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.

While I don't usually read cozy mysteries, this story was just fun to read. Like the Benjamin Stevenson novels, this takes you on a trip to be the first to solve a murder. The characters in the story are great and I really enjoyed the vintage feel of the era of the tale. For those who don't like the vulgarity of most current-day mysteries, this will be refreshing and appreciated. I don't know if I will immediately pick up the 2nd in this series, but I will remember this one fondly.

"Kristen Perrin's 'How to Solve Your Own Murder' is a captivating mystery that reignited my love for the genre. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for this ARC. The narrative, filled with ingenious plot twists and well-developed characters, kept me guessing for 80% of the book. Despite initial reservations about changing perspectives, Perrin's seamless transitions and expert storytelling had me hooked.

Centered around Frances, who receives a chilling prediction shaping her life and death, the unraveling of her own murder through cryptic riddles adds layers of suspense. The prophetic warnings and enigmatic clues are expertly woven, creating an intricate tapestry of foreboding.

Perrin's skill in crafting a narrative around solving one's own murder is remarkable. 'How to Solve Your Own Murder' challenges mystery conventions with finesse and creativity. A must-read for those craving a mind-bending journey into fate, justice, and the intricate dance between life and death."

thoroughly enjoyable read set at an English manor home - with the time tested "whoever solves my murder inherits the house" plot. Interspersed with diary entries from the victim's young adult years in the late 1960's, there are well developed characters in both timelines and things move along at a good pace.

"How To Solve Your Own Murder" is a delightful and engaging mystery novel that promises a unique twist on the classic whodunit.

The pacing of the book is quick and snappy, making it a perfect choice for readers looking for a fun and engaging read. Despite the lighthearted tone, the mystery itself is cleverly crafted, with plenty of twists and turns to keep readers guessing until the very end.

Overall, this was a fun and quick read. With its delightful characters and inventive premise, it's sure to leave readers thoroughly entertained from start to finish.

What a cute, cozy book! This was more in line with an updated Agatha Christie novel, keeping me on my toes the entire read. It was hard to put down and all I wanted to do was read, read, read! I was hooked all the way through, until the end.

I like the premise and the elements, which is why I'm giving it 3 stars, but the way this was executed just wasn't engaging for me. It does have Knives Out vibes, which is great, but it was missing some sense of humor.

I found it boring a lot of the time and I know it's a low-stakes mystery, but it should still be interesting. That made it difficult for me to keep up with all these characters and I just didn't care about solving the mystery like I usually do with this kind of book.

It's definitely a good book for fans of Knives Out! It is a gripping whodunnit with a historical sprinkling and several twists that occurred at times when I was least expecting it.

When I read books in this category, I do make note of key details and make some predictions, but mostly I just try to enjoy the ride of the story the author is telling and allow myself to gasp when something happens.

Just like other whodunnit-style stories, this book is packed with quite a load of characters, multiple timelines, and intriguing details to keep a shroud of mystery around the real story. The story is mostly centered around Annie who is trying to solve her great-aunt's murder, so you collect details primarily from her perspective. Normally with my reviews, I write a spoiler-free synopsis of the book, but I find that challenging to do with this book, solely because the reader needs to go into with only the author's synopsis and enjoy the ride. Boy, is it a ride!

I appreciated the author's writing and found the storyline to be very gripping. I had a hard time putting this down to sleep at night and putting it away at the end of my lunch break at work. When this book is released, I highly recommend it if you like whodunnit-style stories or need a break from your usual read.

To the author: Hello from a fellow Washingtonian! I love reading authors that come from or live in the beautiful PNW. I have always wanted to take a trip to England, primarily to see London, but after reading your book, with the descriptions, when I do make that trip, I want to see much more than London. Thank you for the journey you took the reader through in this book. I hope to read more from you in the future!

Described as being "For fans of Knives Out and The Thursday Murder Club"? SIGN. ME. UP.

While I don't think this necessarily had the fun and intrigue of the comp titles, I did really enjoy it. Not typically a fan of multiple timelines, this one really worked. Overall, not sure I would continue with the series, but I would be interested in other titles from the author.

How to solve your own murder.

Frances Adams and her friends are attending an English county fair in 1965 when her life takes a drastic turn. A fortune teller makes a terrifying prediction that one day Francis will be murdered. Francis spend the rest of her life trying to solve the murder that hasn’t actually happened yet. No one takes her seriously until 60 years later her fortune comes true. In the present day Annie Adams, Francis’ niece must solve the mystery of who murdered her aunt. Along the way she digs up secrets about her aunt and her friends from that summer in 1965 but someone doesn’t want this murder solved and the closer she gets to solving the crime the more danger she is putting herself in.

I found How to Solve Your Own Murder a cute and cozy whodunnit story. I really liked the dual timeline of Frances and her friends summer adventures in 1965 and current day Annie and the Castle Knoll cast of characters. Frances was such an interesting character and I loved reading about her life in 1965. If you’re a fan of Knives Out I think you’ll really like this book. I did feel like the present day had one or two many characters that it was a little bit hard to keep track of at some points.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for an eARC in exchange for my review

Read this if you like:
-playing Clue
-dual timelines
-cozy mysteries

Absolutely loved this classic whodunnit. There were so many twists and turns that had me guessing until the very end.

Taking to heart a fortune that was given to her as a young woman, Frances spent her whole life trying to prevent her own murder. Can Annie solve her great aunt’s murder before it’s too late?

Thank you to Kristen Perrin, NetGalley and Dutton Books for this ARC. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

I loved this book! The fortune, Frances’s diary, Annie’s sleuthing, the clues coming together, all the suspects/side characters. I can easily see why this is compared to Knives Out - it has all the Clue-esque characters and fun without the false endings, plus Frances gets a voice through her diary. For some reason this evoked The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield in my mind, one of my all time favorite books. This story was just a lot of fun - I adored the characters, the mystery, the writing, literally everything. I’d love to see more of Annie and Detective Crane in future stories. Highly recommend!

Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I did enjoy this book! That said there were areas for improvement like the pacing of the story. I did immensely enjoy the dual timelines as they were interesting if the story felt stagnant. I think I enjoyed young Frances more. I always appreciate going back in time like that.
I had taken a detective class in college so I had a lot of fun with the whole whodunit aspect and liked the use of the red herrings.
Altogether it was a solid book.