This book is another gem from author Janice Hallett. Not only does she manage to write an intricate and unique plot but her distinctive writing style of revealing the plot through emails, message board posts, essays, and texts, keeps me hooked.

In The Examiner, we have six art students coming together as part of a new Master's class at a university. The reader follows along as they complete assignments and group projects while learning about the class and each other. Something else, more sinister, is going on though, and one or more of the students is involved. But, who? Why? What does it have to do with an art class?

Once you finish reading this book, as with Hallett's other books, you will immediately want to start over to see what you missed, where, and how you weren't able to figure it out in the end.

Some readers may be thrown off by the length of this book and it does drag at certain parts, but that is a necessity due to some scenes and parts being revisited after a reveal has been made. Additionally, Hallett , in my opinion, gives more depth to these characters verses some of her previous works. Also keep in mind that in everyday life, conversations have plenty of off topic variety and if these emails and messages were solely plot based, it would give the game away.

If I had to pick a gripe, it would be there are several random coincidences upon which several parts of the plot hinge but, to be fair, I've definitely seen worse from other books.

In all, this work is brilliantly done and I think you will find it a captivating read.

I really enjoy the way Janice Hallett writes her books, where the story is told in the form of emails, news articles, web sites, etc. It really makes the story roll along quickly, so I was excited to dive into her new book The Examiner. As with many of her books, there is a large cast of characters, but Hallett is great at developing her characters so that the reader can quickly learn them and tell them apart. I was very into this story of an art MA program where one of the students perhaps disappears....or worse. However, at about 70% the plot started to feel really convoluted and I found myself checking out of the story. It just got kind of strange, and I stopped caring. I did finish reading the book and still gave it 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ To me, the plot kind of fell apart and just started to feel
overly complicated. Not my favorite, but I will definitely continue to read Janice Hallett's books.

This was my first book by Janice Hallett and I absolutely loved the format of being told through texts, emails, chat group posts etc. Unfortunately I didn’t love the book overall as much as I had hoped to. It’s hard to put my finger on why, but it might be partially that I didn’t really connect with the subject matter of academia/art/technology. I did enjoy the twists and turns. I definitely want to read other books written by this author, especially if they are told in a similar format.

Janice has done it again with another whodunnit mystery! This book had a little hidden detail that really makes you go back and reread parts to see how it changed your viewpoint. It was Glass Onion esque. She does a great job giving her characters such personalities that make you annoyed or trust them. Overall it was an amazing read, and one I will read again!

This book was so much fun. It was so hard to put down to do anything else. I was constantly thinking and guessing trying to figure out what is going on in this book! I loved the mixed media. I’ve never read a book with that before. It’s a little hard to do that on kindle but I bet reading a physical copy would be a much better execution. I really enjoyed the author’s writing style as well. Overall, well done!


Thank you to author Janice Hallett, publisher Atria Books, and NetGalley for an ARC for a review of this book

3.5 stars, rounded up
Janice Hallett has once again created a mixed media novel which grabbed my attention. This time, an examiner is reviewing the work from a master’s of fine art class which handles commercial mixed media art. There are six students in the class. And a more diverse group of students couldn’t be found, from the just off her bachelor’s program 21 year old to the 58 year old man who owns his own art supply store and wants to try one last thing before retirement.
The examiner has been assigned to review the work and confirm the grades given by Gela, the professor. Like the examiner, we are also privy to the emails, Doodle interactions, texts, papers, the professor’s grades and summaries.
From the beginning, there’s friction. Accusations are made, things go missing, cheating occurs. But did something even more sinister happen? That’s the other thing the examiner (and yes, we, the readers) must try to figure out.
Hallett’s style is unique and I think it’s one you either love or hate. I love it. If you liked her other work, you’ll enjoy this. It’s not straight line storytelling. It’s fun entertainment but also forces you to think. Characters are unlikeable and unreliable but they were all real. It was obvious things weren’t as they appeared, but I had no idea what was going on. This requires a lot of attention.
Now, I did find the ending to be a bit nonsensical and OTT. But it was fun getting to that point.
I really appreciated her Author’s Note, because so much of what she said rang true. As an English Major, I never understood why so many businesses turn their noses up at a major that teaches you how to think and ask questions. And as someone who endured her share of professional training classes, I totally understand her comment about how they “sapped my will to live.”
My thanks to Netgalley and Atria for an advance copy of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I had not read any books by this author before but my fiancé read The Appeal on a plane ride once. When I saw that her next book was available, I figured I should give it a shot.

All I can say is wow. I love this style of story telling. The voyeuristic nature of an epistolary novel really draws you in. I enjoyed figured things out as I went and being able to go back and remember the clues when things were revealed.

There were elements of this story that were a bit darker and grosser than I was expecting. Not a book I would recommend reading right before bed, as I have.

Overall, an interesting read. I would definitely read whatever’s next (but maybe after letting someone else read it first.)

4 stars

I received a free e-arc through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. The premise of this book sounded fascinating as a whodunit. I'll admit that I didn't love the format of the book told in messages and found that a bit annoying, but the content of the book pulled me in so it was able to keep my attention until the end. It has a lot of action and intrigue and behind the scenes subterfuge that they let the reader know about in bits and pieces. It was a different, but good read.

I love reading anything by Janice Hallett and The Examiner is no exception. This was quick and entertaining read told in epistolary style following a group of students working on a Masters Art course. The mystery was good and kept you guessing till the end. I want to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I love Hallett's writing style which consists of the reader trying to solve a mystery based on emails, texts, notes, diary entries of all the characters. This is her most recent book and unfortunately it didn't have the same spark as the others. For me it boils down to the actual crime and why it was committed and I just didn't find it interesting enough.

The newest Janice Hallett novel, The Examiner, is a witty & satisfying mystery revolving around a Master’s level art class, a diverse group of students all with their own agenda, a murder and a cover up. I’m such a fan of this author’s unique voice & writing style. This was a quick read because I couldn’t put it down!

I would give this a 3.5. I love this format of telling a story, I love the different media transcripts. It is so different from normal books, so it is a great way to bring some fun into reading. The mystery of who the missing student ended up being did a great job of not being able to be predicted until it was revealed, which is perfect for me as I love not being able to figure things out. I also enjoyed the character development in Jem and see her grow. Patrick however is my favorite character, and I wish his life had been easier for him, even if most of his issues were a result of his actions. The plot line was kind of iffy for me, I don't love art enough to relate to that part of the story. The radio piece was interesting and kind of shocking, but was not as mysterious as it was originally presented to be. The bit where they were trying to cover up for Cameron, and prevent any discovery seemed like a lot of extra work, and like they could have done something smarter. I don't understand how they couldn't have figured out his phone to turn off the security details, especially as people so well versed with tech. I was kind of confused by the lack of intelligence shown by people who are supposed to be smart.

What a wild ride. Normally I enjoy the mixed media layout of a book, but this one took me for a loop. I am still trying to wrap my head around what actually happened. I found myself in a major slump while reading this because it took so much energy and willpower to keep going. I hated Jem she was absolutely insufferable, the exact type of person I would avoid at all costs. I found myself wishing someone would trip her down some stairs, sad but true. Other times I found this “course” to be such a joke I can’t imagine anyone would have passed it given the leniencies awarded to these students. All in all much like the students of the MA, I’m glad it’s over.

What an interesting book! This was my first book by author Janet Hall. She has an unconventional way of unfolding a plot. This mystery is told through emails and message board correspondence. There’s nothing conventional about this book and its style will captivate mystery fans who desire something more than the average run-of-the-mill who-dunnit-it. It kept me engaged and kept me guessing. What more could you ask for from a mystery?

Another hit straight out of the park for me. This author wins most times using their mixed media method of story telling. Not always, but this is the case where that is true.

This was my first introduction to Janice Hallett, and all I knew was that she writes in unconventional ways to convey a story. Other than that, I didn't know what to expect!

All in all, the storyline here is quite unbelievable when all is revealed - but I'm not reading for something realistic! I found it quite enjoyable and I couldn't put this down. I really came to enjoy getting to know each of the characters, and once I thought I'd figured out what was going on, something would come up that proved me wrong (yet again) and I'd be sucked back in to find out what truly happened.

I greatly enjoyed this first introduction to Janice Hallett's work, and will definitely read her others!

There came a point about 2/3 of the way through that I could not put the book down and was constantly thinking about it.
The story follows a group of 6 mixed media art masters students and their tutor, though quickly you realize that something went wrong in their course.
The story jumps in timeline a bit, even including parts with the external examiners discussing what theyve read and their theories. The novel does a good job of making you feel like you are the examiner.
All in all this novel was a solid whodunnit story where you don't even know what you're looking for until you've passed the half way mark. This was a well done mixed media story with a handful of twists I genuinely did not see coming. Because of the format it was a quick read that was difficult to put down.
4.25/5

The Examiner is a mystery told through emails and message board correspondence. I really enjoyed Janice Hollet's book The Appeal and was looking forward to another story in her unconventional style.

While The Examiner was an easy and fun mystery, I felt more detached from the characters and subject than in her previous works. The book follows an MA Fine Arts course examination and the students' conversations that hint at a crime. The characters were hyperbolic and worked too hard to fit stereotypical personalities. The coursework played a big part in the narrative, and I found the niche subject matter a bit boring.

📚 Readability 4/5 ⭐️'s
📚 Writing Style 3/5 ⭐️'s
📚 Character Development 2/5 ⭐️'s
📚 Plot 2/5 ⭐️'s
📚 Gut Rating 3/5 ⭐️'s

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of The Examiner

I really enjoyed The Examiner. Told through emails, text messages, and essays, it follows a group of students in an art master’s program that goes dangerously off course.

I couldn’t figure out what would happen next, and it is by far one of the best books I’ve read this year! 5++/5 stars, no doubt.

Rating: 3.5 - 4 stars
Format: ebook*

Highlights:
⭐️Plot was quickly engaging & fast-pace enough that I binged this read in 24 hours.
⭐️The writing style of this novel consists of message board posts/instant messages/emails between our main protagonists as the mystery/crime unfolds for the reader. I was not expecting the story to be written out like this & was at first worried it would be confusing following the plot. Everything flowed very well & there was no backtracking at all.
⭐️Plot twists were blinding! I was not at all expecting the major twists & turns that unfolded as I was reading.
⭐️All characters were very different & stood apart from each other.