Wonderful wit & I loved the breaking of the 4th wall. The anticipation was real!!

Thank you NetGalley for this fabulous EARC!!!

This sequel is just as funny and charming as its predecessor.

I love Ernest’s narrative voice and the way that this novel feels like something from the Golden Age of detective fiction.

I thoroughly enjoyed the premise of crime writers at a literary convention on a remote train journey.

I read a lot of mysteries and I’m usually pretty good at guessing the solutions. I figured out the biggest side plot, but I did not correctly guess the murderer or the motivation here. I did feel like the solution made sense and had the proper clues to back it up, so it didn’t feel like it came out of nowhere just to get ahead of the reader.

I really hope that Stevenson writes a third book in this series!

Yes I know I rated it a 4* but upon re-reading some parts I just couldn't give it that extra star. A 3* doesn't mean it's a bad book, just that it wasn't really the right fit for me. I don't think I'll remember it a month from now!!

PROS:
*The setting of the train and the descriptions of Australia were wonderful

*The second half of the book did pick up pace and the ending was a twist I hadn't quite figured out

*There are fewer characters in this book than the last one

CONS:

*The first person narrative, that this author favors, grew tiresome. I know that he is a stand up comedian and I can see him pulling this off in person. Maybe a play?? Don't know but he is a
tiresome narrator.

*Repetition was rampant throughout

*There are fewer characters - but they really aren’t very well described. We know them as authors, publishers, etc and by their actions on the train and that’s about it

*The ending was a bit over the top and felt rushed

I think if you loved “Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone” you will probably enjoy this one also.

I hope that this author’s next book will feature a different format. First person narrative is very hard to pull off. I enjoyed Juliette’s epilogue which was fun. I would have enjoyed reading more from her as a second narrator.

I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley. It was my pleasure to reed and review this title.

Expected publication date is January 2024.

I was excited to get an early copy of the second book in the Ernest Cunningham series. I enjoyed the first book in the series and thought it was very original. Unfortunately for this one, the schtick of the first grew stale and it didn’t quite hit for me. Ernest’s narration was a little too coy and “I’m so clever” that he was just obnoxious. Despite all the mystery rules he professes to write by, it seems like the best way to predict the identity of the murderer is to look for the only person who doesn’t have any motive and barely any description and pick them. I even took notes while reading this to keep all the characters straight. With one tiny clue and this method, I was able to guess the culprit in this installment. And finally the ending reveal scene was fun, but then it just went off the rails (pun intended) as far as believability goes and that took it down a notch for me. Overall I can’t give it a five star “tremendous” and I don’t think it deserves a one star “ghastly,” but I’m giving it a solid 3.5 stars.

I was excited to read this book after reading the first book. This one didn't feel as exciting as the first book, but it still had a great style of keeping you on your toes. It felt a little rushed at the end trying to tie all of the loose ends and I still wasn't sure what happened to one of the main characters. I liked the different twists and how it relates to social issues found today.

This series is just so much fun! A meta whodunit where the narrator breaks everything down for you and you are still surprised by the ending. So well done. I am looking forward to Ernest and Juliette's next story.

3 1/2. This sequel finds Ernest on a writer’s panel on a train across Australia. Only Juliette and Andy also returned. This book tried hard to recreate the magic of the first. Overall it ended up falling flat. In the first book, Ernest is plagued by the past and trying to save his family and improve the future. In this book, Ernest is trying to prove himself to…..himself. The characteristics that made Ernest such a strong protagonist, the snark, the heart, the intellect, are all missing as we follow Ernest’s journey. He makes some comments about wanting to prevent a repeat, but his actions show his true motives. On its own, this book was entertaining and a decent mystery. Compared to the original, it just doesn’t do it for me.

This was a solid follow-up to the first novel, but no sequel can ever replicate the uniqueness of that first read. The story had enough twists and (sometimes unrealistic) codes and clues, but I occasionally had problems keeping everyone straight.

Set on a luxury train going through the heart of Australia, this book pits a wannabe writer of mystery novels who is well-versed in Golden Age crime fiction, against other crime novelists in an ultimate locked room mystery. With pretty much no one being what they seem, it makes for an enjoyable and intriguing mystery.

A delightfully fun mystery! I love the narrative voice used here, consistent with the first book. Keeps things light and fun while still being a murder mystery.

Stevenson is a master of the clever murder mystery. Ernest is a narrator that keeps you on your toes. His lack of self esteem borders on being too much but is so relatable. I was hanging on every word and am planning to reread again to pick up more. The genius of Stevenson is the details. I would heartily recommend this masterpiece.

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

To start with, I didn’t read the first one. And actually I think that’s for the best since now I’d like to read it and I can comment on this book as a stand-alone piece. This book alludes to its prequel in a few key moments but I didn’t feel like it gave anything away (other than Ernest’s survival of the first book which as he comments early in the book - is an inevitability of being the narrator).

I love a locked room mystery and I love a self-aware book. This was both of those and I think in the best possible format. It built a very interesting web of characters and had me guessing the new murderer at every turn. The idea of an actual fair play mystery novel is also awesome and I know it’s not the authors creation, but it is masterfully done here.

Really enjoyed. 5/5 Tremendous

This book was INCREDIBLE. It was witty, fun, hilarious, and just overall a really special read. I laughed out loud at so many moments. I did not want to put this book down. It was SO GOOD. I loved getting to catch up with Ernest again. This book was somehow better than the first in the series and that is not easy to do. I will legitimately recommend this book to anyone and everyone. I need all my friends and family to read this book ASAP.

Another winner! To be honest, it would be hard for Benjamin Stevenson to release a sophomore book in this series after the theme and drama of the freshman one, Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone." It was like a genealogical thriller with a twist for locked room mystery fans. This time, the plot takes place on a train and all the guests are writers, publishers, and readers. So, in a way, it retains that family-esque appeal while giving readers a tight connection to them personally too. Stevenson's narrator is amazingly charismatic, sometimes annoying, but generally livens up the overall story so that readers are indeed connected on many levels. The best part... at a few moments, we had it all worked out only to discover Stevenson's masterful way with words intentionally confused and mislead us but in a way it was brilliant. Definitely hoping for a third, but honestly, can he pull it off?

I understand that this book has a specific audience - probably the same audience that read or will read the first book in the sequel - but that audience is not me. I rarely, if ever, do not finish a book but I am unable and unwilling to spend more time reading a book that is confusing, muddled, and not very good. I’m over a third of the way through the story and aside from being on a train and being told (no less than 200 times thus far) that there is a murder at some point in the book, what in the world is happening? There are characters flowing out of every orifice and whether they are meaningful or just drivel remains to be seen. Godspeed to those who decide to read this book.

Benjamin Stevenson is such a unique author. When I read "everyone in my family has killed someone" it was unlike anything I had read before. With that said, I was excited to get my hands on this. Ernest is back, this time with a love interest. Oh and they are trapped on a train with other authors. Stevensons books require the reader to really pay attention. He even tells you "this is going to be important later" but as the events unfold the reader is still surprised/enthralled. His writing style is definitely not for everyone but I am liking what he is bringing to the thriller genre

While I think this book has a clear audience, I don’t think that audience is me. I found myself frustrated with the exposition and time spent focusing on the events of the first book in the series, and have therefore chosen not to continue after about 30/40% of the book, due to a frustration with the characters led by my own preferences.

For fans of Richard Osman and Anthony Horowitz, a fiendishly fun locked room murder mystery from the author of the indie darling Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone —this time set on a train full of mystery writers, agents, editors, and fans.

Well-written and well-plotted. I liked it!

This is the second book I have read this week telling me first person narrative means the narrator survives but leaving me with so many questions and without a narrator at the end. Yes, everyone on this train was a suspect. Even the beloved girlfriend of the narrator although he was trying to convince himself that she was exempt. People were dropping dead left and right leaving many relieved and shocked at the same time.

It became our narrator's job to find the culprit and write a second book based on this story. He had this reputation where people around him die and he ended up writing about it. He was not only narrating all the events happening in this train that was no different than a prison once on the move, but he was also walk us through his thought process. It sounded more like a memoir than a novel he was writing.

I liked the variety of the characters included in the story. Also, all the dirty laundry of the literary world was put on a display. Most of the successful writers on this train were doing one weird thing or the other, while not so successful ones were trying to play the game by the rules and getting punished for it. This was a great whodunnit!

Fantastic follow up. I thoroughly enjoyed it, the perspective and style are so unique, all around just a fun, smart mystery. I listened to the first Ernest book, and read this one on kindle, I think both formats work so well for the stories, I hope there will be more adventures of Ernest and Juliette in the future!