When her great aunt Frances changes her will to make her sole inheritor, Annie travels to Frances's village to meet her great aunt for the first time only to find herself embroiled in a competition to solve Frances's murder. A funny and compelling mystery for fans of the Thursday Murder Club and Everyone on this Train is a Suspect.

“Your future contains dry bones. Your slow demise begins right when you hold the Queen in the palm of your hand. Beware the bird, for it will betray you. And, from that, there is no coming back. But daughters are the key to justice, find the right one and keep her close. All signs point toward your murder.”

‘How to Solve Your Own Murder' by Kristen Perrin kicks off with 16-year-old Frances visiting a fortune teller with her two best friends at a local fair. France’s fortune is that she's going to be murdered, however, it won't happen for another 60 years. In her will, Frances leaves her entire fortune to whoever can figure out who killed her first. Frances' great-niece Annie, and France’s nephew Saxon have one week to solve the crime, or the estate will be auctioned off.

The story alternates between Annie in the current day trying to find the killer and Frances’ teenage journals. It's got that old mystery vibe—small town, family drama, and everyone's got secrets. I loved reading from both storylines!

The plot moves fast, with Annie trying to figure out who to trust, and staying ahead of Saxon and the detective. Sometimes these mysteries make it easier to figure out who the murderer is. But I honestly didn’t see this one!

There are a lot of characters to keep track of, and sometimes it took a bit before I remembered who a person was and how they fit into Frances’ teen years. But I really enjoyed this book and finished it quickly!

My thanks to Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for this ARC.
#HowtoSolveYourOwnMurder #NetGalley

Mickey done good overall read. Characters are interesting. The fortune teller was a great start to this time long story.

I want to be that petty woman that everyone is low key afraid of but also deep down love when I get old. I’ll be fine staying in my ginormous home, helping my little community. But what I don’t want is a fortune teller’s prediction telling that someone will murder me. I think this why we should not know when we should die because imagine living that life.

Frances went to a country fair with her friends when she was 17. A fortune teller there gave her cryptic message that ended with someone murdering Frances. After that moment, Frances started to live her life thinking about those few sentences. No one understood why she took this prediction so seriously, but she wasn’t wrong: she got murdered at the end! She was prepared in her death as she was in her living days.

Now, Annie, Frances’ grandniece, and few other major players are left with a task: solving her murder. In a week, either Annie is going to solve this mystery or she might lose her home along with all her memories. It’s hard to say more about other curious things in this book without giving spoilers, but you will be missing out if you won’t pick this up.

This was an entertaining Agatha Christie like murder mystery! Kind of cozy and fun with a sleuth like feel rather than a thrilling murder case and I enjoyed that. Cover gives that away as well so no spoilers there.

This was an interesting story. Told from the perspective Frances through diary entries and her niece set to inherit everything, Annie. Annie sets out in a game like race to discover the murderer in 7 days or she forfeits the inheritance.

First, I really enjoyed the journal entries. One of my favorite thing in books are epistolary type writing. It was just fun. Second, I enjoyed the bounce back and forth between Frances time and Annie’s perspective in the present day.

However, there were TONS of characters that were not all developed well which kind of flows with a Christie like mystery but still it was a lot at times. It also boiled down to Annie having to explain to the detective the conclusion.

Nevertheless, if you like cozy mystery or Agatha Christie like stories, you’d probably enjoy this one.

3.5 stars

All of the ⭐️s!! One of the best mysteries I’ve read in a long time!

Castle Knoll is a tight-knit community. Generations of families live there, as well as generations of secrets.
In 1965 Frances Adams visits a fortune teller as any silly teenager would. But Frances takes this fortune of her eminent demise very seriously, obsessively. She lives the rest of her life shrouded in superstition, so much so that she has a “murder board” of possible suspects in her foreshadowed murder.
When the day comes that Frances has in fact been murdered, it is up to her family, as well as the community to uncover what happened. But with everyone being so connected for decades, can the absolute truth be uncovered? And what else will be dredged up from Castle Knoll history in the process?

Kristen Perrin did an amazing job writing this true ‘whodunit’. The mix of past and present stories really complemented each other. The flow was engaging and made this an instant binge read.

Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. I cannot wait to read more from Perrin in the future.

How to Solve Your Own Murder was such an addictive read! The synopsis intrigued me from the start but seeing the story unfold was so enjoyable I wish I had laid aside other books to have read this one sooner. I really enjoyed the look into Frances’ diary, the way she told her own story from her unsure perspective, leaving clues for her unknowing heir to solve the truth of who killed Frances Gravesdown and what happened to her group of friends sixty years prior, especially Emily Sparrow, who went missing when she was 17 years old. Ever since, Frances has been obsessed with the notion the one day, she would be murdered, and she spends her lifetime trying to solve the crime that hasn’t happened yet.

I loved the idea of this great-niece, Anna, stepping into a world she knew nothing about and being charged with the challenge of solving her great aunts murder. With an inheritance on the line, the stakes are high for all involved.

This is a perfect cozy read for fans of Agatha Christie novels as well as Knives Out, and interestingly enough The Westing Game. I thoroughly enjoyed trying to figure out who killed Frances Gravesdown and the truth was a twist I wasn’t expecting.

It might have been partially the setting or all the twists, but this book gave me such a perfect modern Agatha Christie vibe. I'm not even a fan of books with long epistolary elements, but I could put the fact that the flashbacks were supposed to be diary entries aside, and just enjoy them as part of the story. Couldn't put this one down!

Imagine becoming fixated on a fortune you were given as a teenager for the rest of your life. What if this fortune told you you'd die by murder? Imagine trying to figure out how that would happen not knowing when it would happen?

I was drawn to this book pretty quickly because who doesn't love a good murder mystery. Frances was at a fair with 2 of her best friends as a teenager when she received the fortune telling her she was to be murdered. The rest of her life is dedicated to finding out as much information on everyone in her life as possible while also trying to figure out the cause of her demise. She spends her life in the same town driving some of its residents crazy with her predictions and paranoia. 60 years later, Annie, who calls Frances Great Aunt Frances, is summoned to the town Castle Knoll where Frances lives. Annie arrives only to find her great aunt has died and she had never met her before. Annie becomes wrapped up in the her great aunts death and becomes determined to see if she can help solve it.... but she will have some competition.

This book felt like a fast read to me. It was written in a way where I wanted to keep going to find out more information into each chapter. I enjoyed the glimpses into Frances's life via her personal journals as well. You feel like you're investigating with Annie and trying to help her. Luckily Annie does have a little bit of help along the way. There were plenty of moments you were second guessing yourself with all the new information that kept coming into the picture. It feels like Clue in the setting and the fact that there are so many suspects and possibilities. This book will keep you guessing and keep your mind sharp! A very enjoyable read.

feels like an older style mystery, i enjoyed the pacing of the book. i do feel like it could have had a little better execution but over all enjoyed the book.

Thank you so much Netgalley for the chance to read this advanced reader copy.

This book was good but it was also easy to put down.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton and Kristen Perrin for the advanced copy.

4.5

This is like an Agatha Christie book with a twist. It was medium paced, with chapters going from the past and the present. Just enough twists to keep you interested and want to keep reading.

I really enjoyed it! I liked the authors writing style and look forward to reading more from them.

Calling Agatha Christie fans…this clever murder mystery will give you thrills!

Using two different time lines, debut author Kristin Perrin works us through all sorts of rabbit holes, red herrings, and every other magical mystery twist.

The first time line occurs in today’s world, where Annie Adams is due to inherit her great-aunt’s estate; yet, when she goes to the penultimate meeting about it, instead, they find Great-Aunt Frances dead, as Frances has worried about for year. She’s even left the crew a murder chart to follow. The crew is a hoot - former lovers, twisted family members, old friends and workers - they make for a very Agatha-esque circle of suspects.

The other timeline takes us back to Frances as a young woman in the 1960’s. Of course, it all began with a fortune teller giving Frances a creepy message about her pending murder, thus giving her decades of paranoia and suspicion about everyone. The disappearance of a close friend as a teenage did not help. Frances, helpfully, leaves diaries and other trinkets along the way to build the path towards the murderer.

I chuckled at times, felt the tension build with each subsequent chapter, and was thoroughly entertained. All I could think when I turned the final page was…clever mystery, well done!!

My thanks to Penguin Group Dutton and Net Galley for allowing me to review this arc .

Story is told in 2 timelines. First, Frances and her 2 friends Emily and Rose visit a carnival . Frances sees a gypsy who predicts she will be killed. Frances is obsessed with this for decades and her story is told for the 1960s in her diary foremat, once found. Another one of her friends goes missing.

Second time-line. Present day. Frances ' great niece Annie is invited up to Frances ' house because she finds out she is an heir on her will. But Frances is murdered and sets up a clause that whomever solves her murder. Annie, or the police will.decide the outcome of her estate.

I liked this book. Cozy , easy read. Something different.

#HowtoSolveYourOwnMurder

This was a pleasant enough read, if not a little slow. The title is a little misleading, it gives the impression that someone is still actively solving their murder even after their death. In this case, that simply isn't true. Additionally, the author's constant use of multiple character's names per sentence made it hard to read and confusing. Lastly, the plot is mostly predictable which when paired with the authors obvious intent to make it exciting, is disappointing.

This book was lovely! It was a thriller mixed in with some earlier time period nostalgia and I throughly enjoyed reading it. It was a clever who done it and I was smiling all the way through. I noticed it was #1 in the castle knoll series, I can’t wait to read figure ones.

This wasn't my favorite, but I can certainly see patrons enjoying this book. It's on the "cozier" mystery side and I would recommend it to readers who like The Thursday Murder Club series.

Personally, I was intrigued at first but I got a bit bored along the way.

The characters and perspectives in this story were incredible. As an avid murder mystery reader, the plot kept me guessing and kept me engaged with even the smallest details. And if you wanted to turn this into a series of Annie and Crane solving the other crimes Frances uncovered over the years I would read every word.

I love a rural town full of secrets and mystery. This story was just that: a rural story full of foreboding prophecy and twists and turns. I enjoyed the dual POV at times because it made the story feel fast-paced, though I will say sometimes the writing could feel a bit chopped up. This wasn't a big issue, though, because getting to piece through all of the puzzle pieces was so compelling, and I enjoyed the characters. So, I had a great time with this story. Really fun!

This unique story is full of twists and foreboding prophecies in a cozy rural town surrounded by secrets.
I thought this was a very cozy murder mystery with a fun take-through dual perspectives of both the main character Annie Adams and Francis Adams, before her untimely but predicted death. Trying to put together clues using the first-person accounts and the information presented to Annie made the reading much more exciting. I couldn't wait to return to Frances's journal to learn more. I personally thought the writing, specifically from Annie's perspective, was choppy at times, but it did not deter me from caring about the characters or the situations they were facing. Overall a fun but unique cozy read.


Thank you, Penguin Group and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.