As a fan of murder mysteries and thrillers, I was excited to receive this ARC from Netgalley. It had it’s fair share of twists and turns that kept me interested, but all in all, I’ve read far more interesting books in the genre.

Why 3 stars:
- Love a dual timeline
- There were A LOT of characters who all had some relation or connection to Great Aunt Frances which was great for keeping me guessing but also hard to keep track of who everyone was
- It seemed like there would be some romantic subplots for Annie, but then they just kind of dissolved
- Once the mystery is solved and revealed, I felt a little underwhelmed
- The house setting reminded me a lot of the new Netflix show, Fool Me Once (which I know is based on a book but I haven’t read it) so it was easy to visualize
- Definitely doesn’t make me want to go visit a fortune teller anytime soon!

“All signs point toward your murder.”

Overall, it was a lighthearted murder mystery that I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of the genre! Thanks so much Netgalley and Penguin Group for this ARC!

If I could hug a book, this is it. Such a lovely low-stakes cozy British mystery. This is told from two perspectives although the one in the past is more diary entry than an abrupt time change so it flows very nicely. Essentially, Frances (in the past) is given a cryptic fortune predicting her death. Lo and behold, in the future she dies. Now her grandniece is tasked with figuring out who did it.

I loved the past diary entries from Frances. They're a little more lyrical being diary entries and, TBH, that's where all the good stuff is. I loved Frances as a character so it's bittersweet that her death is what sets off the whole story. The modern day characters aren't as fleshed out; they're pretty stereotypical "mystery novel" characters.

Is this story offering something new? No.

Is it a nice little story to while a way a few hours. Absolutely.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but I'm so happy to have gotten to read this!

Frances is dead. She leaves behind her fortune to whoever can solve her murder, but everything is not as it seems. Follow along as Annie unwraps decades-old mysteries and attempts to solve several mysteries along the way. Equal parts Agatha Christie and modern-day true crime addict, this quick-witted murder mystery is a fun 'whodunnit' from start to end with plenty of twists along the way. As an avid mystery reader, I highly recommend picking this one up for your summer reads!

I enjoyed reading through this and the interesting concept kept me super engaged. I enjoyed the stories of the past and the prsent. I tend to occasionally find past chapters boring. But this book kept me engaged from the begining to the end. The premise was so much fun! It has cozy mystery style book set in the 1960s and the present. The atomosphere of the village and the manor were great at putting images in my head. Ill be keeping an eye out for more from this author.

I didn't really love this one. I'm pretty skeptical of mystery/thrillers and I found this one to be slow paced. I think were seeds well-planted earlier in the book but the solution in general just didn't make sense in the grand scheme of the story, in my opinion.

I received this eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.

This is a fun mystery.

Interesting storyline! I love a good mystery and a good game/riddle so those were fun aspects to the story. I do feel like the book could have been more concise in some areas, and there were a few characters or plot points that didn't really seem to be answered or reach resolution. Perhaps another book is planned? (A couple of sentences in the last chapters lead me to wonder if that's the case.)

All in all an enjoyable story, 3-3.5 stars. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for a complimentary digital review copy of this title.

4.5 rounded up! This started a tab slow but really picked up and was so fun! Such an interesting premise and took so many fun twists and turns, but I didn’t find myself rolling my eyes at any of them like I do at some mysteries. Told in two POVs/timelines, every time I’d finish one section I’d find myself wanting more but still excited for the POV to come, I loved both! I’d definitely recommend this, especially to my friends who aren’t yet sold on cozy mysteries!

Simply put, I loved everything about this book! The story bounces between 2 time periods - 1960’s and present day. It is so wonderfully well written that the 2 stories meld together seamlessly.

I found myself consistently engaged in the life and happenings of Annie and her discoveries of her Great Aunt Frances. To me, that’s always a sign of a good book - keeping me engaged for the duration of the story. Ms. Perrin did a masterful job of creating a simple, yet complex story that had me guessing until the end. Thank you, Ms Perrin!

I can hardly wait to see what she brings us next.

What a fun read! Lots of twists and turns. The description said it was for fans of Knives Out and that definitely rang true. It was reminiscent without feeling like a carbon copy. Can't wait to have friends read it so that we can all discuss. Pick this one up!

A very interesting premise that sadly left a lot to be desired. Interesting cast of characters, however the story was not captivating so it made it hard to keep them all straight. Overall not a horrible read, but not the best.

A fun story though I am not a fan of jumping back and forth in time. I quite enjoyed Annie as a character. She's in her mid-20s and thought she'd have life figured out at this point but she sure doesn't. When visiting her (possibly somewhat flaky though we don't see her much in this book) mother, Annie sees some mail addressed to her. It's from her great aunt's lawyers. Though Annie's mother has, for decades, been thought to be her great aunt's presumptive heir, it seems that a last minute change is being made and Great Aunt Frances would like to see her and the other heirs to talk it through. So Annie travels to Castle Knoll, only to discover that her aunt has been killed and the person who solves the crime will inherit a fortune.
I didn't think this was fairly clued but the story was intriguing nonetheless. Lots of options for sequels: Annie's mother's history, Annie's father, her best friend, more about the Great Aunt's stepson.

Four stars
This book comes out March 26, 2024
Castle Knoll Files #1
ARC kindly provided by Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for an advance copy of this book to review.

This wasn't the book for me, and that's okay! I had a hard time maintaining interest and keeping track of the extensive list of characters. The idea behind this book is great, but the execution fell a bit flat for me.

3.5 stars rounded up.

I enjoyed this story and the way it was told through Annie’s present day POV and Frances’s POV with journal entries she wrote many years ago.

Strong Agatha Christie vibes with this one - small town setting, an inheritance up for grabs with strings attached, mysterious murder to solve.

I would’ve loved getting to know Frances more. I really enjoyed her journal entries, and thought she was incredibly clever.

I look forward to reading more in this series as future books are released.

Thank you @duttonbooks for sending me a @Netgalley widget to read an e-ARC of this book.

Agatha Christie would be very proud of this book. The author is most likely a devout fan of Christie because she has completely captured the mood and spirit of her mysteries, while also giving it a fresh feel. In this tale, Frances Adams receives a prediction from a fortune teller that she could have done without: one day she will be murdered, just lovely! She spends her entire life trying to prove the prediction correct, until finally she gets her wish! She’s been murdered and it’s up to her grand-niece Annie to ascertain who’s the killer.

This mystery is pure fun as it’s full of quirky characters, some likable, some not so likable. There are also two mysteries to solve as there is also the strange disappearance of Frances’ friend Emily, which occurred in the mid-sixties. There are plenty of red herrings and all sorts of twists and turns. This book should please most mystery lovers, especially readers who favor the golden age of British mysteries.

My only complaint is that there were too many characters to keep track of, but this is just a minor quibble. In no way does this detract from enjoying this delightful mystery.

I absolutely love a layered detective novel and this one didn’t disappoint! It had all the classic mystery elements, from the eccentric aunt to an evidence wall, a lot of suspects with good motives and even some hemlock. While the mystery is solved in the present, I absolutely loved the glimpses into the past and how well Perrin captured the vibe of the era. I also loved the extra layer of motivation that Perrin added to the story for solving the mystery.

Thank you Dutton Books for the ARC.

As a mystery fan, I constantly find myself wishing for books with both a human element and a really tricky puzzle. Modern mysteries frequently seem to focus on one or the other. Cozies love human connection, but their puzzles are often predictable, especially reading at a meta-level. And modern stories that focus on the crime solving often lose on the emotional elements of discovery. (Does Google obviate conversation? I'm not sure it needs to...)

There are a few modern mysteries that hit the sweet spot, however. Frequently, as they’re written by fellow traditional mystery lovers, they involve a manor house in the English countryside, often inherited. There’s your typical cast of English country village stereotypes, each as comforting and familiar as the next. And because of all the history tied up in English country houses, there’s often a parallel-tracked cold case. (This also allows reinforcement of the human element, as the protagonist must learn what happened in years prior, often orally.) There’s often a closed circle of characters and the mystery’s solution is as psychological as it is physical or logical.

You’d think after one or two of these stories, I might get bored - but they’re my literary comfort food. On my shelf right now, I have The Framed Women of Ardemore House (the autism one), Grave Expectations (the funny paranormal one), The Three Dahlias (the one with a mystery convention), and a series of Christmas mysteries. So, of course, when I saw How to Solve Your Own Murder, with an inherited country house and a parallel historical mystery, I had to try it out.

Well-trodden mystery paths…

The “it” factor of How to Solve Your Own Murder is the victim’s belief in a prophecy about her death. Wealthy Aunt Frances, having heard a fortune-teller prophesy an untimely end, has spent her whole life trying to avoid and/or document the murderous deed. When she dies, she bequeaths her estate to whoever solves the murder, with full access to her life's research.

So we have a murder mystery hunt with a manor house inheritance in the balance. It’s a tried-and-true formula, bringing to mind classics like The Westing Game alongside more modern mysteries like The Christmas Murder Game. Perhaps the truly unique factor here are the local research files Frances lets her contestants use, and the incentive she creates for the village to help them solve her murder. If neither of her putative legatees can solve the murder in a week AND before the police do, the entire estate gets sold to developers.

Still, the title sets up a hard bar to clear, especially given some of those prior comparators. In The Westing Game, for example, Sam Westing definitely sets up the puzzle and there’s no question of the solution. No judge is required, because there’s no uncertainty to be had. Sam Westing, too, know his contestants and had reasons to think they might be able to tackle a puzzle - unlike Aunt Frances, who basically just springs the requirement on her family as a surprise.

How to Solve Your Own Murder sets itself up for a bit of puzzle disappointment. While Perrin writes a perfectly serviceable puzzle, it’s hard not to feel a little let down when her legatees solve her murder, mostly using present-day info and a single diary. I won’t spoil the solution - but suffice it to say the files are less useful than one might want.

…in a person-first story

What about the community aspect of the story? In many ways, How to Solve Your Own Murder tries to have its cake and eat it too here. Our modern protagonist, Annie, is an outsider, so we get to watch her move into a small community and try to win the residents over. At the same time, she’s reading excerpts of Aunt Frances’s diary, getting the ultimate insider POV.

One traditional element that stuck out well was how the historical mystery forced Annie to take in more oral history and really learn about the principal characters. Watching Annie learn more about the villagers and their relationships with Frances was strangely comforting - because it required contextualizing the facts already filed away. Skipping the step of scandal discovery made the story more human, in a way similar to how Miss Marple’s educated guesses made it easier for her to focus on motives and character. (The time crunch factor probably supported this community element as well, as it forced villagers to cooperate more, and hide less.)

Another element I appreciated here was Perrin taking the time to really conclude the novel. The conclusion lasted multiple chapters, including both a solution and a character wrap-up. That wrap-up felt more satisfying because the process of investigation required opening so many tense threads. In that spirit of community and of new growth, it’s nice to see them all closed up before the final chapter. Unlike many modern mysteries, Annie’s felt like a complete story - and I’m not sure how much a new series entry would make sense today.

Reader’s notes and rating (⭐️⭐️⭐️✨)

This was a well-executed and solid traditional murder mystery. Reading it was like Chicken Soup for the Golden Age Mystery Lover’s soul. Not as new or innovative as some reviews seem to have mentioned - but a solid, serviceable mystery with an interesting historical twist. Three and a half stars.

Read this if...

You love a manor house murder

You appreciate the outsider's perspective

You enjoy stories where the past and the present connect

Skip this if...

You want something that breaks the mold

You're looking for the trickiest puzzle to solve

How to Solve Your Own Murder was published on March 26, 2024.

*This will meet "a plot similar to another book" for my 52 Book Club challenge this year - it made me want to re-read The Westing Game, so we will see that coming down the pipe!

This was a fun book that had an original concept. I really liked the two mysteries in different eras. I didn't really understand why everyone was obsessed with Frances though. I wish that was explained better.

I enjoyed this book for the most part - but I did find it dragging in some of the flashbacks to the past. Decent twists and solid writing. Would definitely check out other books by the author. Thanks to Net Galley for the advanced copy.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery. Well developed characters and easy to read. Similar to the style of Agatha Christie.