Lenny Marks reminded me a little of Sheldon from Big Bang Theory and it was super cute. I enjoyed the concept of trauma induced amnesia. The verbal and mental abuse Lenny endured in her childhood were so vividly described. I love that Lenny came out as the winner and slightly healed in the end.

Lenny Marks is a primary school teacher who sticks to a set routine. She eats the same meals on the same days each week. She rarely goes into public except to grocery shop or to go to work. Her evenings are spent watching Friends and playing Scrabble against Monica (herself). Her only interaction with others is work, Ned McKnight at the grocery store, and the man who delivers her Thai food. She finds her life perfectly acceptable and is happy to never deviate. However, a letter addressed to her using her old name is sent to her school and she finds her routine life suddenly deviating into unknown discomfort.

I really didn’t know what to expect from this going into it, but I certainly didn’t think it would be this. It was great to see Lenny slowly start to go outside her comfort zone, while still maintaining a sense of who she is. I was really rooting for her to be able to see all the good people she had in her life, but once her past was revealed, it was understandable why she would want to keep herself closed off from others.
I wanted to smack the mean girls, Amy and Ashleigh pretty much anytime they appeared on the page. I wish there was a more satisfying conclusion to that side plot.

This story deals with some very devastating and upsetting subject-matter, but I still I found this to be another story that I didn’t want to put down. The relationship develops between herself and Ned, herself and Malcom, herself and Maureen, and herself and Kirra were all so sweet. There was so much understanding and patience from everyone. They allowed her to come into the relationships at her own pace and comfort.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone. It is difficult to read, at times, but certainly worth it.

Just the title was interesting enough to grab my attention and the book itself reminded me of Eleanor Oliphant. Lenny is a unique and lives a very structured life, trying to deal with past trauma. It was interesting to see how much she grew from the beginning of the book to the end.

Thank you Bantam Australia for publishing this debut novel, and Sally Hepworth, for telling this first time author, Kerryn Mayne, to go for it!! I loved the unraveling of the story of Lenny Marks. Lenny has built a very structured life for herself after a tumultuous childhood and the loss of her family. Fortunately, she landed with good foster parents, Fay and Robert, and they are loving and nurturing, but Lenny has a hard time letting people into the private life she leads as an adult. She considers Monica, from the sitcom, Friends, her best friend, and prefers her solitude. Lenny is a teacher and uses the school address as her own going to great lengths to maintain her privacy. When she gets a letter from the parole board letting her know her stepfather is to be released, her whole world begins to unravel to the point where she finally takes a hard look at the tragedies of her past, and finds she has been surrounded by her people all along. It's a beautifully told story I devoured in a couple of days, and Lenny will be with me for a long time.

This book was so fun! It was pretty similar to Eleanor Oliphant but in all the best ways. I think I enjoyed this novel a little bit more. It was very obvious from the start that there was previous trauma. I can see that being hard for some people to read but I really enjoyed it. I'd definitely look at the content warning before you read.

I really enjoyed this book, although some parts were hard to read. It reminded me so much of Elinor Oliphant. I could tell early on we were dealing with some sort of past trauma. Lenny's life is too scheduled and controlled, but I wasn't really getting an "on the spectrum" vibe. Lenny's perfectly ordered life starts to come unraveled when she receives a letter having to do with some traumatic event in the past, which is a triggering event for her. While there is a murder in the book, this is not a murder mystery in the true sense. The overriding themes are confronting your past, coming to terms with it so you can live in the present, and forgiving yourself. This was a fun read in parts, and serious in others, but definitely worth taking the time to read it. Thanks Net Galley for this ARC opportunity!

Lenny Marks, a misunderstood girl with a haunted past. The author developed Lenny's character so well. I found that I wanted to feel bad for her but was also touched by how she viewed and processed life around her. I loved the inner strength she found and the connections she made along the way. The end gave me closure but I would be excited to read a second book that continues on where this one ended.

This book is a debut novel for Kerryn Mayne. I was drawn to this book by the cover and the title. The book was a little different than I had thought it would be from reading the synopsis but in a good way. I enjoyed getting to know Lenny Marks and the other characters in this book. Kerryn takes a serious problem and gives it a new twist with the added bonus of a humorous nature. I really loved the ending of this book as I thought it would end a few chapters before it does. Those extra few chapters made the book for me, in helping me see just how Lenny was able to move on and improve her life. I hope to see more of Lenny and her friends in the future.
Thank you to Netgalley, Kerryn Mayne, and Penguin ebooks for the ARC.

Lenny Marks gets away with murder is an interesting story of a woman with a unique personality and past. This keeps you in suspense and makes it hard to out down.

Wonderful story that touches on every human emotion. Lenny Marks is a well developed lovable person who you will stick with you long after finishing this book.

I enjoyed every bit of this book. Highly recommend to anyone who just wants a good, warm and smart story.

This is a debut book for Kerryn Mayne and I cannot wait to read what else the author creates.


Thank you NetGalley for this e-book in exchange for an honest opinion.

Lenny Marks Gets Away with Murder is not what I expected, it was better. Lenny is unique and very structured in her daily life due to past trauma. I did not see the twists that kept coming and found myself reading it on my phone when I had a few minutes, it's that good. This is only January but it might be one of my top books of 2024. Kerryn Mayne is an author to follow.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my review copy of this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️FIVE STARS for LENNY MARKS GETS AWAY WITH MURDER

This was truly a beautiful debut. I like fast-paced thrillers and while this wasn’t that, it was a great story with an unforgettable heroine. She had a need for order, and for things to be just so. I felt that so much. I felt such a pull to Lenny and I think a lot of readers will. This was very character driven with a mysterious plot that unfolded slowly throughout the book.

This book addressed childhood trauma, abuse, and facing your past so you can move on. What was in Lenny’s past was both heartbreaking and shocking. This is a story that deserves to be read.

I will absolutely be reading more from this author!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Lenny Marks reminded me a bit of Eleanor Oliphant at the very beginning of this debut novel… I should have known there was something darker brewing by the title. Lenny is suffering from PTSD from traumatic events involving her stepfather, mother and younger brother. The way that Kerryn Mayne gradually unfolds the events kept me up late reading. I worried Lenny might not be ok, especially when her stepfather is released from prison. thank you @netgalley for the ARC.

I was immensely excited to get approved to read Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder. The cover and title drew me in, and the synopsis sounded like something I would love to read. I was right, I did love it.

Lenny Marks is heartbreakingly endearing. Endearingly heartbreaking? Either way, she was such an incredibly written character. I adore her "quirks", and loved her character development. Her support system is comprised of some very well-written, lovely characters that I truly felt grateful for Lenny to have them in her life.

I'll say this though, the cover lead me to think this would be a cozy murder mystery, and while it has the staples of a cozy, it also was a lot darker than I was expecting. I won't give a full CW list, as to avoid spoilers, but it's largely involving intense spousal and child abuse throughout the book. This wouldn't have stopped me from reading this book, but would've helped with my expectations.

All in all, I throughly enjoyed Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder, and would absolutely recommend it to fellow mystery lovers.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the e-ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Oh, Lenny. I just love her. Kind of reminds me of Eleanor Olyphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman, another favorite. I was so moved by Lenny’s tale. Had me in tears more than once. To be so broken yet strong enough to survive her past, with the help from new friends. Just love this book!

I may need a book where Lenny Marks and Eleanor Oliphant form a friendship. :) Really great characters and a fun plot made for a heartwarming and fast read.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195790841

“Lenny Marks seldom found herself unprepared.”

I love triumph over adversity stories as much as I love supporting debut authors!

At first, 37-year-old Lenny Marks appears to be a competent Grade 5 teacher at Selby South Primary School who just prefers living alone and is disinterested in a busy social calendar. You’ll soon discover that she’s found tremendous peace in organization because it’s stable and reliable - unlike happiness. Lenny has carefully curated her world to protect herself: Thai carryout on Saturdays, Friends reruns and groceries on Mondays and Thursdays, rearranging her 36 volumes of The Hobbit, and endless Scrabble games with an imaginary opponent, Monica from Friends. At first, these idiosyncrasies brought a smile to my face and I wondered if perhaps she was on the spectrum, and then I felt saddened when I realized that her unique personality had been shaped by her repressed, traumatic past.

“There was something very wrong with Lenny, and she wasn’t sure it was repairable.”

When a letter arrives for Lenny, memories of her past threaten the ordered lifestyle she’s curated and she appears to remember what drove her to a life of order over happiness. As the author slowly reveals bits of Lenny’s mysterious past, readers are left wondering if Lenny can cope with the new direction she’s taken

“You did this.”

Three words. Three syllables. Lenny’s world comes crashing down around her….

Kerryn Mayne’s superb examination of survivors and their coping mechanisms highlights mental illness, grief, family, friends and happiness. You’ll agree that justice is served.

If you loved Eleanor Oliphant or Molly Gray you’ll enjoy this one.

I promise you, Lenny Marks will leave an impression. You’ll be thinking of her for days afterward.

A unique book with a unique and interesting main character. Lenny is... different, unusual. But you find yourself on her side and both uplifted and heartbroken by her story. Her coping mechanisms and way of life is relatable to anyone who takes comfort in and finds peace in an orderly, small life (me!). But as her world gets bigger, we see there is a benefit to being forced outside our comfort zone.

This book was hard to read at times because it was so obvious that poor Lenny was not mentally well and she was deeply struggling to move on a tragic event from her childhood. While Lenny is socially awkward and also a loner, the author creates a fabulous character profile for her. Lenny is kind, hard-working, decently good-looking… it’s impossible not to like her or, at minimum, have empathy for her.

There were some very surprisingly twists in the book and I think it’s well worth a read.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin e's Press for the eARC.
What a lovely book this is; quite moving at times and sad. But uplifting as well, with a fascinating main character. Lenny.
I loved the fact Lenny rescued Malcolm the dog from an abusive situation and that he became her first best friend on her way to working out her terrible past so she could heal. It was a long and arduous journey, but she survived it and found some peace.
An impressive debut novel!