This was such a fun read! I’ve previously read The Appeal, and I really enjoyed its format, but this book was better able to hold my interest than that one. While there were some unlikeable characters who got on my nerves a bit, the plot was intriguing and kept me on the edge of my seat. The main drawback for me was that there were over 50 characters introduced within the first 100 pages, which was a lot to keep straight (especially when a few also have nicknames)! I like to have a firm grasp on all characters, especially with twisty books like this one, so it took me a bit longer to finish than normal. Overall, the story was captivating, I enjoyed the quizzing aspect, the setting was cozy, and the characters entertaining. Hallett is clearly very skilled in writing in this style and I’m now more interested in checking out her backlog.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me an e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Janice Hallett writes original mysteries told in text messages, phone transcripts, emails, and news articles. Each is like a piece of a very large jigsaw puzzle. The Killer question is centered around pub quizzes and, of course, a murder. I thought the first 70% of the story moved too slowly with too much repetitive information. However, once things picked up, my eyes were glued to the pages. I did not see the ending coming.

Thank you, Atria and Net Galley for the advanced copy of this interesting book.

* Thank you to NetGallery and Atria Books for an eArc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own*

This is one of my most anticipated releases of the year! I love Janice Hallett, and this book didn't disappoint! I really enjoyed the pub trivia aspect of the story, and how each "episode" was delivered had me intrigued to learn more. I did figure out a couple of the reveals/twists but there were more that I didn't and had me shocked. The only thing that brought down my enjoyment/rating to a 4.5 instead of a solid 5 is that it dragged a little in the middle, but I will definitely be purchasing a copy when it comes out! Highly recommend this book if you enjoy mixed media mysteries with twists and turns.

Janice Hallett continues to shake up the genre with this quasi-epistolary mystery. Her books are tailor made for me. I love a book with unexpected reversals, narrative fragments scattered across different mediums, humor, and suspense. Each of her books deliver on all fronts and this latest story is no exception. Read this book if you like: true crime documentaries; pub quizzes; feeling smarter than everyone else. Keep 'em coming, Janice!

Dominic has contacted a true crime television producer to pitch them the story of his disgraced former police officer aunt and uncle. I do not believe that any producer would have asked for more information after the first portion. The first 75% was down right sloggy and sometimes boring. I kept at it out of annoyance in order to see if the final plot twists would be worth it. There were some great and some ridiculous twists but overall I think that it was not.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this DRC.
#TheKillerQuestion #NetGalley

I LOVED this book! It was slow at first, and I wasn't sure where she was going with this one. She always gets you in the end. She truly plots out her stories so well.

I really loved the characters in this one as well as the interconnecting story lines and timelines. Amazing plot and twists!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

I am continuously amazed at Hallett's ability to develop both characters and plot in an epistolary fashion. I have loved all previous books but this one might just be my favourite. There was a lot of mysteries going on and I loved how they all unravelled and how they intersected throughout. A quick read that packs a punch!

Mixed media in books has always been one of my favorite additions to a story, so when I discovered Janice Hallett and her entirely mixed media book, The Examiner, I was absolutely hooked on her writing. I will reach every book Hallett writes.

The Killer Question features the pub The Case is Altered, owned by Sue and Mal who host weekly pub quizzes. Our story is told across two timelines and I honestly never saw the big twist coming. I thought it was brilliant.

Overall, immensely enjoyable. I love Hallett’s unique writing style and will continue working my way through all her published works to date! I absolutely recommend this one to everyone.

Janice Hallett is my go-to auto read author for a very good reason- she continuously writes gripping, thought provoking, and thrilling mysteries with the kind of well observed humor that puts her a head (or two!) above her contemporaries. “The Killer Question”
is the latest addition to Hallett’s ever perfect repertoire and my new favorite read- I couldn’t wait to see how it ended (though hers are the only books I consciously take my time with because I want to prolong the experience!) and the conclusion proved so clever and SO satisfying. Bonus points for us theater lovers our there- Hallett has a history of partaking in community theater and this book (along with her first novel- The Appeal) has loads of acting & theater references that I enjoyed immensely- one reference had me laughing so hard I had “time.” Don’t get the reference? Read this and you will…

10’s across the board, thank you so much Atria Marketing for inviting me to read this gem!

Janice Hallett's epistolary format is always fun. I can't even imagine writing a murder mystery book using only text messages, emails and transcripts.

I think this one got bogged down in the details. The actual story took ages to get going. We spend waaaay too long on back and forth about the pub quizzes. By the time we get to Hallett's trademark insane plot twists, I was frustrated and just wanted everything explained quickly.

I also didn't quite understand the ultimate motivations of the villains. A plot twist can be bonkers but it still needs to make sense! Why did they do it???

Big thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

If Janice Hallett has no fans assume I am dead. This latest book has: local pub drama, a publican group chat, quiz controversy, multiple friend groups having little spats, and of course...murder! It's a mystery inside a mystery with a side of a twist on a twist (on a twist? I perhaps lost count, but it didn't feel overdone!) The character work in this one felt very similar to her first, The Appeal, which will always have such a grip on me. I loved the local pub landlords and the various quizzers so much, all with their little quirks and hints of wider life outside of the quiz nights (poor Andrew and his desk job that he hates so much💀).
One slight drawback with this book, and I think also with her last is that it feels like her mysteries are moving away from the fair play style she started with in The Appeal and more to the type of mystery where crucial information isn't revealed until late into the book. HOWEVER, this one specifically is told through a series of emails mimicking the pacing and layout of an imagined docuseries, which would do exactly that: keeping the juicy information until later in the series to surprise viewers and keep them watching.
In all, I'll never shake the thrill of being told a story through this format of emails and texts and transcripts of recordings, it always feels like being in on The Gossip of the characters' lives in the besssst way.

I did find it a little hard to get in to this book, until about 60% done. I think it was because there were SO many characters. The twists were great though and I did enjoy the ending!

I found the format difficult to read and relate to. Hard to get into the book and ultimately I was so distracted by the format, I couldn't finish the book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.

Janice Hallett has done it again. She writes such innovative and interesting mysteries. You start out having no idea where the story is going to go and it slowly unravels into something you didn’t expect at all. This book had a few slow parts and wasn’t my favorite of all the Hallett books, but still really well done and worth picking up if you enjoy a mystery with mixed media.

Janice Hallett has become an author who can’t write another novel quickly enough for me, and each one of her books is a masterpiece of plotting and puzzle construction. The Killer Question has Halley’s trademark wholly original story spun from a seemingly mundane setting among seemingly straightforward characters. This time at a weekly trivia night. I read this book in one sitting and I can’t say it was better than Hallett’s other novels because they have all been outstanding, but it is absolutely a match for any of her other books.

The Killer Question is Janice Hallett’s latest mystery, told through a unique and engaging format that incorporates phone messages, emails, and quiz categories. The novel unfolds across multiple timelines, gradually revealing the intricate layers of the story.

Sue and Mal Eastwood, pub owners, host weekly quiz nights at their rural establishment. As the narrative shifts between their present and into their past, learn of a sting operation that led to their departure from the police force where they were officers. The discovery of a body in a nearby river kicks off the intrigue. When a new team joins the regulars for quiz night, the dynamics shift, stirring up unexpected revelations.

Hallett’s storytelling is clever and immersive, with each piece of information functioning as a puzzle piece in a larger, unpredictable picture. While the novel lacks intense tension, its distinctive format and steady unraveling of secrets make for an engaging read. The way the story ultimately comes together is both satisfying and surprising.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

Janice Hallett is writing books unlike anyone else. Her use of emails and texts is absolutely incredible and just truly such a treat. I can hardly put these down. That being said, I would have liked this one to be a bit crazier with a bit more oomph at the end.

Fantastic premise and story! I loved all the twists and turns. I have enjoyed the majority of books by this author and I can't wait to read more!

I love Janice Hallett's novels. I feel like she has embraced the epistolary novel and brought it into modern times. Her books are so easy to breeze through, as you get caught up in the back and forth antics of some of England's quirkiest residents. This time is no different, as we follow two owners of a rural pub and their quest to uncover the mystery behind a brand new team at their pub quiz night, who just happens to be on an unprecedented winning streak. But as is the case with a Hallett novel, the surface level mystery is never really the true mystery, is it?

As with any Hallett novel, this one was fun, easy to get engrossed in, and full of fleshed out characters. As is also true with any Hallett novel, there are smaller plots happening throughout the book on top of the larger plot of "who is the team and how are they winning so much." I particularly thought those stories were well done this time around. I really loved the captain of the one regular quiz team who just keeps sending emails to his team recapping their quiz performance, but then sidetracking himself into a monologue on the inevitability of death. He always ended his email with something like, "But oh well! See you Tuesday!" And if that's not a lot of people right now, I don't know what is. He made me laugh. I also loved the college student that ends up staying with the pub owners for a while. Her text messages were accurate and hilarious. She never said much, but I had a very clear picture of her in my mind. Great character development all around!

For some reason though, this mystery just didn't hit as hard to me as others. It felt like the end was a jumble and the motivation was weak. I understood everything, but I was still asking myself "why" at the end. I also had questions about the "narrator" that were never answered, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. It just felt a little uninspired compared to some of her earlier novels, like there were too many threads to have to tie together at the end so there was this big event in the book to tie up most of them and the rest were just left to flap about. It's hard to explain what felt off about this one, but it just didn't quite have the fun and excitement as previous books. Maybe it's the setting, maybe nature of the topic, but it just felt dreary and depressing.

I remain a Janice Hallett fan and look forward to reading more from her!

As a private investigator, I am always riveted by Janice Hallett's work. The Killer Question, in which a mystery surrounding the dramatics of a cheating pub quiz team, is just the latest in a long line of fantastic books by an author who is a master at planting clues. Reading The Killer Question is like being an investigator, parsing through the evidence to the crime's inevitable, often surprising, conclusion.

This book is for anyone who loves unusual story formats, solving mysteries, or has ever been a regular at a pub quiz. Will definitely be putting this one on my re-reads for summer list.