Whilst I started reading this book with some confusion and frustration at the authors decision to base the story in Dorset using the very real village of Corfe Castle but bizarrely renaming it, I soon found myself drawn in to the suspenseful and engaging writing.
A great addition to the cosy crime genre. I really enjoyed how the story unfolded through the combination of diary entries and the evidence gathering of Annie. The characters were believable and likeable. The suspense was maintained well with the reader being left with a variety of suspects until the big reveal.
Overall a good read and mostly well written. Some descriptive sections were rather over done and the aforementioned mystery of renaming a well known Dorset village were the main criticisms.

I was excited about this one as the premise sounded promising and all the Agatha Christie vibes being mentioned but that was certainly not the case as fair as I could see, I got as far as 25% in and gave up. It really came across as Young Adult rather than a crime/thriller, especially the audio version where the narrator sounded quite juvenile at times. Perhaps written by someone quite young who hasn’t actually read much of the classic crime genre that they were clearly trying to evoke.

Have rated as 3 average as unfinished.

DNF @ 27%

With audiobooks, it depends on the narrator/s to whether I'll finish the book. Sometimes I'll like it initially but then get put off later on. It didn't help that NetGalley didn't offer a sampler to help with deciding if the narrator was likeable.

For this one, I found that both narrators sounded too similar for me to remember who was reading which perspective. I also found that they read really slow with a lot of pauses which did annoy me.

For the storyline, as interesting as the synopsis sounded, I didn't engage with it at all. I may try reading the physical version at a later date.

Love a good thriller and this one was interesting because of the premise, so it stood out from the others I’ve listened to this year. Really enjoyable and will read more from this author

How to Solve Your Own Murder is an enjoyable but largely unremarkable cosy crime novel set in a sleepy village with sixty years of secrets.

In many ways, this has all the elements of a great mystery. I always like a split narrative, and the dual timelines framed around a decades-old fortune work really well here. Perrin also plays with some of the classic tropes of the genre, with a set straight out of an Agatha Christie novel. But while there is a long list of likely suspects, there are very few interesting characters, and though I found the story pretty engaging, the pace is far too slow.

If you're a fan of cosy crime, How to Solve Your Own Murder will make a nice, gentle read - but I was a little disappointed it didn't offer more.

A woman (Frances) visits a fortune teller and is to,d of her own murder, that then takes place, sixty years later. The woman’s niece, Annie, then attempts to solve the mystery.

I listened to this whilst walking and really struggled to stay engaged. The book is written / told in alternate chapters that detail the young Frances and Annie’s sleuthing. It’s an OK listen that’s wrapped up nicely at the end. I just found it very slow.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview in exchange for this honest review.

Wow, I absolutely enjoyed this book by Kristen Perrin- it had me wanting to keep listening to find out how the murderer would be revealed. Some murder mystery books, you can have an idea of who the murderer could be but in this book, I was continuously dumbstruck it kept me continuously guessing- even then I couldn’t guess who it was.

How to Solve Your Own Murder follows the journey of Annie Adam, an amateur mystery writer who gets asked by her aunt Francis to solve her murder. When Aunt Francis was 17, she was told by a fortune teller that she would be murdered. Aunt Francis has spent her whole life working out who would murder her but she was murdered before she could reveal this to the world.

We get to hear from Aunt Francis diary and also solve the mystery disappearance of her friend Emily. I thought this book was cleverly written , there is so much happening but it all comes together really well at the end.

What fun characters to spend a book with! I loved steadily getting to know everyone (even the dastardly ones).

I listened to the audiobook of this novel and although the reading speed was a bit slow, it was such a fun listen.

A twist on the murder in a stately home, Golden Age mystery, the set up and characters are just what you’d hope for. There’s the curious ingenue as our heroine, the luscious detective, the elderly lawyer, the dastardly relatives and the suspicious vicar, all present and correct.

What lifts this tale above the familiar tropes is the dual timeline. Part set in the 1960’s - a clever way of allowing the deceased to ‘talk’ to us - and part in the present day, we see many of the ‘actors’ in this drama as both young and old, giving depth and interesting perspectives on their characters.

All in all, a compelling listen that kept me busy doing housework in my spare time, just for the chance of more listening time. NB, consider turning the speed up to 1.25 if the pauses become too much for you!

With thanks to NetGalley, the author, Kristen Perrin and the publisher, Quercus for an audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.

An enjoyable listen. Dual timeline mystery that comes together nicely at the end. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy

Back in the mid sixties Frances Adams and her friends visit a fortune teller. When the fortune teller says that she will be murdered it affects the rest of her life.
In the present day, Annie Adams is asked to attend a meeting with Frances, her great aunt, at her solicitors in the village Castle Knoll. however when they arrive for the meeting, Frances is dead.
So follows solving the mystery, not only of the death of Frances, but also another person back in the sixties.
It could cost Annie her own life, but she is determined to solve both crimes.
An easy read with some good characters,

I love audiobooks but I struggled with this one. It might be the many characters or the dual timelines but I felt lost. I think I'll pick this back up again when I've either an ebook or physical copy

A fab cosy crime novel with multiple layers - of mystery, characters and narrations. We follow Annie in present day who is called to hear her great aunt's, Frances, will reading after she dies. She quickly believes that something is wrong and crime must be afoot. She's then tasked with solving the murder of Frances.

The second storyline is following Frances when she was younger. It was predicted that she would get murdered, which is why is was prepared in her old age. A crime occurs at this time too, which Annie also tries to solve.

I really enjoyed it - it was cosy at times, focused on people and relationship, but also had some harder crimes going on. The writing was also very engaging, accessible and I enjoyed the two narrations. In the end, I would definitely pick up #2 in the Castle Knoll Files series, so that says a lot!

Big recommend from me.

I’m afraid this book wasn’t for me. Its upper middle class characters and settings were like something out of an Agatha Christie novel but, due to the modern day setting, without the excuse of a bygone age . The characters were fairly formulaic; the faded artist living in the run down Chelsea house, the clever but rather dull daughter who is the main focus and a series of other forgettable village characters that promised some colour but delivered very little. The plot did twist and turn and created a level of suspense but I largely lost interest and didn’t really care who did it in the end so long as the story finished. Even then the chapters following the dénouement seemed superfluous but did hold the promise of more adventures to come. I’m afraid I wil not be joining those but I’m sure there will be people who enjoy the escapism.

This was a good murder mystery.
The victim didn't solve her own murder, of course, so the title is a little misleading. However, she collected evidence and left enough hints for somebody else to solve the murder when it finally happened.
It is amazing just how superstitious some people can be. The victim spent most of her life under the shadow of impending doom due to something a fortune-teller said to her when she was 17. Unfortunately, she didn't have any classic schooling, or else she would have known that every prophecy lefts lost of room for interpretation, and can't be taken literally -- which is exactly what she did.
Annie, the main character, is nice. You soon find out who the creeps are here, but I'm not telling if they are really creeps, or if that are red herrings -- of which there are quite a lot here.
The narration was perfect, and I spent some very enjoyable hours listening to this clever murder mystery.
Many thanks to Quercus Editions Limited via #netgalley for my review copy!

Way back in the swinging sixties, Frances, Rose and Emily were inseperable. Their teenage friendship begins to show the strain around the same time that Frances becomes obsessed with a cryptic message from a fortune-teller. The message implies that Frances will fall victim to a grim murder and that, only by choosing the right 'daughter' will she find justice. Fast forward to the present day and Frances' Great-Neice, Annie is called to meet, for the first time, her Great Aunt Frances. What follows is a twisty who done it which sits very well in the cozy mystery genre.

📕 How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin
📕 Murder mystery
📕 3/5 ⭐⭐⭐
📕 Out on 26 March

An enjoyable read for Agatha Christie and Thursday Murder Club fans.

SYNOPSIS:
"A fun mystery about a woman who spends her entire life trying to prevent her foretold murder only to be proven right sixty years later, when she is found dead in her sprawling country estate... Now it's up to her great-niece to catch the killer." Goodreads

MY THOUGHTS:

🕵🏻 I enjoyed jumping between two timelines: the past, set out in diary entries, and the present day as the young main character (Annie) reads the diary entries whilst trying to uncover her aunt's killer.

🕵🏻 An enjoyable cosy mystery with Agatha Christie style shenanigans.

🕵🏻 There are a lot of characters, which is something my brain struggles with, but I appreciate that might just be me.

🕵🏻 Although a charming cosy story with likeable (partially developed) characters, it seemed a little long when reading, which it isn't but it wasn't so just felt that way at times for me.

Annie is summon to her rich eccentric great aunt Frances to meet for the first time, of course Frances turns up dead before they can meet. And of course great aunt Frances has made her death into a game, solve my murder and get the whole estate.

Fun idea but our main character is isolated and don’t feel I really get to know her and she has no quirky sidekick or similar. She does have her friend and mom on the phone at times but very little camaraderie or friendly interactions for her. I never really warmed to her. And you’d think that someone that wants to be a cozy author (our main character) would be smarter than putting herself in mortal danger.

Parts of the book is aunt Frances diary entries from the 1960’s, they don’t read like they are from the 60’s and takes you out of it a little. All in all, it’s alright.

I had the audio version and the lovely Alexandra Dowling does a wonderful job reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review.
I do love a murder mystery and this had that and more! This book covers 2 timelines and 2 murder mysteries in one & a hint of a potential romance.

It was a nice easy read, story was fairly easy to follow after the first few timeline changes but I do think having another voice for Francis for this audiobook would have made it easier and more enjoyable to listen too.

Annie was a very likeable and relatable main character and there was an interesting bunch of characters and their own secrets to get to know in this little Village.
I see it looks to be the first in a series, I will keep an eye for future books and see if I fancy the next one!

Overall, a lovely book to tick off book 31 of the year!

Thank you for the complementary audiobook in exchange for my review, NetGalley and publisher!

This was an enjoyable whodunnit with a dual timeline and more red herrings than in a fish monger’s! Purely for personals reasons I’m more a fan of straight procedurals than this blend of relationship driven mysteries, but in its genre it’s very well written and engaging with a surprising ending.