Castle Knoll: quaint, cozy… and absolutely crawling with murder. 👀

This dual-timeline mystery follows Annie, who just moved to the village, and her great-aunt Frances back in 1967. One’s investigating a fortune teller’s sudden death (after she gives Annie a very unsettling message 😬), and the other’s caught between two men and a decades-old cover-up. Secrets, scandals, and suspicious deaths? Castle Knoll is basically the real main character. 🏰🕵️‍♀️

I loved the creepy countryside vibes and the whole “gothic village with a dark heart” thing — it felt like a cozy mystery with teeth. But I’ll be honest: the pacing dragged in spots and I found myself wishing things would move along a bit quicker. Still, if you’re into slow-burn twists, family secrets, and dual POVs that eventually tie together, this could be a good pick for you!

Would I live in Castle Knoll? Absolutely not. Would I read more murdery stories set there? Probably. 😅

This was a fun second entry in the Castle Knoll Files series. I enjoyed seeing the past through Aunt Frances's eyes again and was invested in the central mystery right away. It did keep me guessing and I did not guess the whodunit ahead of the big reveal. One issue I did have was with being dropped directly back into the previous story with little reminder of what happened in the first book. I read it a while ago and was taken out of the story repeatedly trying to remember details that were important to the current story. I would not say that this book can standalone. I was more invested in the historical events than the current ones but not enough to prevent enjoying this cute, fun, and sometimes dark visit to Castle Knoll.

This is easily one of the most successful cozy mysteries of our time. It’s refreshingly clean, avoiding graphic details while still delivering a gripping, page-turning plot. As the second installment in the series, it hits all the right notes and sets the stage beautifully for book three. I can’t recommend it highly enough—if you love mysteries, this is a must-read.

A sequel as quirky, charming and intriguing as the first. I admit it has been a bit since I read the first one so I was a bit lost on some of the details. A reread or a refresher would have done wonders for my overall enjoyment of the book. The setting was vivid and beautiful. The characters were fascinating and I loved learning more about them and how their stories intertwined. It did drag quite a bit and I kept waiting for things to happen. But it was a nice quirky, cozy mystery that I’m sure you will love if you enjoyed (and remember) the first.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.

Annie is slowly but surely settling into life at Castle Knoll. It has taken some getting used to and some residents still seem to hold the murder case as well as the actions of her great aunt Frances against her, but overall things are going well. At least, things are going well until a body appears INSIDE of the Gravesdown Estate leaving Annie with another murder to solve, this time while pleading her own innocence.

I was so excited to return to Castle Knoll. I love the way this connected back to the original story/mystery AND even kept with the dual timelines. Aunt Frances's journal entries are once again my favorite part of the book, with the budding romance between Annie and Crane as a close second. I can only hope that we get more of Castle Knoll. The ending made me absolutely DESPERATE to hear what happens next!

It took me a minute to invest in this book the way I did with the first. I think I felt like everything had just been so well wrapped up that I was honestly surprised there was a sequel. As soon as Frances started really getting messy in the past, I was fully back on board. It did not take long lol

I think this book is so perfectly pitched: great for fans of Knives Out and Only Murders in the Building.

this was fun but for me not as engaging as the first in the series, i would probably continue to read as i live a nice murder mystery that unfolds like this series always does, inevitably

thank you to netgalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest feedback!

I enjoyed book one How to Solve Your Own Murder. I was looking forward to jumping into book two.
How to Seal Your Own Fate is a fantastic cozy murder mystery!
This mystery is so cleverly plotted and executed.
And with the well-developed characters I was eagerly turning the pages. The character development is on point.. the way the story unravels is effortlessly gripping.
The dual timelines and POVs were done so well I was honestly captivated by it all.
I loved the plot, story, characters and writing and the whole set up and idea of it was just so clever. I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a murder mystery this much and I’m honestly incredibly excited to read what else this author will produce.

Thank You NetGalley and Dutton for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

**3.5-stars rounded up**

How to Seal Your Own Fate is the 2nd-installment in Kristen Perrin's Castle Knoll Files. These books follow Annie Adams, who has recently moved to the tiny village of Castle Knoll after inheriting her Great-Aunt Frances's property upon her untimely death. In the 1st-book, Annie needs to solve the mystery of who murdered her Great-Aunt. In this one, she needs to solve the murder of the person who foretold that death, the fortune teller, Peony Lane.

These Cozy Mysteries are told through both present and past storylines. Annie is in our present, and our past perspective is told via Frances. The past we examine here is 1967, when Frances is being pulled between two men: the wealthy, Ford Gravesdown, and the earnest, Archie Foyle. There is a mystery in the past as well, which involves a car accident that claimed the lives of some members of Ford's family. We shift back and forth between past and present, find out the connections, and ultimately gets answers to both mysteries.

I've really enjoyed both books in this series so far. I feel like Perrin has developed a nice little formula, and it's working. Upon picking this one up, I was immediately happy to be back with Annie in Castle Knoll. I do love her as a main character. Admittedly, it does take a minute, at least it did for me, to settle into the flow of the story, the back-and-forth can be a little jarring at first.

Once you are able to get your bearings though, it does flow nicely. I feel like the chapters are short and punchy, and always left me wanting to know more. This one is twisted. The mystery of the car accident, there are a lot of puzzle pieces involved, and it did get a little hard to track at times. Especially because a lot of my focus was also on Peony's death in the present.

I did feel it got a little convoluted towards the end, but nevertheless, it was a fun time and I did enjoy how it concluded. It looks like we'll be getting a 3rd-book and I'm definitely on board for that. I appreciated how Annie has come to understand and relate to her Great-Aunt Frances so much more over the course of these two books. I also love her settling into her new life, and look forward to seeing more of that in future.

Thank you to the publisher, Dutton, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I would recommend this to all Cozy Mystery fans, particularly those who enjoy a historical element in their Cozies, or those who enjoy small village vibes.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting me an e-arc!

I was so excited to get back to the world of Castle Knoll! I read How to Solve Your Own Murder in book club, and was so happy when I found out the series was continuing!

Annie is back and solving more mysteries! When fortune teller Peony Lane gives Annie a clue that she should be investigating a car accident that killed members of the Gravesdown family, Annie returns to her Aunt Frances’ old files on everyone in town. However, Annie quickly learns that Peony Lane must have known a lot more than she was letting on, as someone definitely doesn’t want the truth about that car accident coming out. Annie realizes she’s missing certain files and her aunt’s journals from the years in question, leading her to suspect people close to her may have been involved. Things quickly escalate when a murder occurs, and Annie has to put all the pieces together to save her own life and the others around her.

I did enjoy this one and it was nice to revisit this quaint little town and its cast of characters. I recommend this to readers that enjoy a mystery that’s on the cozier side.

I ended up enjoying this book but I wasn’t nearly invested in this one as I was the previous book in the series. I guess solving the murders just didn’t feel as high stakes? I’m not sure why I wasn’t connecting with this one as much. I ended up reading this as an audiobook and I did find it hard to distinguish which chapters were from Annie’s perspective and which were from Frances’s so maybe that was part of the problem.

Another installment in Castle Knoll, solving decades old and modern crimes. Didn’t see it coming, but wasn’t thrilled by the result. We want more of Crane and Annie!

This was book two in the Castle Knoll series and we got to see a lot of the characters from book 1 return for this new mystery. I love the setting of this book, a tiny town in the English countryside featuring a giant, old manor that's full of secrets.

I do wish I had read a summary again of the first book so I could familiarize myself with all the characters from book 1, but overall I still really enjoyed this book. The book switches between the present day feature Annie as the POV and then also has chapters were it's diary entries from the 60's from Frances. I'm looking forward to more books in this series.

I loved the first book of this series and was thrilled to receive the second book as a galley just to stay immersed in this world. While it kept much of what was appealing in the first book, Annie's life has changed seemingly overnight, leaving her to grapple with newfound wealth and small town life. I thought the book felt a little too similar to the first in some ways in terms of both plot and dragging out some of the plot elements. I wanted to see Annie develop more as a character and chart her own path. That being said, I thought this was a worthy sequel and would recommend it. It might have been better to read something else between the two books,

and crime scene at Castle Knolls and I enjoyed jumping back into this quirky town in order to solve it! I thoroughly enjoyed the twist and turns book two took me on. Perrin did an excellent job tying in parts from book one as well as introducing new parts from Aunt Frances' past and secrets long buried in her files. Still the slowest burn between Alice and detective Crane and hoping that if there is a book three these two will finally smolder! Overall a fun, fast and imaginative mystery. A definite must read for those who enjoyed book one How To Solve Your Own Murder

This is the second book in the Castle Knoll series, set in a small village in the UK. Annie is back, trying to solve another murder that involves friends and family.

The book is told in dual timelines. The past is told from Frances' point of view. We learn some interesting facts about her, what life was like for her in 1967, and some details about a terrible car crash that killed three people. The present is Annie trying to uncover the truth, especially when Peony Lane is found dead in her home. 

I loved the first book in the series, but this book seemed to move at a slower pace until closer to the end, as everything was coming to a head. I never suspected the killer, and the reasoning made sense once the truth was revealed. There is also a fair amount of family drama with Annie's mom. I don't blame Annie for how she responded to what her mom did and her recent revelations. 

This book cannot be read on its own. You need to read the first book to understand the characters and their relationships with one another. The book does leave you hanging regarding the relationship between Frances and Ford. I'm sure more about that will be forthcoming in future books.

We give this book 3 1/2 paws up.

I loved this follow up, as it worked so well as a sequel. The main group of characters are still part of this story, but we get a new mystery out of the story. We are still flipping back and forth in time, between the present timeline, and the diary of Aunt Frances as a teen. I did not like how often we were in the past, as it felt like the story was really being motivated by the present timeline.

I will say this story is not as cozy as I wish it was, I wish there was more description, and better vibes overall. But I do love a small English village gossipy story!

Overall Rating: 3/5 Stars

We return back to the Gravesdown Estate in the second installment of the Castle Knoll Files mystery series.

This is a case where I DO think you need to read and (at least somewhat) remember the on-going’s from book one in order to properly follow the storyline in book two.

Told in dual timelines, we follow along with Annie Adams in the present day, and Frances Adams in 1967.

Annie encounters Peony Lane, the fortune teller who had correctly predicted Aunt Francis’ murder in book one. Peony Lane wants to share Annie’s fortune with her, but in an attempt to avoid repeating fate, Annie refuses to hear it. Shortly after this encounter, Peony Lane shows up murdered on the Gravesdown Estate with a message in hand, and Annie finds herself embroiled in another murder investigation within the very walls of her home. To clear her name and uncover the truth behind Peony's death, Annie must delve into the dark secrets of Castle Knoll.

Excerpts from Frances’ diary entries become a crucial link for Annie as she tries to understand why Peony was killed and what her cryptic message was meant to convey.

This story follows a very similar journey as we experienced in book one, however, I think book two did a lot more telling rather than showing. Interactions between characters are used to info dump and summarize, rather than more of a subtle reader-driven discovery. I would recommend this series is you’re looking for an ongoing cozy mystery series and a quick read.

Thank you to Dutton for providing an early copy for review, all opinions are my own.

How To Seal Your Fate is the follow up to How To Solve Your Own Murder, a book I loved last year. This one picks up with Annie now living in her family estate, embroiled in yet another series of murders that span decades. Same eccentric cast of characters in the small town, same messy and cleverly intertwined set of facts and same barrage of red herrings. All so well done, all so entertaining. I love the charm of the small village as the setting and I love that I feel like I know these characters now. Thank you to @duttonbooks - out now! Let’s hope there is a third book in the works.

Annie is a bit out of sorts settling into Gravesdown Hall, not quite feeling like she fits into the town of Castle Knoll. However, she’s making an effort and trying to get back to her writing.

Running into the infamous Peony Lane, the woman who unsettled Aunt Frances’ entire future with her fortune, is a shock. Peony has a bizarre message for Annie and then turns up murdered inside Gravesdown, initially casting some suspicions on Annie. With a renewed purpose, Annie goes about trying to find out who murdered Peony and why which has her once again delving into her Aunt Frances’ past. This time she has a bit of help from Detective Crane an ally, and possibly *fingers crossed* a romantic interest for Annie.

There are two timelines and POVs with Annie in the present trying to work out Peony’s murder and then Aunt Frances’ POV in 1967 partnered with Archie Foyle looking into the crash that killed Ford Gravedown’s father, brother and sister-in-law. There are rumors that it wasn’t an accident at all.

It’s a web of secrets to untangle with a lot of twists! The mysteries intersect and come together by the end, and I was completely riveted! I recommend reading the previous story first, How to Solve Your Own Murder, as the stories connect. I went back and reread parts to refresh my memory and I’m glad I did!

How to Seal Your Own Fate was a clever, cozy mystery that grabbed my attention from page one! The mystery was solved, but the ending hinted at more books to come, and I’m thrilled! I look forward to the next one!

3.5/5 rounding up to 4 Stars! Thank you, NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton, for this eARC of How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristen Perrin. (This is book 2 of Castle Knoll Files.)

I got the chance to read this book with an invitation and I'm SO glad I did! This book picks up after the first book and talks about how Annie solves another crime in her small town. I really enjoy this author's writing style and the dual timeline that is going on in this series. I can't say that it got my hooked but it was a good read in the evening when settling down before bed. I can't say I liked this one better than the first but it was an enjoyable story.