The only feeling I had going into this book was good faith. I didn't enjoy Hannah's works, but I've loved everything I've read of Mix's. I was curious how the combined effort of these specific two author would turn out, especially with the fact there's six POVs in the book.

Turns out, this inspired Clue fantasy mystery worked out pretty well.

Despite all of the story taking place in the castle, the worldbuilding was so detailed and thought out; it's definitely my favorite element of the book. It helps that there's a link between this book and Mix's middle grade duology (If you know, you know), but the core of the mystery revolves entirely around the world's history and religion in order to solve it. I personally found it very clever, seamlessly weaving together worldbuilding and the mystery without making the necessary exposition paragraphs feel too dumpy. The fantasy elements aren't high, only enough for you to know and understand what's going on, which I thought was the right amount, given how heavy the story leans toward mystery.

The characters are pretty charming, too. The progression between near strangers sussing each other out from murder to them forging a found-family-like connection (As the story was taking place over a single night) was done as well as it could have. Some relationships were rushed, but the dynamics formed were still entertaining and well thought out. There were also Weekend at Bernie's scenarios that provided some lights of comedy in the midst of a serious murder mystery.

All in all, this was a pretty good read. The end left a few lingering concerns for the world and the characters, and since I'm seriously hoping for more substantial ties to Mix's middle grade, I will definitely be reading the next book!

I absolutely devoured this book! It was very well done and I hope it's going to be a duology because there is still so much to know and understand about this world and it's characters. I think the murder mystery mixed with the fantasy was great, and the lore surrounding the gods and magic in the world was sooooooo cool. Mix and Hannah did an amazing job creating characters that I was able to truly care about and connect to in such a short amount of time, there wasn't a single POV that I wasn't on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen to them and how the plot was going to develop with each. I loved that each character was integral to the plot, and the relationships that formed between all of them felt natural and real, and I loved every bit of romance and friendship that we got.

I am a sucker for a great fantasy and this was such a pleasure to read, it was tense, exciting and dramatic in all the best ways and I was hooked from the start. This was so fun and I loved every second!!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with an eARC!

Umm okay, that ending or what?
I’m assuming this will be a duology because there are a LOT of loose ends to be tied up.
I think I liked this! It very much had me on the edge of my seat the entire time, and after I got through the initial 15 percent or so, I read it in one sitting.
I was very intrigued throughout, to say the least.
The characters were very, very interesting, each of the main ones being very integral to the plot. Sometimes this is hard to do with SIX and at some times I had doubts but eventually it worked out. Plot was a mix of character driven and story driven, I would say. The setting was very medieval castle at night and was written just perfectly.
I loved the countdown concept, and how the villain was both expected and unexpected at the same time.
Overall, I did think of it as a fantasy game of Clue, and will definitely be looking into the next one if there ends up being another.

Thanks to Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun unique story that I really enjoyed. The characters all felt very different and I enjoyed the murder mystery aspect

Great murder mystery with a well developed ensemble cast-- joined the ranks of Voyage of the Damned and Gideon the Ninth for its dry humor, strong cast, and incredible twists.

2.5⭐️
My opinion: I kept waiting for this book to get better, but it didn’t. Going into this book, I was expecting a story heavily inspired by Clue, and it was at first with the cover, the plot, six suspects, a huge castle, secret passages, etc. It’s only a mystery book to a certain extent though, almost everything that happens after the killer is revealed felt unnecessary. I was expecting the entire story to be about who killed the king (as it’s the title) and that there would be some dramatic reveal at the end, but no, we find out at 60%. The story was also hard to get into because of the pov, this book is the first one I’ve read of its kind.

genre: mystery, fantasy
pov: multi - third person, present tense
trope: unreliable narrator

Age rating: 13+
Violence: the king and a few others are murdered, st@bbing, strangling, poisoning
Romance: crushes, innuendo, confessions of love
Drinking/drugs/smoking: drunkenness, mentions of brandy, vodka, and wine, all characters drink underage (by American standards, the book doesn’t mention a drinking age), one character drinks to numb his emotional pain, the same character eats a large pink tranquilizer pill (meant to be used on animals) because they were out of alcohol
Language: 10 f***, 1 sh!th0le, 1 a$$h0le, 1 a$$, 1 g0dd@mn, 3 d@mn, 2 h3ll
Other: two of the male main characters are secretly in love with the other, this is a major part of the plot and is woven in throughout the story

Trigger warnings:
- mention of animal death
- mention of animal abuse
- semi-descriptive death of father
- mention of how another character was abused by her father

Publish date: 16-September-2025
Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s books for providing an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest review

Thank you first to Rebecca Mix, Andrea Hannah, and the publishers for this ARC in return for my honest review. This book was a romp from start to finish. Think Clue or Knives Out but set in a fascinating little fantasy verse. I’m honestly not typically the biggest fan of murder mysteries, but this one hooked me from the first scene. I can honestly say that I couldn’t predict most of the twists. It’s also got the SLIGHTEST hint of found family thrown in there to pepper things up, which I am such a sucker for. Definitely recommend!

I have never read a fantasy whodunnit and I was pleasantly surprised. I loved the multiple POV. I would be incredibly interested in more books of this nature.

This book hooked me from its scintillating premise (a murder mystery set in a castle with a cast of characters you're wondering if you can trust!), and the first pages immediately held me captive. For all the fun I was having flipping the pages (oh, poor innocent me), this story also cruelly—and wonderfully—tugged at my emotions. Each point of view grew deeper and deeper as the story progressed, as did the plot itself, blooming like a beautiful and dangerous winter lily. I am in need of book 2, please.

What an adventure! Everything I thought this book could be, it was that and more. The summary promised a whole dunnit with magic and beast and it delivered that and then some.

The progression of the book itself is intriguing. You think you are just along to solve a crime, but it unfolds itself into another story altogether in such a captivating way. On the surface I thought it would be a cozy little mystery mixed with some fantasy but the book just kept giving more and more.

The characters themselves suck you into their stories and although normally I don’t like the constant changing of perspectives in a novel, I really enjoyed it with this book. You get bits and pieces of their lives and experiences that slowly build into one story that you didn’t see coming.

There isn’t an excessive amount of world building and magic system explanation, and the action starts from the beginning of the book. I couldn’t put this one down, it’s suspenseful, and I never anticipated what was going to happen next.

If you like murder mysteries, fantasies, with a side of romance and friendship you will love this book.

This was exactly the story I needed! It’s fun, it’s immersive, it’s tense and gripping, and very well developed! I loved each of the POV characters and am amazed at how much world building was seamlessly packed into the novel’s pages. You get full, in-depth character back stories, a unique magic system, an intricate religious system, all while the clock is ticking. You can tell how much the authors enjoyed plotting out the timeline and bringing to life each unique character. Fantasy, fun, and thrilling - this story checks all the boxes! I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books/Storytide for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

4.5⭐️
When a King is murdered, in the presence of 5 unlikely witnesses, and none of them saw who struck the killing blow, what happens next?

This was a cool endeavor of the relationships between people formed in chaos and stress. I loved the play on time throughout the book and all the twists and turns with peeks into each of the characters. I can honestly say that the reveals were not what I was thinking and while this is fantasy, it was not high fantasy. Some characters had magical abilities, but we didn’t see a heavy use of those powers in the book.
I do think the ending was left open for a possible second book which honestly I’d be here for- I think there’s more to some of the characters stories and would love to get more!

The idea of a fantasy whodunit had me hooked to begin with but this was SO MUCH FUN. It moved at a good pace and didn't try to hard.