I was intrigued by the idea of this book: a mystery novel in which the classic elements of a mystery novel are examined as you read the book. I actually enjoyed the actual plot and the characters in the book. The constant fourth wall breaking was interesting in the beginning as well. I found, however, that the sections that were mere explanations of various mystery tropes detracting from the story. Things got really strange at the end and while the action of the actual story revved up...the ultimate answer to the mystery? Well it just wasn't. This book seems to have very mixed reviews on Goodreads so maybe it works for some, unfortunately it just didn't for me.

An electrifying western thriller that grabs you from the first page and doesn't let go. Gripping plot, vivid setting, and unforgettable characters make it a must-read for fans of the genre.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor Publishing for giving me an advance copy. All thoughts and opinions are mine!

DNF at 12%. I think this one is really going to be a personal preference book. Yes, I know as a reviewer that all books come down to personal preference but it feels more true with this book.


I knew when I picked it up that the style would be more meta-textural style and that it won't move in the standard of mysteries. I approached it, ready for the ride but unfortunately, the book's tone really put me off. There are two "narrators", a third-person narrator following McAnnis, our lead, and a second-person narrator that directly addresses the audience and is fully aware that this is a murder mystery.

This second-person narration is what puts me off because it's not inviting or enticing. It's too teasing and a little too "Oh, aren't I clever?" at times. It feels less enticing and more like someone trying too hard to seem mysterious and quirky.

When the narrator switched to the third-person and a more traditional style, it was easier to flow with the book but the moment it shifted, it just pulled me out of it. Yes, I know McDorrman is trying something different intentionally here. I'm just not a fan of it.

Maybe if I heard this book on audiobook, I'd be more forgiving, especially with a skilled voice actor.

If this book rocks your world, I wouldn't be shocked but for me, the tone isn't my cup of tea.

(That said, there's a character who seems cunning named Meredith Blake and I need someone else to tell me if they immediately thought of The Parent Trap remake. Just me? That's fair)


TW: Alcholism, ableist phrases, mentions of forced institutionalism.

“West Heart Kill” has an unconventional structure much like “Everyone in This Family Has Killed Someone” or “Knives Out” — a second person meta mystery apparently meant as an homage to the genre that includes the reader in the solving the mystery It takes some getting used to and, in fact, within the first pages the narrator outrightly suggests “it’s not exactly what you’re looking for from a mystery.” The change in narrative styles can be irritating at times (including an annoying questionnaire asking you to vote for potential victims and perpetrators), but for the central plot, we have a detective hired by an unknown person to look for anything unusual at a hunting lodge during a stormy bicentennial weekend in 1976. The unusual eventually includes a suicide, unraveling backstories, and two more corpses. Of course, with the changes in viewpoints, the possibility that there’s an “unreliable narrator” is ever present.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. The uniqueness of the storytelling is what makes “West Heart Kill” noteworthy. As a mystery, however, it’s commendable but not as thrilling as I hoped for.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO The closest to green eyes are Jane’s hazel ones.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO, The book actually opens with this quote: “That corpse you planted last year in your garden, has it begun to sprout?”

What intrigued me about this book was the summary promising a remote location, several guests, a murder, and everyone is a suspect…Quite like Agatha Christie…

I don’t want to seem unkind or overly critical, but I could not go past the first 50 pages. The writing is brilliant, but there are so many characters and subplots, and the copious descriptions of what goes on in the protagonists’ mind that I was feeling like I could not grasp everything that was thrown at me at every turn… I finally decided that I read for fun, and I was not having fun, but was rather trying to learn in school, and my teacher was drifting from one subject to another.

This book is definitely the work of a most detail-oriented author who has done a lot of research to include period appropriate facts…but for me there were too many details that did not help the storyline.
This book was made available to me by NetGalley to read and post an honest review. Thank you.

West Heart Kill is a very, very meta murder mystery.

The mystery itself is set up like a classic "locked room murder" focusing on the guests at a hunting lodge in the 70s, cut off from the public after a storm washes the bridge out. Shortly afterwards, the bodies start piling up, and our detective must figure out the who, why, and how before it's too late....

It brazenly dissects its own tropes and our acceptance and obsession with violence and murder in the written word, breaking the fourth wall, jumping from perspective to perspective, and actually incorporating the reader into the dialogue at certain points. While I found the construction of the book and the informational vignettes fascinating and absolutely brilliant, I can definitely see this one being tough for anyone who goes into it hoping for a simple whodunit.

The ending was utterly unique, and left me feeling both deeply unsatisfied and wildly appreciative for the commitment to deconstruction of the genre, ruthlessly highlighting our hardwired need for a tidy ending, particularly within this formula of storytelling. It both is and is not hard to review this one without giving everything away, and while I can't say I would recommend this book for your summer reading, I think die-hard murder mystery fans or readers who appreciate uniquely constructed narratives are going to find this one very interesting.

West Hill Country Club is an unusual place, a remote hunting lodge where everyone is a suspect. Private detective Adam McAnnis joins an old friend for the weekend and a body is found then before the end of the weekend two more are found. Fun mystery!

This book just wasn’t for me, the writing style was unique but there was just a lot going on. I found myself confused and a little overwhelmed.

The description made me want to read this book but it is not keeping my attention. It had alot going on and I could not keep up, I was confused.

What an odd book. And an amazing read. I couldn’t pause from turning each page. The storytelling defies genres and the author breaks the fourth wall so to speak, which was at first distracting but ultimately serves the book well. I recommend.

If you love a locked room murder mystery and an unreliable narrator, you'll love West Heart Kill! I loved the setting and McDorman is a cool, new voice in mysteries.

West Heart Kill is a twist of a story. There’s at least 4 layers of story here, that switches between story, perspective changes, a play, and mystery backgrounds and tropes. Personally, it was a lot of me. Part of that may have been due to reading another mystery book concurrently with this one. This didn’t hit the mark for me, but I also like my mysteries to be a little more…direct? Smarter readers may enjoy this one more, but this book gave me enough interest where I’ll still probably pick up the next one and see if I can figure that one out. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

This started off strong with a detective traveling to a mysterious club on an assignment unknown to the reader. Not too far in, we are presented with a list of characters and their basic relationships to each other. This is where the story started to fall off for me. I felt like the author didn't take time to develop each character well, which made them challenging to keep straight.

Much of the story is spent bouncing around between characters without gleaning much useful information. It was one of the hardest books to follow that I've encountered. If I had purchased this book, I would have stopped about a third of the way in and given up on the story, but I wanted to push through since this was an ARC provided by the publisher. After finishing the book, I'm still not entirely sure what exactly happened, or who's responsible. This might be better off as an actual screenplay instead of a book that switches into a screenplay towards the end.

I loved the setting of this book, and the overall concept, but the actual delivery fell short for me.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading West Heart Kill and highly recommend it to any devoted fan of murder mystery fiction. The ending is truly unique, in my experience, which is very rare. Overall this was an exciting read that kept me interested throughout.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I had a hard time getting through this book — the style was very interesting and I’ve never seen it done in such a meta way before, but it got to be a bit annoying after a while.

The narration style is unique and different from the usual books I read. It skips between an unseen narrator and the detective, McAnnis. I prefer the parts following McAnnis, as it is more traditional and easier for me to read. There are a lot of suspects in this rich man's enclave, and sometimes it's difficult for me to remember who's who. Towards the middle, the book became more interesting and fun to read. But the ending was a total disappointment and not satisfying.

I received a free copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

While I enjoy a good mystery - and West Heart Kill has all the attributes of one - this book jumped around a bit for me. I've been reading mysteries for decades, and there are many parts of West Heart Kill that drew me in...the setting, the suspects, the body count during a storm, but then the book did a 180 toward the end and turned into basically a script. It was jarring for this seasoned mystery reader. That said, I still think it is worth giving a go. Definitely more pros than cons. I was given a complimentary copy of this book, but my opinion is entirely my own.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing a free ARC of this title in exchange for my review.

I have no idea what this book is, wants to be, or thinks it is. It was all over the place. One reviewer called it a love letter to detective mysteries, and that's a better description than I can come up with. There's probably a good story somewhere in this book, but I got so distracted by being taught how to write a mystery novel or being in a play to really enjoy the actual mystery.

I guess the author was trying something new, to make a name for themselves, but I was not a fan.

2 stars for 'it was ok'.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Unfortunately, this meta-mystery genre book did not work for me. I appreciate what the author was trying to do and the inventive style. However, the underlying mystery was not interesting and the style made it hard to follow (or care).

Thank you so much Netgalley for approving me to read this arc in exchange for a review.
This was such a fun read! Absolutely devoured this book.