Sadly, despite a couple of attempts, I really couldnt get into this book. I found the writing style really difficult to engage with and to place what era it was supposed to be set in. I managed to get about halfway through and maybe the second half was brilliant, but sadly I will never know.
Thank you to netgalley and Faber and Faber for an advance copy of this book

A crime mystery with darkly comic undertones. The slow beginning and the writing style made it difficult for me to engage with the story and I failed to finush.

This is a clever and witty book in many ways but I found the characters jarring and unlike able. It reads as though set in the forties so references to modern phones etc jade unexpected. I think this is just not for me but I can see it’s appeal to others.

Thank to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This had a lot of promise and I wanted to enjoy it a lot more than I did in the end. I found the characters largely unlikeable and I wasn't invested enough in any of them so didn't really care what happened to each of them as the plot developed. Edward, as the lead character, is a complicated individual facing unrequited love from his university sweetheart. Deeply flawed and, again, unlikeable, his behaviour is alarming and increasingly sinister as the story develops and his friendship with Robert and Stanza is tested. I found some of the plot developments over the top and not really in tune with Edward's character, but perhaps there is a deeper meaning here that I couldn't fathom.

This point may be linked to the style of writing, which I found quite old fashioned in some respects and difficult to engage with. I found myself leaving this book for long periods and eventually trudging to the end begrudging the intrusion and time commitment. Not for me but I am certain others will love this.

Fresh, unexpected, pacey, funny, and full of brilliant observations, this book surprised me in the best possible way. It is dark and daring, but also rich and warm. A great fireside read.

The Kellerby Code by Jonny Sweet
The story begins from an interesting premise which is how far is Edward prepared to go in order to maintain his friendship with Robert and Stanza. They are friends from university days and Edward has always felt socially inferior to them. His friends are well connected and use him as an errands boy doing things like collecting Robert’s dry cleaning. He is besotted with Stanza and has confessed his love to Robert but then discovers that Robert and Stanza are in fact a couple.
There is no one in the book who seems particularly likeable and Edward has a dark secret locked away in his past. It took me a while to get into the book and the narrative was hard to follow I don’t think I will be recommending this one at my book clubs. Thanks to the author, the publishers and Net Galley for the opportunity to read it in return for an honest review.

This is a very different read for me. It's hard to classify an exact genre for it, as it could fall into a couple of genres. The book was slow to get into and only really sped up at the end.

The cast of characters were all unlikable and it had quite a few moments I couldn't understand, especially the theatre quotations but somehow it worked. I found myself rooting for the main character to get away with his deeds and remaining undiscovered. Edward was very much the underdog with so much happening in his life and all of the frustrating chapters where misunderstandings let him to be looked at differently. The way his 'friends' treated him was appalling and it made me so angry on his behalf.

Very much 'The Talented Mr. Ripley' I'm glad it ended like it did.

Thanks to Netgalley and the author and publisher for a temporary copy in exchange for an honest review.

Not one for me, I’m afraid. I have difficulty enjoying books whose main characters I dislike, and if there was one likeable character in The Kellerby Code, they passed me by.

The comedy other reviewers refer to passed me by, too, and the story was much, much darker and more gory than I’d expected from the synopsis.

Although it’s action-packed, the style is quite literary, with loads of metaphors, similes, personification, and words I had to look up in the dictionary!

Having said all that, despite the fact I almost gave up a couple of times, something in the writing made me want to find out what happened, whether Edward got away with his actions, whether any of those unlikeable characters got their comeuppance. For this reason I'm awarding 2 stars, rather than 1.

First up, this is a well written book with a sharp paced narrative. I found some of the language a bit too fanciful (e.g. "Copes" for Copenhagen, having to google "Alla Norma" when the simple word "pasta" could have been used.

The plot is a very old one. Very similar to The Very Talented Mr Ripley in fact. A beautiful and successful couple with a male friend, Edward, who is in love with the lady in the couple. Edward is painted as a lumbering giant and a bit of a doormat for the male in the couple. So very early on, the predictable outcome of the book can be guessed, but I was hoping for some mystery or innovation. But, no, the plot just plays out without any twists and turns, which was very disappointing. And not a lot happens for the first 75% of the book other than a fairly dreary painting of the couples' lovely life and Edwards devotion & forlorn love.

I think if Johnny Sweet innovates more, some wicked twists & turns, he could be a really good author as his writing is clever, witty & sharp. So I'll look forward to seeing what he writes next, but I was disappointed with this.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

A really clever thriller with Edward, the narrator- a good guy. He is at the beck and call of his ‘mate’ Robert, a budding theatre director and the enigmatic Stanza. The tale revolves around these 3 characters and Kellerby, the family home (estate) of Kellerby. Eloquently written- the first of many from Jonny Sweet I’m sure. I can see this as an adaptation on Netflix. How to describe it without giving anything away? Wuthering Heights meets The Shining. Miss it at your peril.

Although a bit bit of slow burner, it is well worth sticking with this book. Very well written and enjoyable to read

‘The Kellerby Code’ by Jonny Sweet is an interesting, darkly funny book about the lengths one man will go to in order to maintain his ‘friendship’ with his elite social circle and stop feeling like an imposter. As we watch his willingness to run errands like collecting dry cleaning for his well-connected friends turn into a willingness to participate in far less savoury endeavours, we also see his revulsion as he learns more about the true characters of his associates. There’s a growing sense of dread throughout the novel which is executed to great effect.

I have to admit, it took me a while to get gripped by this one - largely due to each character being more unlikable than the last and the narrative being hard to follow at times. I’m giving this one three stars.

I received a free review copy of this ebook from the publisher Faber & Faber via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Kellerby Code (2024) by Jonny Sweet is very dark, unsettling, and gory in parts so not for everyone, however it’s well written and original. By the final third I was gripped as it became unbearably tense. The ending was unexpected, intriguing, and satisfying

It’s a blackly humorous novel about class, obsession, self loathing, delusion, repressed emotions, and mental disintegration

I loved it

Hmmm - how do I feel about this book? It's hard to express, really - especially as I just watched Saltburn and there's significant crossover. Part of me loves it - the characters are very, very real. They are also pretty much all annoying - selfish, frivolous, self-seeking, or clearly in the grip of a mental disorder and in need of help. There's no lightness about this novel, no moments where any character is shown to be other than self-serving, even our mentally unstable hero isn't acting out of the kindness of his heart, but to keep the shadows at bay.
Those shadows threaten to overwhelm, with increasing power as the story travels its path, and even then the eventual climax came as a shock, and left me feeling quite out of kilter. I guess we're directed by almost every novel we read to expect everything tied up into neat little bows, and that certainly doesn't happen here.
Brilliant character portraits of fairly unpleasant, shallow people actually quite easy to recognise and understand, who you feel a little sorry for, at the same time as wanting to shout at!
Gripping, but unsettling.

A multilayered, menacing, and intelligent blend of class, crime, mental health issues, and the blackest of humour from Jonny Sweet with his intriguing character study of Edward, a man with self esteem issues and a deep and desperate desire to escape the ordinariness and embarrassment of his background and his disturbing past. A scholarship boy gaining a place at public school who went on to become a Cambridge graduate, you would imagine this is a man set up for life. Not a bit of it, instead the passive Edward appears to have settled for a life of servitude, keen to attend to the needs and whims of his fellow university friends, Robert and Stanza, odious and entitled people, whilst working as a tutor. Nothing is too much trouble for him when it comes to them.

There are numerous scenarios that highlight Edward's awkwardness and lack of awareness within the privileged milieu he so wants to be at home in and fit in with. He lives with Stanza at her London home, with frequent visits to her family estate. His feelings for Stanza are hidden and not reciprocated, Edward suppresses his turmoil and simmering emotions when Robert and Stanza become engaged, but this fails to prevent the unravelling of his life that follows. Tensions begin to become more heightened, as matters enter increasingly deranged, violent and brutal territory, inhabited by imaginary friends.

My curiosity about the unstable Edward kept me engaged and turning the pages of this fearsome, well plotted and unsettling read of worrying brutality, love, and revenge, and appreciated how the author skewered the privileged classes with style and verve. Perhaps not a read that will appeal to everyone, but one which ended up being fun and entertaining, despite it taking some time for me to become immersed in it. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

HOLY SH*T THAT ENDING. I am stunned, baffled and honestly, completely in awe of this book. I will admit, in the opening chapter, I wasn’t 100% into it. But this is one of those books that get more absorbing and utterly bizarre as it goes, you absolutely have to read it. It’s like SALTBURN meets THE OTHER HALF meets utter ridiculousness and dark humour. My favourite read of 2024 so far!

I am not sure about this book. Edward is best friends with Robert and Stanza, they do treat him like a goffer and he seems, on the outside, to be quite happy with this. The main reason is that he is in love with Stanza but that turns out to become sour. Edward realises that Robert and Stanza are an item and he finds this difficult. I could not take too well to the main characters and in parts found them quite annoying. As the story progresses I found I understood it less and less. One particular part in the book was when Edward helped himself to Robert’s keys, went to the house, Robert and Stanza came back and Edward was stuck in listening to what was happening and went out of the window to escape and fell asleep on part of the roof, waking up at 5 in the morning. Really. I did enjoy Edward’s imaginary friend, Plum, the lamppost. Edward takes great comfort in “chatting” to him and taking his support!!! I did finish the book but on the whole it was not for me, too dark in places

Cleverly done.
This is a sharply written book that is very funny in parts and yet tragic and gory in others.
The main character, Edward, comes from humble beginnings, published by his mother he has got to Cambridge University, yet rather than use this to fuller effect he is happy to survive on an income from tutoring. He subordinated his own wants and desires by being at the back and call of Robert, a famous actor and Robert's partner Stanza who Robert is in love with.
There is however another much darker side to Edward, for he is underneath a psychopathic Mr Ripley-like character. The tension in the book is when this side of him emerges.
The Kellerby of the title is a country house and farm owned by Stanza's father. This is where the climax of the story occurs.

In the grounds of Kellerby House, Edward Jevons has just found a human mandible – with an amalgam filling – which he smoothly pockets. Whose mandible? Why is Edward unsurprised but careful to hide it from his staff? What exactly is his position in the household? These are the questions which underpin the plot of this book, and to answer them we have to step back into his past.
Edward has two close friends, Robert and Stanza. Like them he went to a public school; but only he was on a scholarship. Like them he is a Cambridge graduate; but only he has no family money, no ancestral connections that might have eased his path thereafter. He’s living in Stanza’s London flat, but there is no romantic or sexual relationship between them – at least not on her part, a boy can dream. In fact living in a bit of a dream is one of his defining characteristics. The other is subservience; when he is with them he is continually anticipating and fulfilling their needs, when he isn’t with them he is either tutoring (his only source of income) or carrying out tasks for them. Stanza, who does some sort of office job, calls him Jeeves, and Robert, an up-and-coming theatre director, uses him, more or less inadvertently, as a valet. Stanza’s extensive family estate surrounds Kellerby House and the three of them quite often visit it. Even there, Edward continues to act as a general factotum to the other two. He is devastated when they tell him that they are getting engaged, but conceals this emotion and continues in his deferential role. When it turns out that Robert’s reputation is endangered by an incident in his past, Edward is happy to step in to assist. And so the scene is set.
This is a psychological mystery, a study of Edward, his foibles, his insecurities, his disintegration. It is also a crime story and a murder story, of course – that mandible has to have belonged to someone in the recent past! The style of writing initially feels odd – too clever, too mannered, too pretentious – but then it is trying to convey Edward’s inward turmoil as he tries to navigate the casually monied world of his friends while carrying a massive ‘Estate Kid’ chip on his gentle giant shoulder. There is also a tendency to use somewhat obscure words; “skeuomorph”, for example. The style requires a certain level of commitment by the reader, who has to keep going through the early stages of the book, before getting to the meat. It does pick up pace later. As an aside, the use of the word “code” in the title seems odd, since there is no evidence of such a thing in the story.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

I am sorry but I really struggled with this. When I read the synopsis I was really looking forward to reading this story. I found the style of writing hard to engage with and the characters hard to relate to. I am afraid I didn't finish the book. Having said that I know there are many favourable reviews so maybe this is a case of being like 'marmite'. I think it all comes down to thee writing style and there are certainly a lot of people out there that will like this as something different.