The story telling of Janice Hallett is amazing. I enjoy reading stories that are told in a different way. Using texts, email, listening devices and more, this story kept me reading into the night. If you haven’t read a Hallett book, do it now.

I discovered Janice Hallett a few years ago via The Christmas Appeal when I was looking for holiday books to read in December. I've been a fan of her work ever since. No one writes twisty, turny, epistolary novels like Janice!

I have The Killer Question on pre-order, but I couldn't wait for September, so I requested an ARC from NetGalley and read most of the book in one day.

Sue and Mal Eastwood run a rural pub called The Case is Altered. It's popular with the locals for its Monday night quiz. Unfortunately, a body is found in the nearby river, and soon a mysterious new team arrives and wins every game. Sue and Mal suspect they are cheating, but how? And who committed the murder?

Five years later, Dominic Eastwood contacts a documentary film production company, hoping to get a Netflix series made about his aunt and uncle and their derelict, abandoned pub.
I found that parts of the book dragged a little, with too much time spent on the topic of pub quiz question. I was anxious to move things along, and I had no idea where the story was going to go from there. Oh boy, did they move along! The twists upon twists were worth the wait. I'm keeping my pre-order, because I'm sure I'll be back to read this again.

“The Killer Question” by Janice Hallett is another one of her multi layered mysteries cleverly told through emails, text messages, newspaper articles and quiz sheets. The story takes place in a run down local Pub in a small village in England. The owners run a weekly trivia quiz night for the local teams when a new group suddenly shows up and starts winning every week. Who are these players that seem to always know the answers and disclose nothing personal about themselves….and then there is a dead body found in the river next to the Pub?
A lot of unexpected twists and turns and a lot of British humor and colloquialism that were a bit distracting. Not the easiest read but a totally unexpected reveal at the end. A fun mystery for those interested in the contemporary British Pub scene. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first book by Janice Hallett and it was so much fun! I absolutely loved the format and loved the tie in with the documentary film. This did feel a bit long but overall a really fun read. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I absolutely love the method/format that Janice Hallett writes her books. Reading a novel through media messages is such a different pace. I also love the mystery and the different twists and turns that she can pull together through text messages and emails. Just like her other books, The Killer Question does not disappoint. I highly recommend this books to all.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this advance reading copy.

I think after 4 of these I've finally gotten used to the presentation and writing styles. This story was not only much less grisly than the last one of hers I read (The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels), but it was also very fun, as it centered on a weekly pub trivia game. The book included a couple of really well done twists that I enjoyed a lot. I was shocked at how quickly I finished this book, but I was just really into it the whole time. I found myself having fun thinking near the end about how I would adapt this as a TV series. Great book.

I was so excited to get my hands on an ARC of Janice Hallett's new book! I love the way she layers her stories with emails, text messages, and newspaper articles. Mostly I find it extremely captivating and easy to lose track of time. The Killer Question felt a little more cozy than her other books, but I really enjoyed that. I was instantly captivated by the quiz teams and all their drama even before a body turned up! As with Hallett's other books, this one is packed with multiple reveals that I didn't see coming. If you've enjoyed any of her other books, you're definitely going to want to pick this up!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! Pub Sep 2025

Having devoured Janice Hallett's ingenious debut, The Appeal, some years back, I eagerly anticipate any subsequent work, and The Killer Question absolutely delivers.
True to Hallett's signature epistolary style, this novel unfolds through a compelling tapestry of emails, WhatsApp exchanges, and an intriguing new addition: quiz sheets. The central mysteries immediately snag the reader: What prompted the abrupt closure of The Case is Altered pub? Who comprised the enigmatic new quiz team? And what tragic circumstances led to a body being discovered in the river?

Prepare for a thoroughly enjoyable, intricately plotted, and deeply immersive experience. The sheer mental agility required to keep pace with the unfolding secrets left me delightfully drained. The wait for Janice Hallett's next offering has already begun!

This was a book shared primarily through text messages, which I didn’t think I would like, but I got sucked in immediately. There were so many twists and turns and I didn’t see any of them coming! It was a fun book!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

This book was a DNF (Did Not Finish) for me mere because I am not a fan of reading a book comprised of email communication. If this doesn't bother you, and you are a fan of Janice Gallery, then give it a read.

For me, I prefer books written in the typical (and expected) manner. The inclusion of one or two emails would be fine, but when the majority of the book is compromised of emails it is FAR too much for this reviewer, it quickly gives me that "nails on a chalkboard" feeling.

Janice Hallet is an absolute genius
They way in which her stories come together with twists and turns that are truly unpredictable is unmatched, and her mixed media writing style is a triumph.
I will read anything she writes

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Janice Hallett is my favorite author. I love her writing style, and her books have made me fall in love with the mixed media format. Her books use varying forms of media for the reader to figure out and try to solve the mystery alongside police or other characters. In The Killer Question, the nephew of pub owners who run a weekly quiz sends a documentary idea to Netflix and the book is all the text messages, emails and WhatsApp messages that Dominick, the nephew, sends to Netflix to pitch the idea for this documentary. The Case is Altered is the name of the pub in this story. They run a quiz every Monday evening. A new group joins and upsets the quiz nights because they win every quiz every week. There were a lot of twists and turns that I didn't see coming, including a jaw dropping moment. I usually have ideas in mysteries and thrillers about the reveal, but in this book, I was completely surprised. I find this to be the case with Janice Hallett's books. I have read all of hers except for two, but I plan to read them because I just love Janice Hallett. If you like the mixed media or epistolary writing format, I definitely recommend Janice Hallett's books especially if you love mysteries.

Another of Hallett's genius stories. I am a massive fan of the epistolary novel, and the way she finds different avenues for every single book of hers is astonishing. The only complaint I ever have id that sometimes it gets so bogged down in the details and the smaller parts of the story that it loses sight of the finish line and I get impatient that the mystery itself isn't moving forward. But all in all, a great book.

Great writer but I really could not get into this story. Thanks for the opportunity to read but it was just not for me. Good Luck with the boo.

This is such a unique read! It’s all about an eccentric game show where contestants have to figure out if a guest is a cold-blooded killer or totally innocent.
The story unfolds through transcripts, interviews, and clues that make you feel like you’re solving the mystery right alongside the characters. I really liked the way the story was told—it was clever and fun, with a bunch of red herrings to keep you guessing.
I can definitely see myself picking this one up again just to see what I might’ve missed the first time around!

4.5 stars rounded up to 5

I’m never not impressed by a Janice Hallett novel and this is another clever mystery on par with her previous works.

The Killer Question is a page turner and a quick read that left me giggling intermittently while trying to figure out the puzzle.

Get ready to take notes as this one’s full of characters, date jumping and told in multiple formats (i.e. texts, WhatsApp messages, emails, etc.). But, if you’re ready to do a little work to keep up, you’re in for a treat of a tale.

Despite the format, the character development is excellent and even better, there isn’t a single character I dislike. The interaction between the individual groups is entertaining and believable.

The Pub Quiz Night theme was so much fun. Hallett does her research and it shows. Great book!

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for this ARC.

I’ve now read all of Janice Hallett’s cleverly constructed novels, and this novel was no exception in delivering her signature narrative ingenuity. This latest book immerses the reader in a charming English countryside setting, which provides a cozy, almost deceptively calm backdrop to a story that demands sharp attention and thoughtful engagement.

In terms of personal ranking, I would place this novel in third, behind The Twyford Code and The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels, both of which set a high bar for originality and narrative complexity. Still, this entry stands strong on its own, particularly in its atmospheric charm and clever plotting.

I really liked Janice Hallett's other works (especially The Appeal), and have been chasing that high ever since so I was really excited for this book! I actually liked the book fine, but upon learning that ChatGPT was involved in some element for "inspiration" has really soured my thoughts on this book.

Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC!

Janice Hallett is by far my favourite mystery author, but The Killer Question was a little disappointing. I still really enjoyed it, the characters were engaging and the setting of the pub quiz was quirky and fun, but when it came to the twists at the end it felt like it fell flat a little.

This was the first of Hallett’s books where I guessed part of the twist before the end, for one thing, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing – but I don’t go out of my way to try and guess the endings of mysteries, personally. I think the reader being able to figure something out shortly before the reveal shows that the author led you down the path well, but I realized what the twist was… well before the reveal.

But there was more than one twist in this story, and I didn’t get all of them. I still really enjoyed the reading experience, hence the three stars, but found that the pay-off of the twists wasn’t as satisfying as it could have been.

It also dragged on just a bit, at around 450 pages, but I was still able to finish it in two days, so that wasn’t too much of a barrier.

Janice Hallett never fails. Her adult mixed media novels are always a hit and this one is another to join that list.

I absolutely loved this and never saw any of the twists and turns.

I would recommend this to anyone who loves mystery read.