Australia and join her brother Gus in Kansas, she plans to write fiction, not become embroiled in a life that feels like a thriller novel. Nonetheless, she is caught in the middle of seemingly random murders, unwanted publicity, and extreme danger to herself and her loved ones. This thriller is full of twists and turns and edge of your seat moments, and it is quite engrossing (I finished it in a day). The various topics addressed (writing, murder investigation, publishing, “preppers”) work well together in the story Gentill has developed. The pacing, however, is off for me. Time seems irrelevant in the first third of the book, then the second third seems to be just a few days, then suddenly we are in the midst of weeks, months, and then years passing anywhere from a few pages to just a paragraph. This odd pacing made me feel more disconnected to the outcome of the story. It almost felt like the author ran out of time, and I was reading the outline instead of the story at the end. I don’t regret finishing the book, but given this issue and that I’d figured out the ultimate twist very early, it was a disappointing conclusion (resulting in 4 instead of 5 stars for me).

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press, Netgalley, and the author for early access to this unique work.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately this really didn’t work for me, which was a bummer. I really enjoyed her first book, but I couldn’t get into this. I ended up DNFing after a few chapters because the writing style didn’t hook me. Maybe I’ll someday pick this back up, but for now, it’s not working.

*3.5 Stars On My Instagram Account*

"Becoming a writer is one thing, staying one is entirely another beast."

"Poets are apparently excellent assassins."

In the often make your head spin The Mystery Writer, by truly intriguing mystery author Sulari Gentill, it often felt like two different mysteries that converge at the end.

I really enjoyed the set up of this murder mystery. Theodosia (Theo) Benton is a 22 year old law school drop out who, rather than go home to her parents in Tasmania, heads to Lawrence, Kansas to hide out with her older brother, and successful lawyer, Gus and his faithful dog, Horse. She decides to pursue her dream of being a writer.

Writing at a local cafe she meets a known older author who becomes her mentor then lover. She finds him brutally murdered in his home and is a suspect. Gus and his firm's P.I., Mac, are trying to help her but when two more murders connected to the author occur, not only is Theo arrested, so are Gus and Mac.

Somewhere in the middle of all this killing, conspiracy theorists believe the dead author was killed because of the "truths" he knew and Theo becomes public enemy number one. I have to give credit to voice actress Katherine Littrell for balancing Theo's anxiety and naivety as her world implodes and she believes the only way to save Gus and Mac is to "die."

Though I knew from the start who was responsible for the murders, I enjoyed the journey. I appreciate the themes of how misuse of social media, false narratives, and outrageous conspiracies can lead to destroyed lives. That theme just became a bit overwhelming and rushed near the end. Money and power can corrupt but it may be the (mystery) writers with a conscience that saves us from ourselves.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Sulari Gentili cannot write anything boring or uninteresting in my book and this novel confirmed my idea. It's twisty, gripping and it brings you into a rabbit hole where mystery, conspiracies, and red herring mixes.
It's a page turner you cannot put down and it will keep you reading till late.
I miss her historical mysteries but this one is excellent
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Many thanks to NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and Dreamscape Media for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest book by Sulari Gentill, with the audiobook narrated by Katherine Littrell - 4 stars!

Theo has dropped out of college, determined to be a writer instead of an attorney as was the planned path for her. She shows up on the doorstep of her brother, Gus, hoping that he will support her. She begins writing in a cafe and meets a famous author. They slowly begin a relationship but then she finds him brutally murdered right after signing on with a prestigious agency. And now she is considered a suspect - until they start looking at Gus. Enter Mac, Gus' friend and a private investigator, who comes from a family of conspiracy theorists.

There's a lot to unpack in this book! There is mixed media in the form of message boards between the theorists, which I always enjoy, but had me confused in the beginning. The author has once again created an intriguing storyline, even though there were times I was yelling at Theo to open her eyes! Kept me on my toes until the end.

The mystery writer : This was a slow burn for me and by the end I realized I wasn’t attached to any of the characters. The plot seems too far-fetched to be believed, and, again, led to more characters to dislike. I tried really hard to enjoy it, yet I found myself just wanting it to end.

The Mystery Writer did not captivate me as the previous book, The Woman in the Library, did. I struggled to connect with this one. I am putting this book aside for now because I don't want to force it. Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

From the first line to the thrilling, wonderfully intelligent conclusion, Sulari Gentile's THE MYSTERY WRITER grabbed me by the throat with wonderful writing, fully believable characters, and twists and turns I never saw coming. Take one aspiring writer, a beloved brother and his own complications and ambitions, a dead mentor, and the plot takes on a life of its own harrowing, chilling, and nail-biting suspense. With every book, Gentill work acquires a depth and heft of MUST READ territory. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

{4.75/5}

CW: violence, gore, references to assault

Read as an ARC via NetGalley. “The Mystery Writer” releases March 19, 2024!

Ooooh buddy, this is a trippy one. How do we feel about conspiracy theories, folks?

After bailing on a law program in her homeland of Australia, Theodosia Benton arrives on her brother Gus’ doorstep in America to start her career as a writer. Just as Theo puts the finishing touches on her first book, though, she’s launched into the midst of a murder investigation. As evidence mounts and Theo’s life becomes increasingly complicated, unseen forces continue to send her spiraling into further turmoil.

I’ve been in desperate need of a really good read, and I’m happy to report that this particular book has delivered just that. Where do I even start? How about…..

Plot! We’ve got murder, we’ve got an aspiring author, we’ve got a fiercely loyal found-family situation, and we’ve got an ever-increasingly insane level of conspiracy theories providing a marvelous backdrop to all of it. I don’t even know how to fully explain what happens because so. Much. Happens. Also, we don’t do spoilers. There are just so many twists and turns to this story. Just when you think you know where something’s going, you’re wrong. Despite this, I never felt like I’d gotten lost or confused while trying to keep up with the moving parts. Even Theo’s increasingly frazzled state of mind made a lot of sense as I was reading, and I rarely found her to act foolishly, which is especially nice considering the actions of some particularly wreckless heroines. The only time I felt like the story dragged was around the 65-ish% mark, and that’s because the story itself starts to take a lot longer. It made sense for what was happening and what the characters were going through, so I didn’t actually mind.

I’m going to combine the characters and the writing into one section here, because I feel you can’t really discuss one without the other. The story is written in the 3rd person past tense, which I adore. It means we get to jump around to different parts of the action without the limit of being stuck inside that character’s head; we get to see more pieces of the puzzle because our POV isn’t limited. Even though we’re essentially ‘locked out’ of those innermost thoughts, though, it never felt like the characters’ actions didn’t make sense for who they were. Their personalities were conveyed so thoroughly that we could see what they were going through even without having that ‘front row seat’ you’d get with 1st person. That skill also conveys the actual story with a delightfully creepy, tension-filled finesse that leaves you spiraling alongside Theo’s life.

This was a read that had me hooked from the first chapter. It was marvelously twisty, and the sense of dread and unease just kept building the whole way through. Scattered throughout were moments of humor and ordinary life to break the stress without derailing the action, and the depictions of writing and the joy of building a story were wonderful. The conclusion felt satisfactory and reasonable without feeling too predictable, and the absolutely insane amounts of layers all end up working together to leave you feeling just a little bit out of sorts at the end. If you like psychological thrillers that utilize just the right amount of conspiracy theory styled delusions, this is definitely the book for you.

This was one of those books for me that sounded compelling and fascinating in the blurb but just didn’t quite resonate. I was all in for the conspiracy aspect but it is very complex and convoluted, and I didn’t realize doomsday preppers would be such a big part of it also.

Theo is initially endearing but she seems naïve, gullible and totally without any self-preservation instincts and has to rely on her brother and his friend to keep rescuing her.

Parts of the book were as compelling and fascinating as I expected from the blurb, but the jumps in time made it feel like something was missing and the ending was not quite definitive enough for me.

After saying all that, I am sure this book will garner a large audience, especially those who have read the author’s previous works; perhaps this is a one-off.

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for providing an advanced copy of The Mystery Writer via READ NOW. I voluntary leave this review; all opinions are my own.

The Mystery Writer is the second book I have read by Sulari Gentill. I read The Woman in the Library last year and really enjoyed it, so I was looking forward to her newest book. It did not disappoint!

The Mystery Writer was nothing like what I expected. The main character, Theodosia Benton, aka Theo, is an aspiring writer. Theo meets a famous author and they strike up a friendship that quickly becomes more. After the famous writer is killed, Theo is heartbroken and determined to find out why he was murdered.

The first half of the book was a slow burn. Keep in mind that this is a literary thriller, so if you enjoy jaw-dropping plot twists and lots of action, this may not be the book for you. However, I appreciated the build up to the moment when all the pieces connected. The mystery was intriguing and the character development was done well. Theo is a great main character, who I rooted for throughout the book. Her relationship with her brother Gus was realistic. I appreciated how much they both looked out for each other.

*Thank you to NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and the author for the free eBook ARC!

I know I should probably be thinking more about this being a timely commentary on conspiracy theories, social media, corporate PR, true crime junkies, & crazy fans…
But what I most want to say about this book is that I didn’t want to put it down. When I did put it down, I kept thinking about it. I spent a lot of time trying to puzzle things out, & figure out who was good & who was suspect. Who is the character in the prologue?
I felt invested in the lead characters quickly, & really hoped none of them were involved in the shady business. I felt frustrated for them as the mess got messier. Theo, Gus, & Mac have all experienced non traditional upbringings. They seem like they are just trying to get on with “normal” lives, when things go way off the rails.
I like the author’s style of writing, POV changes, & pace of the suspense. I honestly appreciated the jumps in time, knowing all too often that events happen much faster than normal in many books. Great twists & turns! Happy I was able to read an advance copy via NetGalley.

Theo Benton travels from her home country, Australia, to the United States, where she shows up unannounced on the doorstep of her brother, Gus, a local attorney. Both Theo and Gus have been gifted trust funds to attend law school, but Theo does not feel an affinity for the law and has decided to pursue her dream of being a novelist. As Theo settles into a writer’s life, people around her start turning up dead. Theo does not seem like a murder suspect, but all clues point to her.

The premise was interesting, but for me this story fell flat. Theo’s character who initially seemed smart and modern, played out very much like a damsel in distress, which became tiresome. The plot itself was convoluted, and in the entire middle of the book not much happened to propel the story forward.

I enjoyed the side characters, Gus and Mac, but their primary role to protect Theo, became tiresome as well. The publishing world plays a role in this story as does conspiracy theories. The structure of the novel which abruptly shifted through different timelines and different worlds left me scratching my head more than once.

This book didn’t work for me, but it might work for you. Give The Mystery Writer a try if you like murder mysteries, novels set within the publishing world, themes of conspiracy theories, sibling relationships, and coming of age stories.

Thank you to NetGally and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC of The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fun twisty mystery. I can’t say I have read something like this before. So that was a pleasant surprise. And who doesn’t love a good sleuth once in a while. GRATEFUL TO Sulari Gentill, Poisoned Pen Press, and Netgalley for the arc!

This was a mystery that had strong themes of family and the publishing world. I was drawn to the book about Theo changing career direction and pursuing being a writer. I loved the quirky families in the story and how you are bonded even with those you might not agree. The issue for me was that I did not care about the character that died. I was intrigued to figure out who killed him and who was after Theo. It just seemed like a long time to get to that part of the story. Some of the character development was really well done and others felt too surface.

I thank NetGalley for this Arc.

In real life, conspiracy theories make little sense to most people. However, put those theories within the pages of a fictional thriller whose readers are willing to suspend disbelief, and you can wind up with a highly entertaining novel. Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code” blended several real-life conspiracy theories together to make a best seller that became a popular film with Tom Hanks. But what happens when authors don’t just write bizarre conspiracy thrillers but become involved with actual conspiracy theorists? That’s one premise behind Sulari Gentill’s ambitious and entertaining recent novel, “The Mystery Writer.” Eventually, the writer loses touch with her material in an abrupt third-act style change, but a dazzling final reveal of the ultimate villain redeems the book.

The protagonist of “The Mystery Writer” is Theo Benton, an Australian college student and a would-be writer. She drops out of law school and moves to Lawrence, KS, to stay with her older brother, Gus, a partner at a local law firm. As Theo spends time at a bar where other writers also spend their time (Lawrence is the home of the University of Kansas), she befriends a considerably older, successful author, Dan Murdoch. Dan is a bit of a legend in the local writing community and elsewhere for his several best sellers. Dan becomes somewhat of a mentor to Theo and encourages her to finish her novel. They also become considerably friendlier. That romance abruptly ends when Theo finds Dan’s murdered body in his home. What’s not in his house is his latest manuscript, which has mysteriously disappeared. Two other murders follow, with Theo and her brother heading the short list of suspects. As almost always happens in novels like “The Mystery Writer,” the local police are entirely clueless. And, as almost always also happens in stories like this, Theo plays an amateur detective to find Dan’s killer.

Of course, there’s more to the story, as readers know (but Theo doesn’t) from the book’s first page. Dan was involved with an online conspiracy group that believed a secret government cabal was responsible for something known as the Frankenstein Project. (I’ll leave it to you to guess what that project entailed.) Several chapters of “The Mystery Writer” discuss the activities of some of the group members, including posts from their online forum. Some of them guess Dan’s involvement and at least one of them lives right there in Lawrence. Theo soon realizes several suspicious characters are following her and occasionally threatening her. One of these suspicious characters becomes Victim #2 in the book. But are these suspicious characters Dan’s overzealous grieving fans, members of the conspiracy group, or something else? That’s what Theo, Gus, and Mac, an investigator in Gus’s law firm, have to figure out as they become suspects, targets, and detectives.

The first part of the book moves at a somewhat deliberate pace. From the time Dan dies through the subsequent two murders, readers follow Theo through her day-to-day investigations. She is a likable character, albeit considerably naïve. I got a genuine feeling for the drive and uncertainties that authors feel through the prism of Theo’s emotions and worries. The book strains credulity at times, even for thrillers, with the sheer number of people descending upon Lawrence in the wake of Dan’s death. But, overall, I went along with it and especially enjoyed a twist halfway through the book when the author revealed the identity of one of the conspiracy group members.

Unfortunately, about two-thirds of the way through, the book has a significant point-of-view and time shift. Instead of following Theo, the book shifts to the perspective of several characters, sometimes switching points of view several times in a single chapter. It sometimes becomes confusing to keep track of passing time and precisely what happened to whom. This material feels more like it was written by an aspiring writer like Theo rather than an accomplished author like Sulari Gentill.

Eventually, however, the author brings everything together. The mystery here isn’t so much who committed the murders, but rather what group was responsible. Besides the Frankenstein Project devotees, the author provides several other possible “suspects.” The most unusual is the commune (which may or may not have been a cult), where Theo and Gus were raised in their native Tasmania. The author only devotes one chapter to exploring the siblings’ youth, but I would gladly have read a lot more.

Most readers will guess some revelations that occur late in the book, but the exact nature and identity of the big bad was an audacious concept. I’ve probably read hundreds of thrillers over the years with many outlandish villains, but I can’t recall anything like this. The ending perfectly fits a murder mystery steeped in conspiracy groups and theories.

After an excellent beginning, “The Mystery Writer” needed tighter editing in the second half. The book was confusing where it didn’t intend or need to be. However, the author pulls it back together in the last few chapters. Theo, Gus, and Mac are entertaining protagonists, and some supporting characters are suitably kooky. And as is fitting for a book entitled “The Mystery Writer,” the writing process, as exemplified in Dan’s and Theo’s works, is an integral part of the story. “The Mystery Writer” isn’t a classical whodunit, but I can guarantee readers will never forget who actually dunit.

NOTE: The publisher graciously provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley. However, the decision to review the book and the contents of this review are entirely my own.