West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman is a 1970s murder mystery, Agatha Christie meets Stephen King. Long poetic descriptive scenes with very dialogue heavy interactions. When most murder mystery scenes seem to follow a recipe of sorts, this novel is open about switching from third to first person narratives - breaking the 4th wall so to speak. It is a very interesting and fresh dynamic. I’ll be honest and say it took me awhile to enjoy a new perspective. There’s a lot of introspection and name-dropping of all his influences. But by the end I’m glad I read this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dann McDorman for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of the more unique murder mystery books I have read. I enjoyed the authorial intrusion/breaking the fourth wall with all the explanations and break downs of the history of murder mystery stories and writers, but the actual mystery portion of the book got lost somewhere in there. With the over direction to the reader on what we should be focusing on I found I lost focus on the actual characters and plot of the book. This was just alright for me.

Unique murder mystery set in a remote hunting lodge where characters are trapped while bad weather rages and 3 corpses are discovered. I appreciated the premise of this book but found the writing style a bit difficult and tedious

⭐️⭐️

𝘼 𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙦𝙪𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙩 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙚 𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙤𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙨𝙪𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩, 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙙𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙚—𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙜𝙡𝙚𝙚𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙪𝙡𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚.

Ahhh, I’m so bummed I ended up not enjoying this book. I picked it up when it was a read now on NetGalley as it sounded so interesting. Unfortunately, I thought the premise was intriguing but the execution didn’t do it for me.

I always love a good mystery every now and then, however, I felt like the mystery element in this story wasn’t fully developed. There were so many characters that left me confused throughout the book. Also, I just feel like the writing wasn’t for me.

I think this book could’ve done with a lot less commentary. It just felt so random and scattered throughout. While I loved the setting of the book, the story as a whole wasn’t interesting in my opinion.

Overall, I don’t know who I would recommend this book to, but it wasn’t for me. The commentary itself ruined the vibes and I didn’t find myself intrigued by the mystery. There was also a sort of screenplay element to it that just added so much more confusion. I think the premise was interesting, but the story didn’t work for me

Thank you so much NetGalley and Knopf for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

This wasn't for me unfortunately. I think if I had read The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle prior to requesting this arc, I would not have indeed requested it because they reminded me of each other a fair amount and I did not like either of them. I am giving this three stars, though, because I think it's a strong debut with an interesting construction, just not for me.

This is a murder mystery in three parts, with two different narrators (one unknown), and the third act as a play. Take all that in. It's a lot. And though this book is fairly short, it dragged for me because I kept putting it down. I think it's such an original way to tell a story but this book didn't get it quite right.

The ending was also a little too ambiguous for my tastes.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC!

West Heart Kill is a great locked room mystery read with a fresh twist. I loved the narration and the fresh take on an old trope. I had fun reading this one and I recommend it.

The location: an elite hunting club resort held by the same families for decades.
The time: the Seventies
The strangers: a private eye and a prospective new member, who's Jewish
The deaths: nope, not giving that away

West Heart Kill playfully addresses so many tropes in classic mysteries. I mean, for real, omniscient narrator/author literally (no pun intended) points out the similarities to Agatha Christie, isolating storms, locked room murders, making the reader part of the mystery in a new fresh way, while keeping us entertained and trying to figure out who the murderer is, why, etc. It reads like the narrator has an encyclopedic memory of every murder book - and then we switch to the play. Much like Wes Anderson's Asteroid City is a play masquerading as a movie or vice versa, we are treated to the denouement of the suspects being grilled on stage. Is there a Greek Chorus or is it the dear reader as the audience?

This book is so very meta. I absolutely adored it and was astounded by this new take on murder.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for honest feedback.

West Heart Kill was too experimental for me. I found the writing style distracting. Ended up as a did not finish.

West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman is a debut historical mystery metafiction with mixed media elements.

Picture a murder mystery set at a remote hunting lodge in 1976... but also a treatise on creating a locked room mystery. It feels like Dirty Dancing meets Knives Out.

I can see why this book is so polarizing. I'm a big fan of metafiction, so this was right up my alley. I also love mixed media; this book offers a map, interview transcripts, and a play among others.

Chapters are long--with many subsections and POVs--and span what happens each individual day from Thursday to Sunday.

CW: animal death (page 28, not detailed), murder, suicide, suicidal ideation

This is a unique mystery. I liked the way it started out, with the narrator giving the reader insight into the mystery genre, the characters, etc. The style is fantastic. Then the next day (part 2 if you will) completely changes the writing style to first person from the detective's point of view. Every day the perspective changes. I really got lost when all of a sudden it switched to a play format. I'm not sure what the thought process was from the author with all these narrative switches. For me, the play format just didn't work as well.

The book started out with great promise, but I felt like the ending fizzled. I'm sure there are some people who get what the author was trying to do and really enjoyed this one. I'm just not one of them. LOL.

I did not finish this book. It isn’t that the premise wasn’t interesting, it was that I was not in the right mindset to read it. Maybe one day I will pick it up again, but I didn’t finish this book now.

West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman has great characters, a wonderful murder mystery storyline and intriguing plot points. This was my first book by this author and won't be my last.

I was so disappointed with this book. It was just not what I was wanting it to be.
I believe it was well written but something about it was off for me. I never received that WOW that I love with a good whodunnit story.

Thank you for this ARC. Sorry it was just not the book I was in the mood for.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Knopf for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. It’s available now in your local and online bookstores and libraries.

Adam McAnnis is a private investigator who’s been invited to West Heart country club over the Bicentennial July 4th weekend. When a storm hits West Heart, the residents are trapped, and before the weekend is over, three people will be dead.

I always love a locked room mystery, but this one was different. I’ve never read a book like this. It’s mostly a story of rich people behaving badly, which isn’t my favorite trope, but I do enjoy it at times. This was one of those times. The author is the narrator for a lot of the story and speaks directly to us, the readers. This book also contains a fascinating history of the murder mystery genre in general. I can see it being very polarizing because it’s so different, but I really enjoyed it. Recommend.

I thoroughly enjoyed "West Heart Kill," a gripping mystery novel that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. McDorman's masterful storytelling and attention to detail made it easy to become fully immersed in the world of the story.

One aspect that stood out to me was the well-developed and complex characters. The protagonist, in particular, was relatable and likable, making it easy to root for them throughout the investigation. The supporting cast added depth and intrigue to the narrative, and I found myself constantly guessing their motivations and allegiances.

The writing style was engaging, with short chapters that kept the pace quick and exciting. McDorman's use of descriptive language effectively transported me to the setting, and I appreciated the attention to detail regarding forensic science and criminal investigation. It added an extra layer of authenticity to the story, making it feel all the more believable.

I highly recommend "West Heart Kill" to fans of mystery novels. It's a well-crafted and suspenseful story that will keep you guessing until the very end. McDorman's writing is engaging, and the characters are well-developed, making this a satisfying read.

This novel by Dann McDorman was definitely different, but in a good way. Sometimes almost seemed non-fiction, but was very interesting. Great story, and great characters. Can't wait to read more from Dann McDorman. #WestHeartKill #NetGalley

At first, I was really enjoying this book. I thought the premise was neat with changing narrators and breaking the fourth wall. I was able to guess one of the victims at one point (mostly a lucky guess 😆). I was flying through the pages. But about two-thirds through it started dragging for me and I found myself setting it down for days at a time. I slogged through the end, and had some regret after doing so.

Bottom line; started off promising, but fell (very) flat for me in the second half.

Written in a unique style, McDorman takes a locked room mystery in an entirely new direction, one that will either thrill you or annoy you. Being in the latter category, I wasn’t overly fond of this book although others will thoroughly enjoy it. Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Look, so, my problem isn't the format, which was at least interesting. It isn't the quasi resolution that was and wasn't. My issue is the goddamn Nazi's. How fucking cheap.