I had a great time reading this book!! I enjoyed the who-done-it type of mystery and the flashbacks through the journal. I don’t think we particularly need this to be a series, as the last chapter seemed to be setting up. I actually think I would’ve enjoyed it more without that last chapter. That said, it was the most enjoyable and engaging book I’ve read in a while

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin is about Annie Adams, an aspiring writer who is summoned by her Great Aunt Frances to finally meet. However the trip does not go as planned and Annie ends up in a race to solve her Great Aunt's murder. In the investigation Annie finds Frances' diary and we get to see what teenage Frances was like.
I really enjoyed this mystery. I liked the back and forth of the timelines to be able to get into her Great Aunt's head. To see what the people were like as teenagers that Annie is interacting with in the present was a cool concept. The twists in this novel could sometimes be confusing with so many characters but once I got everyone straight I just got that much more into the story.
Overall I liked this story and it had a good rhythm to it. I would recommend it to cozy mystery lovers.

In this book, an aspiring author faces the murder of her great aunt, whose death was predicted six decades prior. I enjoyed the pace and coziness of this mystery novel, the writing style, and the unique plot. I suspended a bit of disbelief with the legality of the case and methods, but that did not hinder my reading too much. There are two timelines, which was sometimes difficult to follow, but the characters and twists were fun for this type of whodunnit story.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for this advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Massive thanks to both NetGalley & PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for the ARC copy of this mystery that is out now!!

I absolutely enjoyed how well the author did with making you think that every character was guilty and the culprit. I also loved the dual timeline and thought it gave a great platform for Annie to be able to trace Frances' steps present day.
Another piece I really thpught was interesting were the diary entries - this gave a unique side to the story in my opinion.

I think overall this was definitely a fun and cozy mystery that you should check out!

Had such a fun time reading this book! Couldn’t put it down and thought the twists and turns along the way were super fun.

Annie lives with her artist mom at a home that's owned by her Great Aunt Frances, whom Annie has never met. But when Great Aunt Frances summons Annie and others, including her lawyer, to her estate for a meeting, they anticipate a change in Frances's will. What they don't expect is for Frances to be murdered, and for the fortune she received 60 years ago to apparently come true. Frances's will stipulates that Annie or the nephew, Saxon, must solve the murder before the local detective in order to be named her heir. Annie finds herself intrigued by the mystery - and all the gossipy files Frances kept on everybody - and starts investigating.

A fun mystery that is drawing some comparisons to "Knives Out", and certainly matches its quirkiness. How to Solve Your Own Murder is Perrin's adult debut, and does have a few issues to work out. I never really understood the point of having the fortune and whether it was real or a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy as Frances interpreted everything through its lens. The back and forth between Frances' diaries from her teenage years in the '60s and Annie's investigation made for good pacing, and the characters were all intriguing. We're kept a little bit in the dark of all that Annie figures out so the reveal is a bit Agatha Christie-like where everything comes together at once and the murderer confesses. A solid choice for fans of cozy mysteries set in small English towns.

It's 1965, and Frances Adams attends a country fair with her friends. She received a foreboding reading from a fortune teller predicting one day Frances will be murdered. Though her friends don't think she should, Frances believes this future will come to fruition. As a result of this (mis)fortune Frances spends the rest of her life trying to prevent her murder, or at the very least leave enough clues for it to be solved. This story is told through multiple time-lines, as Frances' great niece Annie is tasked with solving said murder in the present.

I thought the premise was interesting, and had potential to be great, but didn't totally meet expectations. As well, I found some of the time-line to be a bit hard to follow/keep track of. It was a solid cozy mystery, and one I mostly enjoyed. A 3.5 rounded up.

I will definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves a good murder mystery, and would be open to reading from Kristen Perrin again in the future.

Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton for the e-ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me an ARC of this book!

Rating 3.75 Stars

This book kind of had a similar riddled mystery to the inheritance games in my opinion, which I absolutely loved. Though the difference being this is more of a slow paced and cozy mystery versus action packed. Which is nice to have every once in a while honestly!

The premise of this book sounded like something that was right up my alley- a fortune that predicts murder that then comes to fruition, leaving a family member to solve the murder. Unfortunately, it just kind of fell flat. As you get to meet the characters and watch them interact with each other, the more forced and stilted it became. Outside of the character interactions, even the mystery aspect again fell flat. There were so many red herrings that ended up just leaving the story in a mess rather than intrigue.

Should you read this book?

Yes, if… you love a good whodunnit and a slowly unraveling thread you can keep tugging at
No, if… you don’t like riddles!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for honest review.

Someone else commented “Part Agatha Christie, part Colombo”man’s I couldn’t agree more! A fantastic cozy mystery. Frances visits a medium who tells her she will be murdered, that psychic reading comes true, and leaves her entire fortune to the person who can solve who did it. I love a dual timeline, and this delivers! Told in present time, as her great niece follows breadcrumbs trying to figure out the mystery behind the murder & past tense following Frances youth. It feels like a book within a book. A fun read.

Part Agatha Christie, part Columbo, this book tells the story of an old women who lives with a psychic reading that tells her murder. Then, that murder comes true and she leaves her fortune to the person who can solve it, hopefully her great neice. Told in dual timelines, we get to follow the current events as her great-niece follows the trail of crumbs to the real story of the death as well as the events from the youth of her great aunt. Not every character in this quaint English country village is who they pretend to be, and not every fact tells the story you expect it to. I love the modernization of this story format, even as the charm and vintage quality of the style is preserved. There are just enough red herrings and clues to lead the reader and the twists and turns were interesting. The human element of the story was woven through the clues in a skilled way and the journey to the end was delightful! How to Solve Your Own Murder was a delightful read and I enjoyed my time solving this crime.

Frances Adams visits a medium in 1965 who tells her she will be murdered. She spends the rest of her life trying to figure out who murdered her. In the present day, her body is found in her country mansion in Castle Knoll, and her great niece. Annie, has to figure out who murdered her in order to inherit Frances' fortune. A typical English cozy country murder case with the added fillip of being another book within a book. Annie finds Frances' journal and as she reads it, she begins to figure out who had the biggest motive to murder Frances. Not as good as I wanted it to be.

Loved this cozy mystery! It’s perfect for fans of Agatha Christie.

The mystery was done so well, I was guessing right up to the very end. I really enjoyed the characters in this book. They were each quirky in their own way. I especially loved Frances and Annie and can’t wait for the next installment of this series

The premise of the book is very original and intrigued me but unfortunately the writing didn't live up to the idea. The male characters need more development and the conversations are flat.

A mystery needs to move along quickly but this one dragged. I just couldn’t push my way through it.

The writing was fine but didn’t blow me away. The characters were fairly indistinguishable which made it hard to keep them straight. Since some of them appear in both timelines this made it a tougher read.

Not a terrible book but not engaging enough for a mystery and not good enough for me to go above 2 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Dutton for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This will be an unpopular opinion but I really didn’t like this book (and believe me I tried). I almost DNF it a couple of times cause it was confusing and slow.

It had such a good premise! I was so excited to read this meet Knives out and Clue kind of book and I felt it had the potential but the story kept me saying “wait, what?” (And then I had to go back and re read).

I liked the dual timing and I would had hoped this would had been more detailed. The present time MC didn’t really worked for me and I guess because I didn’t connect with made it more difficult for me to like this book.

This was a unique take on the inheritance trope. It's told through the MC's estranged aunt's journal entries, as well as her own modern day experiences. Unlike other cozy mysteries, the author did without a dog or cat companion. She did include a subtle love interest.

The relationship between the MC and her mom was believable, and the plot moved along nicely. The mystery could be solved by someone paying enough attention, but it isn't so obvious that the story isn't interesting to a more relaxed reader.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I purchased for my library.

"How to Solve Your Own Murder" by Kristen Perrin is a spellbinding tale that intertwines past and present in a captivating mystery. Set in 1965, Frances Adams receives a chilling prediction from a fortune-teller at an English country fair: she will be murdered. Determined to prevent this grim fate, Frances spends her life compiling information on everyone she meets, hoping to uncover her potential killer.

Decades later, Frances's great-niece, Annie Adams, is summoned to Frances's sprawling country estate in Castle Knoll. However, upon her arrival, Annie discovers that Frances has already been murdered. Driven by a desire to unravel the truth behind her aunt's death, Annie delves into Frances's past, uncovering a web of secrets and lies that implicates everyone in the village.

Perrin expertly crafts a narrative that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. The characters are richly drawn, with each villager harboring their own motives and secrets. As Annie gets closer to the truth, she realizes that her investigation may put her own life in danger, mirroring Frances's tragic fate.

Filled with suspense, intrigue, and unexpected twists, "How to Solve Your Own Murder" is a gripping mystery that will leave readers guessing until the final page. Perrin's masterful storytelling and atmospheric setting make this novel a must-read for fans of the genre.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for an advanced copy to review for my honest opinion.

A fun and clever mystery with a unique plot. The pacing was off at times, I wish it had stayed consistent. I found the characters interesting and had a hard time figuring out who was the potential murderer. I really liked the main character Annie and how she kept the police relatively in the loop. Overall, this was a good read with some fun twists. Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton for providing an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.