How to Solve Your Own Murder: A Novel
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A Jimmy Fallon’s Book Club Finalist for 2024 | A Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist | A GMA Buzz Pick | A USA Today Bestseller
One of Jimmy Fallon's favorite books for Spring 2024, The Top LibraryReads pick for March 2024, A Publishers Marketplace 2024 BuzzBook, One of NPR's Books We Love
Frances Adams always said she’d be murdered. She was right.
In 1965, Frances Adams is at an English country fair where a fortune-teller makes a bone-chilling prediction: One day, Frances will be murdered. It is a prediction that sparks her life’s work—trying to solve a crime that hasn’t happened yet.
Nearly sixty years later, Annie Adams is summoned to a meeting at the sprawling country estate of her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, Frances is found murdered, just like she always said she would be. Annie is determined to catch the killer, but thanks to Frances’s lifelong habit of digging up secrets and lies, it seems every endearing and eccentric villager might just have a motive for her murder.
Can Annie safely unravel the dark mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will dredging up the past throw her into the path of a killer? As Annie gets closer to the truth, and closer to danger, she starts to fear she might inherit her aunt’s fate instead of her fortune.
A Jimmy Fallon’s Book Club Finalist for 2024 | A Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist | A GMA Buzz Pick | A USA Today Bestseller
One of Jimmy Fallon's favorite books for Spring 2024, The Top LibraryReads pick for March 2024, A Publishers Marketplace 2024 BuzzBook, One of NPR's Books We Love
Frances Adams always said she’d be murdered. She was right.
In 1965, Frances Adams is at an English country fair where a fortune-teller makes a bone-chilling prediction: One day, Frances will be murdered. It is a prediction that sparks her life’s work—trying to solve a crime that hasn’t happened yet.
Nearly sixty years later, Annie Adams is summoned to a meeting at the sprawling country estate of her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, Frances is found murdered, just like she always said she would be. Annie is determined to catch the killer, but thanks to Frances’s lifelong habit of digging up secrets and lies, it seems every endearing and eccentric villager might just have a motive for her murder.
Can Annie safely unravel the dark mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will dredging up the past throw her into the path of a killer? As Annie gets closer to the truth, and closer to danger, she starts to fear she might inherit her aunt’s fate instead of her fortune.
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Readers say *How to Solve Your Own Murder* is an engaging, cozy double-murder mystery with a unique fortune-teller’s prediction that sets a 60+ year q...
How to Solve Your Own Murder is a mystery about a woman determined to solve her own murder—before it happens. In 1965, Frances Adams visits a fortune teller who tells her she’ll be murdered. She spends the rest of her life obsessively preparing for the crime, but it’s not until sixty years later—after she’s actually killed—that her great-niece Annie finds a trail of clues left behind. Now, Annie must unravel Frances’s elaborate puzzle, navigate village secrets, and figure out who wanted her great-aunt dead.
So, I’ve been on a little mission—to read every Barnes & Noble monthly Mystery/Thriller pick. How to Solve Your Own Murder was their April selection, and I finally got around to reading it after putting it off for weeks. Honestly? I judged it hard by its cover. It didn’t scream thrilling or mysterious to me at all. But plot twist: the book totally delivered.
This isn’t your fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat thriller. It leans more into classic whodunit territory—think Clue meets Knives Out. The pacing starts slow, but once Great Aunt Frances dies (no spoiler, it’s in the title!), the story kicks into gear. Suddenly, it’s all about who killed her, why, and what secrets are buried in this quirky little family. The dual timeline structure really added depth to the story, revealing pieces of the puzzle from the past and present until it all clicks into place.
If you're into character-driven mysteries with a slow burn and clever twists, this one might be for you.
I received this DRC from NetGalley.
This is a fun mystery. I like that we get to see the Great Aunt's backstory through the diary chapters and that it's really two mysteries getting solved. I didn't guess the killer, but it made enough sense.
This is a fun mystery. I like that we get to see the Great Aunt's backstory through the diary chapters and that it's really two mysteries getting solved. I didn't guess the killer, but it made enough sense.
Enjoyed this book. Kept me guessing! Intriguing storyline and though some readers have reported getting confused with the number of characters and the time lines of past and present, I find these add interest to the book.
Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC of this book!
As with any murder mystery, a reviewer needs to be careful to not give too much away so I’ll try to stick to general information available in the first few pages.
I really enjoyed almost every character and the premise. It was very well-paced and well-written. Additionally, the jumping between the words of Frances (through her diary) and Annie (her grand niece) was done very well and didn’t feel gimmicky.
The only thing I do wish is that the diary read more like a diary (but that’s a common complaint I have for books using a dairy as a plot device).
Personally, I wish I could forget the book and read it again because I did find it quick, enjoyable, suspenseful, and a bit surprising. All the best components of a mystery. Would read this author again.
As with any murder mystery, a reviewer needs to be careful to not give too much away so I’ll try to stick to general information available in the first few pages.
I really enjoyed almost every character and the premise. It was very well-paced and well-written. Additionally, the jumping between the words of Frances (through her diary) and Annie (her grand niece) was done very well and didn’t feel gimmicky.
The only thing I do wish is that the diary read more like a diary (but that’s a common complaint I have for books using a dairy as a plot device).
Personally, I wish I could forget the book and read it again because I did find it quick, enjoyable, suspenseful, and a bit surprising. All the best components of a mystery. Would read this author again.
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