Annie has been summoned to the small town of her great aunt Frances, where Frances supposedly has changed her will, but when she arrives, Frances has been murdered. An Agatha Christie-esque, Clue-like mystery follows where the first to solve her murder will inherit Frances' estate.

This is a murder mystery that had all of the elements for a fun and engaging read but it fell short for me.

In the present Annie Adams is summoned to the small English village of Castle Knoll by her great aunt Frances - whom she has never met. There were some things in her mother’s past which she never liked to talk about - she never visited her aunt and had no communications with her.

When Annie arrives she is soon thrust into solving a murder as the crime is committed before she is even introduced to Frances!!

The past POV is that of Frances which is told through diary entrances and other notes which Annie finds.

There is so much going on and a plethora of characters to keep straight!!

Rather than rehashing the blurb I’m going to go with a PROS and CONS on this one and you can decide if this one is right for you!!

PROS:
*An interesting premise with a very promising beginning that engaged me from the start
*The setting of a large country manor in a small town
*A shocking beginning

CONS:
*Too many characters in both the past and the present, hard to keep them all straight and who is “connected” in some way to each other
*This should have been atmospheric because of the setting but I never got that vibe
*The characters weren’t very well described. We only get descriptions of how they interacted with each other but not really about anything else in their lives, more was revealed at the end but by then I really wasn’t interested
*Conflicted about the ending and some unresolved questions.

A 3* doesn’t mean this is a bad book, just not the experience I was hoping for.

I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley. It was my pleasure to read and review this title.

What a fun read! This book took so many twists and turns, you're constantly changing your thinking on who committed the crimes and it definitely keeps your attention!

This story is told in two perspectives; great-aunt Frances as a teenager, and her great-niece Annie in present time. There are two separate mysteries to solve throughout the book and it really does a great job of keeping your interest and makes you want to finish it as soon as you can.

I love the 'clue' vibes in this book and all the information from the past that creeps into the present to get you closer and closer to solving the case with each diary entry.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves mystery novels and fast-paced stories about murder, inheritance, greed and revenge.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc of this book. It was truly SO fun and exciting to read!!

Fun, original story. It read to me like a classic mystery, but had plenty of twists and surprises to keep me guessing. I enjoy it when I don’t have the case figured out by the end, and this story kept me waiting to see what would come to light next. Would definitely read a sequel. Annie continuing to solve mysteries :)

I enjoyed How to Solve Your Own Murder and am so grateful to have gotten a copy of this in the fall. I thought it was a refreshing, cozy murder-mystery. As I was reading, it reminded me of the game Clue in the best way. I loved the suspenseful elements near the end of the story as Annie was uncovering important information. I am usually able to guess the plot twist pretty confidently when reading suspenseful stories, but I did not see this one coming!

The story is a dual-POV, small town murder mystery and competition! A generational story that brings the reader on a journey - uncovering complex character entanglements, making connections to solve a double murder, and unraveling the story alongside a relatable FMC, Annie.

I rated this a strong 3.75; it kept me interested and reading from the first page. It’s more of a cozy murder mystery - a “who done it,” not knowing who to trust, without being creepy or overly suspenseful.

I would highly recommend How to Solve Your Own Murder to anyone who liked the Inheritance Games series, especially if you like multi-generational or flashback POV.

I received an ARC of How to Solve Your Own Murder from NetGalley - huge thank you for the opportunity to read & review early! 😊

The story starts in the present where Annie Adams finds out she's set to inherit everything from her rich Great Aunt Frances. She goes to the little village where Frances lives but before she can meet her, Frances turns up murdered. Now, Annie needs to solve who murdered her before her relative (second cousin once removed? Something like that) or the police detective solve it. If she or the relative, Saxon, can't solve it within a week, then the land is sold and a property development company is going to build condos - gasp!

As part of that, Annie found a journal that Frances kept when she was a teenager that talks about the year leading up to her friend going missing. The story alternates between the past and present, with the journal telling us about the past and Annie "investigating" in the present. I put the quotation marks around "investigate" because most of her investigations was reading the journal. It didn't even occur to her to talk to the person who owned the business where the murder weapon came from until 2 days after the murder. Frances ensured that everyone in the village would want to talk to Annie and Saxon, but then Annie talks to almost no one. But hey, at least she had time to learn how to drive a Rolls Royce!

The story had a lot of potential - I was so excited about the "game" where she has to race against others to solve the crime. However, it was a letdown where she did so little except read the journal and make dumb decisions. Most of the characters felt very flat with only a few personality traits to define them. I really wanted to root for Annie, but I couldn't.

Frances-in-the-past was a little better. The story got monotonous after awhile and I felt bored. Since it was clear that this was Annie's main source of information, it was obvious that eventually it was going to provide the missing piece to solve it (and meanwhile, Annie doesn't read the whole thing at once - she keeps starting again or just reading passages, while being convinced this is the key - maybe read the whole thing once??)

The story was a cozy mystery, so it was a bit obvious how things were going to wrap up. Will the plucky heroine prevent the village from being spoiled by the condo development? Will she and the hot detective find each other? I can enjoy books where it's clear what's going to happen, but this didn't feel like it had enough surprises. I will say that I didn't guess who the murderer was, which was a pleasant surprise. But that was about it.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this advance review copy.

Who Done It? This book reminded me of days playing Clue with my family, but in a book version.
I loved trying to solve who killed Aunt Frances. This book was mysterious, kept my interest and was also funny at times. Definitely some interesting characters! Loved it!
#HowtoSolveYourOwnMurder #NetGalley

Pub date: 3/26/24
Genre: mystery
Quick summary: Sixty years ago, teenage Frances was given a fortune predicting her death, and she became obsessed with preventing it. In the present day, her great-niece Annie will try to uncover the truth.

This was such a fun take on the murder mystery genre! There are plenty of books where a death is predicted, but I hadn't seen one where the prediction came true sixty years later. The plot alternates between Frances' very eventful friendship with Emily and Rose and Annie's investigation. I liked how the past timeline unraveled the events slowly; I did sometimes get a little confused with all the characters, but the ending in the present timeline made everything clear. I think Christie fans will enjoy this one - the style reminded me of her work.

Thank you to Dutton Books for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When Annabelle "Annie" Adams is summoned by her great aunt Frances Adams to visit her at Castle Knoll, she's perplexed by the actions of her relative but arrives at the estate with a group of distant relatives to find that her great aunt is dead - a death that appears to be a natural passing at first glance, but is revealed to be a carefully planned murder. With the reading of Frances's will, Annie learns she and Saxon, her uncle-in-law have been pitted against each other to uncover the murderer and motive - and at risk are great aunt's estate and the lives of many of the community members.

The story alternates between the present and flashbacks to 1965, when young Frances is given a cryptic message by a fortune teller, that she and her friends Emily and Rose can't understand. While her friends shrug it off, the prediction continues to haunt Frances in the years to come, especially as her path crosses with Rutherford Gravesdown, the mysterious and wealthy widower, and his younger brother Saxon. The complex relationship between these individuals slowly is revealed, and leads to Emily's eventual disappearance - an event that will have implications in the decades to follow, and serve as a key puzzle piece in the present as Annie tries to piece together the events leading up to her great aunt's death.

The premise of "How to Solve Your Own Murder" drew me in, as it's a unique take on the murder mystery genre, and I appreciated how the alternating storylines between the past and present led to the eventual climax and conclusion of the novel - one that I didn't foresee (although I'm a novice in this respect). There were a number of red herrings placed throughout that kept the plot moving along, and I overall enjoyed the ride. However, I struggled with the sheer number of characters that were involved, in both the past and present, and keeping track of who was who, and their potential motivations. The writing style was also a weak point for me; Annie's character felt underdeveloped and one-dimensional, despite the fact that most of the novel is told from her first person perspective, and I enjoyed the "past" storyline far more, as Frances seemed to be a more complex and intriguing character. The pacing as well felt sluggish as moments; while I appreciated the passages dedicated to Annie's thought process, it felt unnecessary at times.

Overall a fun read but not one of my personal favorites in this genre!

Reminiscent of Agatha Christie novels, this book was the perfect fall read. When Frances visits a fortune teller, she is told she will be murdered one day. She spends her life trying to prevent and solve her eventual murder.

I really enjoyed this murder mystery journey that Kristen Perrin takes us on. The pace and dual time line had me hooked. I kept thinking how “fun” this book was and how it was unlike any other plot I’d read before. It kept me guessing til the end, and had a satisfying ending that brought all the pieces together for me. I rate this a solid 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton, and Kristen Perrin for sending this ARC for my review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This cozy Clue-adjacent mystery kept me turning pages the whole way through! I loved the dual timelines and found myself wanting to pick it back up as soon as I set it down. Fun for cozy fall reading!

Loved this one! The dual timelines really kept me intrigued and the characters were funny. Cozy mystery, perfect for a light read.

Really interesting book! Like both the historical/flashbacks aspects and the current/modern aspects. Medium-paced read!

How To Solve Your Own Murder is a cozy mystery that gives Clue-like vibes. Frances Adams receives a fortune at a county fair about how her life will end. She becomes obsessed with solving this mystery, but ultimately cannot outrun her fate. Her great niece, Annie Adams then becomes enamored with solving this mystery and things get quite dangerous along the way.

I really liked the dual timelines and POVs that are narrated by Frances and Annie. I found them both to be fascinating MCs and enjoyed reading both of their voices.

I did have a bit of a hard time with the amount of characters and all of their connections to keep track of, but what would a proper "whodunnit" be if not for a laundry list of suspects?!

Towards the ending, there's a bit of telling vs. showing leading to the resolution, but overall found it to be a fun and fast read. And I think the reveal was also a bit performative as you might expect in a dinner theater, murder mystery style and I can appreciate that approach here. I was immediately consumed by the mystery and eager to figure out how everything tied together.

Such a cozy and fun read! The characters were great and kept me engaged. It had a few twists to keep me on my toes and made it hard to put down under I found out who dunnit. .Very Agatha Christie or Clue-like with humor thrown in.

I found this book to be absolutely delightful - it's not always easy to write a cozy mystery where the writing doesn't feel juvenile, but Kristen Perrin did an excellent job of writing an adult mystery. The whole time I was reading, I could see this story playing out like a movie in my mind - would love to see a screen adaptation one day! Will definitely read more by this author in the future.

"How to Solve Your Own Murder" is a highly enjoyable double murder mystery with engaging characters. While it's not entirely cozy due to some mild adult content and occasional swearing, it comes close. The story alternates between present-day Annie Adams solving her great-aunt's murder and flashbacks to the 1960s, making for a compelling narrative. The characters are mostly likable, even the villains, and the plot is suspenseful. The English manor house setting adds to the charm. Despite having the house to myself, I finished this book in under a day, finding it a captivating read with a unique story and endearing characters, though not on par with Hercule Poirot.

I really struggled with this book from the very beginning. The mystery centers on Annie’s elderly Great Aunt Frances, a widow who lives in a manor house near a small village. When Aunt Frances was a young woman m, a fortune teller told her she was going to be murdered and she believed them. In present day, we meet young aspiring mystery writer Annie, whose artistic mother struggles financially and has been receiving support from the eccentric aunt in the country. Then Annie receives a summons to Aunt Frances’s country estate and a murder takes place,

The premise sounds exciting but at times it felt like this book was written by two different people. The Annie chapters had different voice from the France chapters and it took a bit too long to figure out why we kept taking breaks from the present dilemma to visit the past.

I enjoyed the set up of the mystery but it took a bit too long to get to “the game.” Over all, I found parts intriguing and fun and others a bit of a drag. The characters are interesting and the root mystery was fun - although easily solved - but I found the parts that took place in the 60s to be boring and confusing.

I appreciate the opportunity to review this book and thank Penguin and Netgalley for the ARC.

This was a cozy little mystery. I enjoyed the two mysteries in one and getting to see who Frances was through her diary. I wish we'd gotten a little bit more about some of the side characters because they were clearly a wild bunch. But all in all, it was a fun read where everything wraps up nicely in the end.