I had the opportunity to read an ARC copy on NetGalley. This was a thoroughly enjoyable fall read, a cozy mystery that felt like a game of Clue. The plot twists are well executed and the dual timeline plays out revealing clues at the right speed to keep me hooked.
Francis Adams has lived her life trying to avoid her fate and decipher a cryptic fortune that foretells her murder. A fortune she receives the same year one of her best friends goes missing.
Annie Adams is an aspiring writer who finds herself called to solve her great aunt Frances' murder after receiving a mysterious summons to discuss changes to her aunt's will.
There's a mansion filled with clues, characters with hidden ties and motivations, family ties to unravel, cryptic threats, and an old diary. Overall, it was a cozy and atmospheric murder mystery that I'd recommend giving a shot!

Oh my goodness I loved this book! What a perfect way to begin October & spooky season. This book 100% gave Knives Out vibes and that exactly what I was looking for. I was STRESSED trying to figure out who the killer was. Well safe to say I was very wrong. If you like easy to follow murder mystery it’s definitely one to read!

Frances visits a fortune teller where she’s told a riddle that says she’ll be murdered. After years of paranoia, a friend disappearing, she becomes obsessed with figuring out who will kill her, and solving the disappearance of her friend. When Frances ends up dead it’s up to her family members to solve her murder.
Who will Anna trust??? I surely didn’t know 😅

Thank you so much NetGalley and Dutton for the ARC of this book!

I loved this book. Definitely had me on my toes from start to finish. This book is not like any other murder/mystery I have read. Highly recommend!!

thanks to netgallery & penguin group for the free earc in exchange for a fair and honest review!

most of the time, when I read mysteries, I'm a little thrown off by lack of motive. every time a suspect is evaluated by the protagonist in this book, she thought about whether the motive was big enough to warrant murder - something weirdly under-explored in mystery novels. of the little details the author paid attention to in this book, this was one that i appreciated a lot, as it made the novel feel more realistic and palatable. of the mystery books i've read this year, this is probably one of my favorites. the only thing holding it back from 5 stars is not enough character development - although it's pretty good even in that department. honestly i'm really harsh with mysteries, but this is genuinely a good one. annie is one of the best protagonists i've read in a long time, because she's smart and doesn't make the stupid mistakes most protagonists in mystery novels make, which i really appreciated. make sure to pick up this book when it's out.

Great read. I really enjoyed it. Its not fast paced, but you'll enjoy the ride.

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

“ But daughters are the key to justice, find the right one and keep her close. all signs point toward your murder”
Up-and-coming mystery author Annie Adams finds herself thrust into a murder mystery straight out of one of her books. When her reclusive great Aunt Francis unexpectedly invites her to her countryside manor in order to discuss her estate, Francis is found dead.
Told in dual timelines of present-day Annie trying to solve her great aunt's sudden death by using past diary entries and a mysterious fortune that predicted her death. Will Annie decode the mystery in time to catch the killer?

This book unfortunately fell a bit flat for me. It was pitched as being similar to Knives Out which initially intrigued me. I do see similarities and I can see why it was compared, the matriarch/ patriarch of a wealthy family unexpectedly dies, and familial chaos ensues. Where they start to differ, is many of these characters felt very one-dimensional and bland. To me, there was no real differentiation in the tone, and it was hard to root for anyone. The mystery felt a bit frantic and rushed, the pacing was a bit off. However, I did enjoy the speculative aspect of the story involving the fortune. I wish they played that up a bit more. I personally thought the past diary entries of Francis were more interesting than present-day Annie.

I would recommend this to people who want a slower-paced fun cozy mystery during these upcoming fall months. If you enjoy BBC shows like Midsomer Murders this may be for you.

Rating: 3⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for providing me with this book for review.

Three and a half stars overall, rounded up because I do believe the ending brought together almost everything very well.

The plot itself was a bit of a roller-coaster ride for me, where as a reader I went through sections feeling like it was all too implausible for the story to sustain itself followed by sections where I found myself more engaged and willing to suspend my disbelief. I believe that, in the end, most of the parts I had found illogical were somehow explained in an acceptable way. Without giving anything away, however, one back-and-forth aspect I found entirely frustrating was the fortune-teller's prediction: it was at times crucial to the entire story and taken with complete seriousness, yet at other times it was almost like an irrelevant red-herring. I ended the book not entirely sure how the main character, Annie, really felt about it and not entirely understanding why the murder victim (Frances) was so driven by it.

There seems to be a bit of a set-up for more books with these characters, although I'm not certain this was intended. I'm not certain I'd go back and read any more books about these characters - but I might. I do think this author shows a lot of promise and I'd expect her next book to be a good one. Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for review.

I loved this book! It’s not often lately that a book grabs my attention from the start and this kept me glued. A mystery that bounces between timelines and I loved them both equally.

When Annie stumbles into solving her great-aunt’s murder, she’s on a deadline, and being threatened as well. There are numerous suspects but it kept me guessing to the very end.

This book is truly clever and I loved to see the plot unfold and then follow the unraveling of the mystery. The author is truly gifted at creating and solving her own puzzles.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a mystery this fun and I’d be on board for this to turn into a series. I also have been playing out the movie version in my head, would love to see it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for letting me read this ARC.

What a great book. I would describe this as a cozy mystery and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to reach this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Kept me second guessing the details when looking for foreshadowment! I wanted to know what was going to happen by guessing it but was still surprised!

This book was gifted to me by the publishers through NetGallery.

when frances visits a fortune teller, she is told that is she going to be murdered. sixty years later, it happens, and her niece must solve the case.

sadly, i didn't care about any of the characters. they were so underdeveloped and dry. the mystery was solved far too easily and i just did not care. at all.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This Agatha Christie-ish whodunnit (British village, mysterious great aunt, fortunes!) had me hooked from the start. Who doesn't have a crazy relative (like Annie's mother OR Great Aunt, so many to choose from)? I'm a fan of British Mystery shows and Midsomer would be proud of this one. I'll be sure this joins our library's collection and I will talk it up to other mystery-lovers.
Thanks for the opportunity.

Really enjoyed this book, beginning with the cover! The premise drew me in--the murder victim, Frances Adams, learned 60 years ago that she would be murdered and spent the rest of her life trying to solve a crime that hadn't yet happened. Once it does, the victim's great niece, Annie, takes up the quest to find out who was responsible.

How to Solve Your Own Murder takes place in a small English village and could properly be described as a cozy mystery, with a lot of humor and wonderful character development. I'm really hoping we see Annie in future adventures! I also really enjoyed the flashbacks into Frances' life and how the murder prediction really warped all of her relationships in her community.

A fresh take on the genre, and I am definitely looking forward to more from this author!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a light story about a woman who visits a fortune teller as a teenager, where her murder is predicted. Sixty years later it happens after she becomes a very wealthy eccentric. Her niece who never met her is tasked with solving the murder, involving a varied cast of characters.

Annie lives with her Artist mother in London. She was recently made redundant at her job so she is taking some time off to try to become a murder mystery writer. Imagine her surprise when she receives a summons from her great aunt Frances, whom she has never met, to come to the English countryside to discuss her inheritance. Annie appears for the meeting when she and the other potential heirs receive quite a shock. Now they are in a race against time to uncover the answer to a real mystery or risk being disinherited….or perhaps worse?

The whole time I was reading this book I was thinking, “is this YA? It reads like it’s YA.” And in the Afterword I discovered that it either is YA or began its life that way. So, if it’s YA, it’s pretty good. If it’s not YA it’s far too juvenile for an adult mystery. Annie takes far too many crazy risks and the bad guy is a bit too obvious. But for a YA romp it’s a bit of fun and the shifts back in time are the most enjoyable pats of the book. Recommended.

What a fabulous read.

Very Knives Out meets Agatha Christie. I'm generally not a fan of "locked room" style mysteries, but this was very well done.

The dual time-lines were very interesting, though I did have a little trouble keeping characters straight with grandfather/father/son lines woven through both.

Annie is a delightful character as is Frances. Lots of secrets and twists everywhere. It was a little hard keeping track of all of the secrets, but that's more of a compliment than complaint.

There's very little graphic description of violence, it steers away from what's become cliché romance arcs, and there's zero sex or foul language (I personally have no issue with foul language, but I know many do).

Very well done. I'd give this a 4.5 stars. There were some parts where I felt the story was dragged out unnecessarily and maybe there could be a little less secrets to keep track of, but overall it was a wonderful story.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book!

hank you Netgalley for sending me the ARC of this book.

I went in to this book with high hopes. The premise was interesting and something I’ve never heard of before- a psychic predicting your own murder and then spending the rest of your life trying to solve it before it actually happens? That was the big sell for me in choosing to read it. The great premise and decent writing had me in the beginning, but things slowly dropped off from there, unfortunately.

The pacing on the book was the biggest issue for me- it seemed to take too long to get to any clues, and the flashbacks didn’t help with the story much either. They were too long with too little information.

I also think some of the dialogue was a little forced, and making our female MC alternate between fainting and solving pieces of the murder with seemingly no rhyme or rhythm was a little strange.

Overall, it was ok, but it could have packed a bit more punch.

I really loved this book a lot.

I really liked the way the authors chose to do the dual POV with the present viewpoint of the present character with looking into the past through journal entries.

It was a little bit of Knives Out and Agatha Christie all wrapped into one. A great little whodunit and I was really sad when it was over. I enjoyed all the characters, even the ones that weren’t all that likable (on purpose).

It never got boring and it really kept me reading. There are some mystery books that get slow in certain parts and it’s hard to pick them back up, but I looked forward to reading this one! It kept me guessing until the end and I usually, sadly, figure most of these mystery books out before I’m even halfway these days. Kristen wrote this so cleverly! It really kept me engaged.

Something else I really appreciated was there were no scenes that were irrelevant, no romances, no curse words…everything stayed in line with the plot and there were not distractions.

I enjoyed the way the characters were written and how the author gave us enough clues to follow along with Annie to try and solve the case.

The only complaint I had was connecting all the family and friends and how they were interconnected. It was a little confusing to me for a while. I eventually caught on, but it took a bit.

It was a really fun read and I look forward to future books written by Kristen Perrin!

thank you to negalley and penguin group for this beautiful arc!! it was such an honor to be granted this masterpeice as my first ever arc aaaaaaaaa <3


final rating: 4 stars!
it's the 1960's, and teenage frances adams has just received a chilling fortune:
"your future contains dry bones. your slow demise begins right when you hold the queen in the palm of one hand. beware the bird, for it will betray you. and from that, there's no coming back. but daughters are the key to justice, find the right one and keep her close. all signs point toward your murder."

and from that moment on, frances becomes obsessed with solving her murder. but alas, she isn't able to catch her killer before she meets her untimely death, and now, 60 years later, her great-niece annie must rise up to take frances's reins. will she be able to solve the mystery of her great aunt's death before the killer comes after her, too?

how to solve your own murder was a delightful surprise - once i started reading it, i simply could not get through it fast enough. it had a grip on me early on; never once was it boring. in fact, i found myself skimming through the pages sometimes just so i could figure out the mystery quicker. i rather enjoyed annie's character, but honestly? i was much more interested in frances and her story. sorry not sorry.

the characters were all written beautifully, and the pacing was perfect in my opinion. the writing was a bit too simple, however it made it all the more enjoyable to read. also, the plot was a little bit predictable on my end... but that might not be the case for everyone! and guys, don't get me started on the setting!!!!! i am such a sucker for castles like 😭😭 it was perfect.

so yeah! this was a really good mystery!! definitely deserves 4 stars, watch out for this book in march 2024! you won't be disappointed. 👀

While the murder mystery plot seemed solid, I just couldn't care about the characters enough to finish the book. I found the characters shallowly developed and unengaging.