The style of this book may not be for every reader, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one! I loved that the author speaks to the reader to tell you what you may be thinking and to really pay attention to certain things. There were a lot of characters to keep track of and plenty of humor and sarcasm. I thought this book was so well done that I wasn't even mad at the ending.

The “who done it” for the connoisseur of “who done its,” West Heart Kill is an ode to the genre! The mystery plays with form, presents an interspersed history of the genre, and entertains with the “greatest hits.” This is not a forgettable, pulp murder mystery- McDorman blasts down the fourth wall with great success and delights the reader by really playing with and pushing the limits of what a murder mystery can and should be.

Two and one-half stars

Review of eBook

In upstate New York, private detective Adam McAnnis arrives at West Heart, an exclusive hunting club, to meet up with James Blake. Friends since their college days, Adam has joined James for some hunting over the Bicentennial weekend.

The club, established by earlier generations, was once a bastion of wealth. But now the members are trying to decide between selling the club and bringing in a new, very rich, member.

When a storm makes the only two roads in and out of West Heart impassable, it isn’t long before the power goes out. And then the bodies start piling up.

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The author of this “locked room” mystery frequently interrupts the telling of the tale with supposed-to-be-clever asides that generally seem condescending and presumptuous. As a result, the book seems to be part mystery, part textbook, and part treatise on the murder mystery genre.

It is likely that readers are not going to appreciate the author “stepping out” of the telling of the tale to tell them what they should be thinking about the unfolding story. And the crude, unnecessary language will be offensive to many readers. But the switch from story to play is probably something akin to the final straw.

For readers who enjoy meta mysteries, this very creative tale is definitely worth a look. But most readers are likely to find it confusing, frustrating, and disjointed.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, Knopf and NetGalley
#WestHeartKill #NetGalley

Very meta to the point of pulling away from the characters. None of which were very lovable or were we told enough about to be able to draw a conclusion. The writing style kept you intrigued by the whole thing fell felt.

West Heart Kill isn’t a mystery novel like other mystery novels. Well, or it is. Well, or it is about all other mystery novels. Set at the hunting club of West Heart, our author takes us on a journey through the history of mystery novels as he unveils the secrets and bodies that pile up over the July 4th holiday at this remote club. It’s a very meta take on the genre that is so well loved by many. You, the reader, are a character in this account of neighborly friendship gone awry. Will you (or anyone) solve all the puzzles? What tropes, cliches, or clever tricks will you find along the way?

To be honest, I’m not sure how I feel about this book. Parts of it were 5-star and out of the park for me. From the cover design that harkens to old Christie novels and the opening of character listings to the locked-room scenario…it hit all those notes spot on. Other sections or ideas felt trite and an overreach in the name of being unique and groundbreaking. (I’m looking at you room 302.) West Heart Kill reads like an academic paper presented as a mystery novel. While I think that will work for those of us who are super super super well read in the genre, I think casual readers will quickly look for another book to entertain them. When all was said and done, I appreciated what the author was trying to do, but I’m not sure that he “landed the plane” for me. But, that’s just my opinion. What, dear reader, do you think? That’s what West Heart Kill is about, after all…

Very enjoyable read. Will be easy to recommend to many different kinds of readers. I’d like to read more from this author.

“West Heart Kill” is a murder mystery that takes place in 1975 on the grounds of a private club/hunting preserve owned by a number of wealthy families for many years.

Unfortunately, I found it very difficult to engage with this novel. It has a number of characters, many of whom are not all that well described and thus difficult to keep straight. In any event, none of them are particularly likable or admirable. Many seem dissolute.

I found the writing problematic. While the prose and dialogue are well-written, indeed erudite, the author often breaks through the “fourth wall” that’s supposed to separate the reader from the novel (or the playgoer from the play) to explain to the reader what he or she might or should be thinking about the mystery. At times, I thought I was reading a Ph.D. dissertation on Mystery as a literary genre. Perhaps, devotees of the murder mystery will find this clever or amusing. Being only a casual reader of mysteries, I found it so intrusive and interruptive of the story itself that a third of the way through I realized I couldn’t care less about who had killed whom. Which is when I stopped reading.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with an electronic ARC. The foregoing is my honest, independent opinion.

West Heart is a hunting club, where dead bodies keep turning up over a holiday weekend. But there's a detective on site!
This novel is different from most mystery thrillers I'm used to, but it just wasn't for me. It was setup as different books with in the novel. The story itself is broken up by passages on the history of mysteries, as well as plethora of literary references and stories I wasn't familiar with. The author kept telling me what I should be thinking and feeling, which didn't necessarily match my personal reactions. This made for a confusing read.
Reading this book felt like being in a classroom of a teacher you really like, but just not at all interested in the content of the class. The author has a knowledgeable, quirky, writing style, but the book just wasn't for me.
Thank you, Netgalley, publisher, and author for the ARC.

I love a good murder mystery! The writing style of this book is very unique and peaked my interest. The story flowed well and It kept me guessing until the end. I am looking forward to reading more books by this author. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review.

West Heart Kill is a hunting camp, decades old, run and operated by a group of families who have made this quiet, remote place in the woods their private getaway from their ordinary lives. There is just one road into West Heart Kill, so during and after a damaging storm, it would seem to be a perfect place to stage a locked room mystery. (By the way, the word kill is a dutch term for a body of water.)

This particular mystery was written in a way I’ve never encountered before. It’s a high concept sort of mystery novel, mixing points of view and passing around the narration baton. It’s also a meta novel, with the author letting us into some of the process. Reader is also a character.

For me, unfortunately, this creative style obscured the mystery. The character development in many mysteries isn’t deep, but when the writer leaves the story to wander down another path for a bit, it can make it hard for Reader to focus on the facts about the West Heart Kill denizens.
In addition, these asides killed the pace of the story. Even though I thought the information the author related was interesting, it sometimes felt like an intrusion. The ending was both intriguing and jarring.

Overall, this mystery did not keep my attention very well because of the pacing problems and my lack of interest for the characters. I was impressed with its creativity, but it served to bog down this novel more than it added interest. The writing style was pleasing, however, and I would be interested in reading more from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for letting me preview this mystery.

I could not finish this book. After a quarter of the way through the book, I still could not grasp what the point was going to be with the plot.

Reasons why I couldn’t finish: the writing style is commonly written to you, the reader, in a way to make you try to think a certain a way. At first I thought this was intriguing, but I felt it to be confusing and messy. Second, there is a large list of characters and I could not keep track of them.

I felt like this book was a puzzle. It may be for some because it’s a unique way of telling a story, but it didn’t work for me.

This book was just not for me. It was nothing like a classic mystery. This read more like an instruction manual for writing a mystery, and as a reader I don't want instructions, I just want to get lost in the story. I found it hard to follow and I just couldn't get into the story.

Dann McDorman has truly conceived of a novel mystery with West Heart Kill. This happens so rarely, that I couldn’t help but keep reading.
I give huge credit for allowing novelty to flow rather than following typical formatting. I did not feel like the overall story provided room to truly know or attach oneself to any particular character. This is my only complaint, and it will be a null one if you prefer a driving story over befriending characters.
I highly recommend giving this a try. Its novelty is commendable.

My thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for allowing access to a digital ARC for the purpose of review.

West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman
200 pages (arc copy)
Publish date: October 24,2023
Publisher Knopf

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for this ARC copy to review 💕

“West Heart Kill” is truly a mystery novel unlike any I have read before. This murder mystery takes place at a hunting lodge over 4 days. We follow a private detective who went along with an old college friend to this lodge for their big bicentennial hunting weekend. The narrative style is unique, I’ve seen it described as a “meta-murder mystery” and I would agree. The structure is unique, there’s sections not directly a part of story telling that at times I was intrigued to read and others I felt like it was like reading a research paper.
As far as characters go I was not attached to any specifically, I didn’t necessarily find any particularly interesting but the story moves so fast, that didn’t matter as much to me.
Overall I enjoyed the book, there’s a section at the end where the structure really changes and I was able to fly through the last 20 or so pages. I would recommend if “meta” style or “genre-awareness” type books and mysteries. I won’t say how I felt about the end as I don’t want to give any hint of spoiling it but at 200 pages it is a quick read, worth checking out if this genre is your thing!

West Heart Kill was an interesting concept, but not overly well executed. We all know the cliché: the "Good Old Boys" Club with antiquated ideals, the infiltration, the corruption and scandal, and finally....the murder.

I thought that the style of West Heart Kill was extremely unique. It reads almost like if the old Clue movie was a book that had a baby with a play. It has the same almost over the top satirical style of Clue and the 4th wall breaking narrative of a play. Really interesting for a book, however, it didn't allow me to get a good sense of the characters.

I don't feel like I got to know these characters at all. There were so many and I don't think I could even name half of them, let alone their relationships to each other. I never felt like I had good descriptions and a sense for who they are, so none of them solidified as characters in my mind. I couldn't feel bad about the deaths other than a passing vague sympathy because there was nothing there for me to feel. I really wanted these characters to develop more and be more of a focus so I could have a good understanding of things.

The mechanic of not revealing the murderer in the end is frustrating; I didn't enjoy it at all. It struck me as lazy and uninterested in finishing the story. The entire book struck me as very highbrow, like I needed to be at a certain IQ level to read it. Unfortunately for me, I don't think I was. I couldn't figure out who did what or what the secrets are, though clearly I wasn't meant to if the ending is any indication. It was hard for me to keep up with the story due to the sheer amount of random exposition about things only tangentially related to the book. I felt that as soon as something was happening, we took a 180 and went off on a long tangent on the history of literary concepts in literature, espousing the virtues of other mystery books, etc. Once the action resumed, there were times I struggled to remember what I had left it on.

This has a lot of potential to be something new and genre-defining. But as it sits, only those who are much smarter than me will have any solid merit from this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the early review copy. All opinions in this review are my own.

I am not sure what I expected from West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman but something different than this story. I did expect there to be red herrings which there was. A locked room, how did it happen, not just who did it story which it was also. The format and style are definitely a unique read. So there is much to like in this story except for one critical piece for me as the reader.

I did not care for the way the story stops, starts a play with the reader having a part. Novelty yes, but just not my favorite way to read a story. A bold new voice in mystery but with a style that will need to be acquired by some. One last thought my copy is an uncorrected copy so perhaps the final is not this way at all.

The publisher through Net Galley provided a complimentary digital copy. I have voluntarily decided to read and review, giving my personal opinions and thoughts.

Despite my initial excitement as I delved between the pages of “West Heart Kill,” this book ultimately missed the mark. While I appreciate the author’s efforts in delivering a murder mystery boasting quite the unique spin, the book as a whole just didn’t work for me. The disjointed storyline was often times confusing, and I quickly became bored with the narrative. While I did find some portions of this story engaging, overall, it was a struggle to finish. I’m sure this book will appeal to many mystery enthusiasts, but it just wasn’t the right fit for me.

Mans-planing! I felt like the author was mansplaining the whole novel. I appreciate the different approach but the novel was just not my idea of a good mystery. I liked the background on mysteries he gave throughout.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book for my honest review

I did not like the format of this book. There was too much explaining how a mystery is written interspaced with the story. Sorry I do not recommend this book

Thank you to NetGalley, Dann McDorman and Knopf for an advance copy of West Heart Kill in exchange for an honest review. This review is wholly my own (except quotations) and may not be reproduced.

I had not previously heard of this author or title, but the description grabbed my attention. After some quick research, I learned that this is a debut for Mr. McDorman and I'm honored to have been able to do an early read & review. I love mystery/thriller/suspense stories above all others!

"An isolated hunt club. A raging storm. Three corpses, discovered within four days. A cast of monied, scheming, unfaithful characters.

When private detective Adam McAnnis joins an old college friend for the Bicentennial weekend at the exclusive West Heart club in upstate New York, he finds himself among a set of not-entirely-friendly strangers. Then the body of one of the members is found at the lake’s edge; hours later, a major storm hits. By the time power is restored on Sunday, two more people will be dead.

The elements of the classic murder mystery are all present in West Heart Kill, but it’s the daring structure and mischievously subversive narration that set this debut apart. This is no ordinary whodunit. Both an homage to the masters of the genre, and a wholly original spin on the form, it’s a sheer delight from start to finish."

This was my first encounter with a "meta murder mystery" and I am on the fence about the encounter. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. It was different than what I'm used to, so it wasn't a super easy read for me. The author, you will be able to tell, is extremely talented. His style of writing, I think, will resonate with a very specific audience. If you're part of that audience, you will think this story is absolutely brilliant and if you're not, then you'll either be on the fence (like me) or hate it.

Then ending (last 1/4 - 1/3 of the book) is where it lost me. It was just too ridiculous and absurd.

The homage paid to all the classic mysteries was a nice touch though.

I'm going down the middle with 3 stars on this one. I'll likely do a feature on my social media, but not a review, as I do think this book will appeal to a specific group of people.