How "meta" - Three female author's write a mystery novel about three female authors solving a murder!! I have read books by this trip before, but nothing as FUN & entertaining as this latest release, "The Author's Guide to Murder". This one's not historical, instead it has the "cozy" vibe that's so popular right now, plus it's set in a Gothic Scottish castle in a quirky hamlet, with a hunky Scot, a bumbling detective and a pet sheep!! Super FUN - just go with it & don't overthink it. My sincere thanks to Net Galley & the publisher for approving my advance reader's copy - a sincere pleasure to review it!

Quick, entertaining read, but uneven and confusing in tone and plot. Wink wink satire, self-referential, might be super funny to writers but to non-writers like me, it was just ok. I enjoyed the overarching plot (women's writers' retreat is not what it seems) but the execution was very uneven and the trauma done to each woman was jarring in an otherwise lighthearted tone. I like all three of these authors but this was a pass for me.
My thanks to the publisher for an ARC via netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for this ARC. I enjoyed how entertaining the layout of this story is. Lots of banter between the characters that was fun to read. The overall plot and storyline were good enough to be interesting. A cute mystery is how I would classify this. Overall it was a decent read in my opinion.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for this ARC. While I will always love these authors and their work, I must say I did not enjoy this departure from their typical genre and style. While loosely connected to their historical fiction, this book was a modern day satire about Me Too and the publishing industry. In their attempt to make their social point, the authors employed a number of self referential and cutesy clues that I found more irritating than anything. I liked the setting but found the plot to be rather annoying and unclear in places. I hope these authors will return to form for their next book. I will still look forward to reading their work.

This book is very cute and absolutely a cozy mystery, however it goes a little off the rails, and has very uneven writing.

The premise of this book is similar to the book in real life. Three American authors travel to Scotland (this book does actually have three authors) pretending to be best friends writing a novel taking place in Scotland and are attending a writing retreat put on by a very famous author who owns a remote castle there. There their charade of being best friends falls apart, the famous author is revealed to be a horrible person, and they meet lots of Scottish characters.

The plot is very cute and quirky, however it has the problem is leaning too much into the goofiness. How many times do we need to read about the concept of "pantaboots" and all of the plaid they are wearing? And it's juxtaposed by a serious plotline involving sexual assault which makes all of the very silly parts seem off. Plenty of cozy mysterious are able to maintain this balance of a serious plot line mixed in with cuteness without it seeming like a very jarring transition and then oops, off to discuss plaid right after discussing assault.

There were also chapters that added absolutely nothing to the plot and seemed to be there solely for the purpose of establishing that they were in Scotland and there are silly Scottish characters for the American authors to embarrass themselves around.

There was some minor character development of the authors which lent a little gravity to the book, however the final chapter could have been completely eliminated.

This was a cute book, but I think it definitely needed some tightening up.

Many thanks to William Morrow and to NetGalley for this ARC to review. This review is my honest opinion.

This was a fun book! Well plotted and lively. Kind of a sarcastic cozy set in Scotland with lots of jokes about plaid.

I am a huge Beatriz Williams reader fan and have enjoyed the three W's past books, but this one was not a hit for me.
Occasionally enjoyed the three main characters' antics but moreso found their behavior somewhat irritating and hard to connect with.
Liked the setting and literary theme.

With thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow Books for this e-ARC.

What a disappointment this was. A not funny parody (at least I hope it was a parody) of cozy romance nysteries. There was little mystery, ridiculous romance and annoying characters. All in all, ugh

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

While I found this novel kind of slow moving in the beginning, it's absolutely worth it to stick around. Once it finds its pace, it becomes a book you just cannot put down. I'm also a sucker for books set in Scotland.

I really enjoyed watching Cassie, Emma, and Kat become friends. Their lives were so wildly different, yet all three had so much in common.

As authors, they plot with their editor a plan to stop a tell-all memoir. The man writing it, had hurt all three women, and they wanted justice for what he'd done. They weren't expecting him to end up murdered, with them as suspects though.

As more comes out in this story, the closer these three ladies become, before becoming true best friends. Watch as they fall in love, rekindle a marriage, and prove their innocence.

A trip to the Scottish Highlands for 3 best friends and authors to write a book together. Or so that is what we are led to believe.
The interactions between the 3 main characters were quite tedious at times. Everything felt overly dramatic as well as nonsensical. When all of these horrible things happened to these women, when they reported it they were dropped by their publishers and not believed. So everyone would already know, right? So why did they make it out to sound like the first time anyone would hear about it all was if this man wrote his tell all, and that's why they had to stop him? And the final act was just WAY to over the top. Just not the write book for me.

Thank you to the publisher for the free copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank ‘ewe’ for this book! This was a fun read, especially since we know in real life the three authors are ‘besties. This cozy mystery has three writers masquerade as three best friends while attending a writers’ retreat to write a novel together. They are so different from one another that it is difficult to keep up with the ruse their publisher has insisted upon. Each character gets a separate chapter throughout the book, so each women’s character development and points of view are easy to follow. Appearances can be deceiving as we learn more about the women and their backgrounds. Unbeknownst to each other, they all have an ulterior motive for wanting to meet their reclusive host. There’s a murder and the whodunit is not easily solved. And of course, each character is a suspect. I loved all the plaid in the novel, and the descriptions of Scotland and the ceidlh they attend are especially memorable.

4/5 ⭐️

Trigger warnings: rape, sexual assault, murder, poison and cheating

This book was unlike anything I’ve ever read. It was also the first time I’d read a book by any of these authors and now I want to read their other books!

What a unique premise where three authors go to Scotland to write a book where this book is actually three authors writing a book. I loved the three perspectives and the police interviews. The first third was easy to get into and learn about the characters, the second third seemed to drag on a bit but I flew through the last third to find out the ending. I wished the epilogue was a bit longer but overall, I enjoyed this book and kept guessing how it would end.

Now I want to go visit this incredible castle in Scotland and mean the amazing characters in this town!

Read this book if you like:
•murder mysteries
•books set in a remote castle
•a full cast of characters
•three perspectives
•a who-done-it book

No notes! I wish I could leave the review there. But, I feel like this book is for two different kinds of readers. Please go into this book only for the good time that it is. The authors of this book I feel like they just wanted to provide a good time. As a novice murder mystery reader, this book gave me everything that I wanted and then some.

Three struggling authors gather at Castle Kinloch in the Scottish Highlands for a writing retreat that turns deadly in The Author’s Guide to Murder.

Jointly written by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White, this is a fun and satirical take on the locked room mystery trope. The three authors are masquerading as close friends, concealing their dark secrets, all connected to the victim (and arguably more successful writer), Brett Saffron Presley. What really brought them to Scotland?

The three different voices in the novel are a fun conceit, and there are some witty moments throughout the book. As the plot develops, the characters become more likable, although they do overdo it a bit on the cheesiness factor. There is also a bit of unevenness in tone, as some parts go all in on humor, while other areas focus on assault and other dark topics.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, if uneven, read. It would make a fun book club pick because of the writing style, and (based on reviews) it is sure to be a bit divisive.

If you want to be thoroughly annoyed for the first 40%, perplexed for the next 50%, and delighted (and wishing the whole book could have been like this) for the last few chapters and epilogue, go ahead and add this to your TBR. But really it’s not worth your time.

Thanks for the ARC NetGalley.

From the description, this sounded like a book that I would really enjoy. A trio of women, a castle in Scotland, everything pointed in the direction of this being a fun read. I tried to get into it, but I just couldn’t, and it was not for lack of trying, because I started it three times. I’ve not read this author before, so I’m not familiar with what she’s done in the past, perhaps that would have helped with my reading of this book. I just wasn’t engaged.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced digital copy for review. I wish I would’ve liked it more than I did. I just didn’t.

Rating 3.5
Three writers, a castle, and … a murder, what could be better?

This story written by three writers about three writers writing a story starts out as a slow burn. Unlike many other stories that jump straight into the murder then provide the backstories, the reader is provided with the backstories first. Hang in and get through that and you're rewarded with a witty murder with interesting characters.

This is story is about three writers pretending to be besties (not sure why that was important) going to a castle for a writer's retreat but that is not the real reason. While the themes running through are mature they are handled well and with a light touch. There are lighter moments interspersed to balance the drama (can we say pantaboots).

Throughout, each chapter is from a specific point-of-view which helps keep track of what is going on. I like that the story was cohesive and didn't feel like it was written by three people. There are parts of the book summary that don't seem to fit and others that are spot on.

Cassie - kept surprising me. She was a bit anxious and driving people nuts about not having good cellphone and wifi coverage to get in contact with her family (husband and six kids)
Emma - was very analytical and it turns out for good reason.
Kat - not nearly as shallow as she comes across in the beginning.

Their friendship became a self-fulfilling prophecy. As read about it, my mind casted back to how some of my friends and I became such. It was well written.

There are a few unexpected twists that in hindsight (it's 20-20 right) that were facepalm obvious but were enjoyable nonetheless. At one point, Kat comments how there was no Poirot (as in Hercule Poirot) moment where everything was explained. I get that as there were a couple of things that still now after rereading a few sections I am not 100% sure how they happened but have surmised enough to let it go.

As mentioned earlier this story has some mature themes but also some very poignant points and observations about society (Kat's book descriptions especially). It provides lots to contemplate while enjoying a well written whodunit in a castle haunted with sins of the past threatening to become sins of the present.

Power through the first third of the book and you won't regret it.

Happy Reading!
Thank you to #NetGalley for the opportunity to do an early read and share my thoughts on the story.

3.75 stars rounded up to 4!

One think about me is I love books about books and reading about authors solving mysteries. Therefore, I knew this was going to be a bit of me. Overall, I think it really delivered in that aspect, but I would say if you're looking for an Agatha Christie locked roomed mystery this isn't it. I felt like the first half of the book was a bit slow and a lot of setup, but then once the mystery really started going we hit our stride. I thought it was fun that we had three different writer main characters (which I'm assuming each of the authors wrote) and it felt like the book was still very cohesive.

I unfortunately was really not a fan of any of the romance in this book. It felt like everyone saw each other once and were like oh I'm immediately into this person and I just didn't care.

What I really did enjoy was the friendship aspect in this book, and there was a part in the end that was very campy and kind of reminded me of See How They Run which I enjoyed. I would definitely read more from this author collaboration!

Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

LOVED IT!! I saw a review before I was able to start reading it that didn’t appreciate the self-deprecating aspect of it, but I thought that was great! Three authors writing about three authors, fun! And it wasn’t cheesy and lame either, it was well done and funny! I liked all the characters and their differences and liked seeing how each character developed. I tried to slow down to read it and stretch the enjoyment but I’m pretty sure I ruined that and finished it much faster than I would have liked. Usually I can tell the difference when each of these authors switches it up, but this time I couldn’t tell at all - another huge plus. All I can say is more please!! Will absolutely be an annoying reader and ask, when can we have the next one!!? because I so enjoy reading your work, and eagerly await for your next. Thank you!!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow Publishing for a chance to read and review. This is set for release 11/2024. It will most surely be purchased for my library.

Set in Scotland, three American authors come together to collaborate on a novel. The cozy mystery starts when a murder is discovered, and our three literary ladies might be suspects.

Together they take on the investigation and stumble upon so much fun you will absolutely laugh out loud. There's a great twists and even some sweet romance.

I am excited to find this isn't these authors (the 3 Ws) first collab, and again, I'm guilty of adding more to my TBR.