Unfortunately, I had to DNF this book.

Marissa is an editor and her agent gets her a job with the infamous director, Tony. Marissa is a bit odd, there's something about her I can't put my finger on. There's a lot of secrecy surrounding the job and Marissa has to sign an NDA.

I found I couldn't get into the story at all. I found it very haphazard yet slow paced and the characters were so flat. There's a podcast interspersed but this just added to the haphazardness of the story. It's almost like you don't get enough of a handle on what's going on before the story moves to something else. I couldn't connect with any of them and was just bored. I tried to keep reading in the hopes that the story would pick up but it just didn't hold my interest at all and wasn't for me I'm afraid.

Very modern and a lovely twist on the crime genre. I loved the setting and the elements of film and entertainment. Thank you for the chance to read and review this book.

This book was.all over the place and as such, I had no idea what was going on. I like the podcast though.

A brilliant book that completely grabbed me in from the start. It was funny, thrilling and addictive. I would love to read a sequel.

I DNFed this half way through. I found it far too slow paced and lacked clear direction. I just don’t think it was for me.

Quirky, Unexpected…
Amusing, quirky and unusual thriller set on a true crime movie shoot. On the set nothing is quite as it seems and scandal and gossip dominate the day. Film editor Marissa becomes wrapped up in the films subject and the killer that was never caught and who may well still be at large. Unexpected and entertaining with some smart dialogue and a swiftly moving narrative as well as a deftly drawn cast.

Oh! Filmmaking, cinema, murder, mystery... and a gorgeous heroine to boot! This book will reel you in and won't leave you on the cutting room floor.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me.

I felt it was really heavy material to read and overall, felt too difficult to get through.

At times it felt the plot lacked clear direction.

I did however, enjoy the podcast element and would have loved to see this expanded on.

Thank you for gifting me an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Pretty as a picture is an original, witty who dunnit that will have you laughing out loud, compelled to turn the pages to see what happens next.

This was a book that I feel was definitely not my reading style, I have it a couple of times of trying it and I just couldn’t get back to picking it up. Hopefully I can purchase it in the future and give it another try

I loved everything about this book: the awkward humour, the murder mystery and the sheer amount of film trivia because I am a total movie nerd.
The main protagonist, Marissa Dahl, is an introverted, quirky but very talented film editor and is summoned to a shoot on a secluded island. At this point she is frustratingly naive because as she arrives at the hotel and has no clue what the film is about and gossip is rife about the sheer number of crew who have left or been fired. However, as with all good mysteries she begins to fill in these gaps of knowledge by a little investigating of her own and quickly finds that the film is based on a true story of an unsolved murder of a young girl on the beach on the very island they are filming on.
Marissa is the perfect main character for this story because she sees life and people through captured images and sees far beyond what is or isn’t said. I did enjoy the introduction of the two teen girls she befriends at the hotel whose natural instincts and confident curiosity brings Marissa out of her comfort zone allowing more flow to the story and developing her beyond the editor/ investigator role.
I have read a lot of thrillers and seen a lot of mystery films and this book is just the perfect balance of pace and intrigue but also Hitchcock inspired twists and turns. I really fell for the characters in this one because they aren’t contrived or too stereotypical, instead Little layers them slowly allowing more to come to light as the mystery unfolds.
Definitely one of my favourite books this year!

Synopsis:

Marissa Dahl is a shy film editor who’s been hired to work with the legendary director Tony Rees on his new film. She travels to the small island off the coast of Delaware, where the movie is going to be shot. In the beginning, she tries to stay out of everyone's way and spend her time in the editing room, turning pictures into actual stories. However, even she was able to notice that something very wrong was going on around the set. Scandals, accidents, schemes, and fired crew members were only the beginning of the big mystery. Besides it all, no one seems to know what happened to the editor she was hired to replace.

After some time she meets two young girls who are determined to solve the murder mystery, which is also a central subject in the movie they are shooting. Shortly after Marissa is drawn into the investigation and tries to find as many clues on who’s the killer as she can, especially that it seems that the killer may still be on the loose.

Book review:

I made a huge mistake when I read this book on my way to Croatia. I’m so bad with picking up the important details when I’m in the car and in this book it was very important to do. This is the reason why I cannot tell you if I was surprised by every plot twist because I didn’t pay enough attention or because it was unexpected. That’s my fault. Wrong time and wrong story. However, I can tell you that the plotline was very interesting. I’ve always liked to read stories based around Hollywood and movies, so when I saw this book on NetGalley I immediately decided to read it! I wasn’t disappointed when I finally read it.

The story focuses on Marissa who at first doesn’t seem like a very interesting character, however, with time I found her interest in mystery very intriguing. Especially, that most of the time she repeats that she prefers to stay back in the editing room and do her job rather than being around people. However, when she learns that no one working on the movie knows why the previous editor was fired, she tries to get out of her comfort zone and find a way to contact him. During her little investigation, she learns much more about the strange atmosphere and accidents on the set. I think from this time on the story and the protagonist was growing on me and I wanted to know more and more about what’s gonna happen next. The introduction of the so-called killer of the girl they made a movie about in the early stage of the book was so unexpected that I just wanted to learn more and more with each chapter. The character I would like to read more about in the book would be Tony, the director. I don’t think we had enough scenes with him to be able to analyze his personality and actions, even if he played a very important part in the story.

To be honest, I didn’t expect this book to end in the way it did. On one side it was a much smoother ending than I was expecting but on the other, I would never guess that this is how it will end. I don’t know if it’s good or not but I was satisfied with this ending. It was a very nice closure to the book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Pushkin Vertigo, and Elizabeth Little for providing me with a copy of this book!

This was a book that, again, I tried coming back to again and again, trying to get lost in, and although it was interesting and different, it didn't grab me completely. It was very easy to walk away from.

When I read some of the other reviews, someone suggested that maybe it was a book that was best aimed at mystery newbies, as some of the plot moments were just so obvious, and I wonder if maybe that's part of the case for me too. I read so many mysteries and thrillers that it takes a lot to surprise me, and maybe this just lacked the spark I needed to stay gripped.

That said, I wish the author all the very best.

Pretty as a Picture by Elizabeth Little is a locked room mystery situated on a film set on an isolated island. The movie being shot is the fictionalised version of the very real unsolved murder of a young woman which took place a number of years earlier. Our protagonist is Marissa Dahl, a film editor who is drafted in when shooting is well underway to replace the existing editor who has left the project for reasons not disclosed. The celebrated and acclaimed director, Tony Rees is known for working his cast hard and for striving for the perfect shot. He is also known for being a bit of a tyrant and Marissa’s only previous encounter with him ended up with her accidentally knocking him into a fountain.

Alarm bells should ring for Marissa when she is asked to sign an NDA, or when she is escorted to a boat to take her to the island, or when she arrives at the set and the atmosphere is decidedly off. And they do, to an extent, but she is also intrigued about the movie and she knows that this is her big opportunity to really succeed in Hollywood. She’s also trying to escape a precarious situation where she equally loves and hates her best friend’s boyfriend.

Things start to get a bit weird, and I won’t tell you why or how, but what starts off as a weird atmosphere soon develops into the bizarre and dangerous. Marissa is caught well and truly in the middle of it all and finds herself trying to find out what exactly is happening and who really killed the young woman all those years earlier.

I really liked this book which is a love letter to Hollywood and movies. There are a number of references to classic films which somebody far more movie educated than I (I am notorious amongst my friends for my lack of film knowledge) would spot and use to put together the clues, but I still loved. Marissa lives and breathes films, she sees things in terms of movies, looking at things with an editor’s eye, trying to work out how things fit together and so, the prose has an almost cinematic feel. In fact, I did feel like I was in a film on more than one occasion. There is definite storytelling, intrigue and tension and at it’s heart a big old locked room mystery, which felt very vivid.

It did take me a little while to ‘get’ Marissa and her thought processes. She is quite socially awkward, sarcastic and her mind leaps from place to place. I was a little confused at times and it did take a moment to find the rhythm of the prose, but this was my issue and not the book. I was curious though, and I like being curious about a book. I really wanted to know what was going on, because there was something definitely Not Right on that film set, and I really loved hating Tony who is just one of those fantastically awful people. And I really wanted to know if one of the characters was based on Robert Pattinson.

Little clearly knows her stuff, because this felt really authentic. The depiction of power play between a director and his minions, the way the actors are treated, the staff working in the hotel trying very hard not to stare at the movie stars wandering round the place and the intricacies of a film set are all brought to life. The mystery is also great and there are some wonderful interludes in the narrative from a podcast hosted by two teens who have turned detective Nancy Drew style.

Bearing in mind this is a book about murder it is a fun read with much to admire. It is well paced, has a great protagonist and lots of intrigue to boot. Recommended!

I loved this book. Engaging, set in the world of movie making and in the genre of a locked room mystery (or island in this case) Pretty As A Picture has a fascinating and quirky narrator in film editor Melissa Dahl.

This is a beautifully put together story with lots for all readers. There’s a sharp humour and wit and intelligent prose that cuts through the beautifully done old movie feel of the film and location. It’s a classic mystery but with a true crime edge and a heroine who is both endearing and engaging. More though, it deals intelligently with cinematic and murder mystery tropes in a way that satirises the movie industry while telling a fabulous story.

The humour is sharp and witty and the tale is told with a fresh and lively eye.

Melissa is a damned good editor, in part because she sees the world in terms of images. They are her frame of reference when trying to work out how people are responding to her and what emotions they are expressing. Shy, introverted and not a little OCD, it is to her beloved films that Marissa turns when she wants to understand the world around her.

She’s been working with a rising star of the independent film world recently and her star has risen alongside her friend Amy’s, but now she is in need of work elsewhere and so she accepts a job without interrogating the circumstances too closely. She knows that she’ll be working with the high profile and exacting director, Tony Rees, with whom she had a slightly uncomfortable encounter early in her career. But despite his demanding and sometimes tyrannical ways, Rees makes good movies and the pay is good, so she heads off to the location which Rees has determined must be kept under wraps.

This turns out to be an island off the coast of Delaware with a beautiful old fashioned hotel which is where the cast and crew are filming. Marissa still hasn’t read the script but it soon becomes clear that this movie is based on a real crime that occurred on this island some years previously.

Caitlyn Kelly was 19 years old when she was found dead on the beach. As the movie making progresses it becomes clear to Marissa that everyone on the island has a pretty good idea of who murdered her, though the leading actor, who is playing that character, has other ideas.

Marissa wants to know why her predecessor was fired but no-one will talk and even he, under threat of an NDA, will not divulge the reason. But what she does find out is that there have been a series of accidents on the set and indeed on her first day there a generator overheats sending broken glass from burnt out exploding bulbs all over the set and the principal actress.

Marissa has had to sign her own NDA and give up her smartphone and these things alone are making her nervous, though she does have a protector in the form of handsome bodyguard, Isaiah. When she’s attacked by someone who is in the process of stealing the film footage, she is determined to find out what’s going on and why.

Marissa is helped by two murder minded teenagers Grace Portillo and Suzy Koh, whose parents work for the hotel. They run their own true crime podcast and are keen to solve the mystery of who really killed Caitlin Kelly.

When another murder takes place on the island it is Marissa’s cinematic eye that will put together the key clues and provide the answers the island has been waiting for.

Verdict: A fascinating, sharp and witty thriller with brilliant dialogue and a protagonist who really works on all levels. At one a satirical look at the madness of movie making and an evocation of the heyday of movie making, this is a thriller you won’t want to miss. It’s great fun, intelligent, full of film references and has a fine sharp edged and witty take on the industry all fused together in an intriguing and fascinating plotline.

A neat, intriguing thriller with elements of mystery both past and present, we follow film editor Marissa as she goes to work on an island for a notoriously demanding director.

What I Loved:
- neurodivergent rep - relatable!
- well-paced mostly, kept my interest despite film jargon
- unpretentious
- enjoyed the ~tween characters despite myself
- definitely fun and funny, even if you have to suspend your disbelief a lil

What I Didn't Love:
- the mystery definitely fell apart for a little bit there

Overall a fun time, a nice 'easy' thriller to spend some time with. Could have done without other reviewers calling the neurodivergent MC 'annoying'. 3.5/5

Big thanks to NetGalley, the author, and Pushkin Press for the e-ARC!

There were elements of "Pretty as a Picture" that I absolutely loved, particularly Marissa's encyclopedic knowledge of film which made her a Sherlock Holmes-esque savant when it comes to deduction. Those parts were some absolutely great writing.

Ultimately, though, the narrative was a little slow with lots of meandering and digressions, which was a bit of a shame. If it had been a tighter book I would have adored it.

Rating 3.5.

"Give me a movie and I’ll find the meaning; I’ll find the truth; I’ll find the story. Sometimes, if I’m very lucky, I’ll find all three.”

Some girl dies. Film editor Marissa has read better loglines for films, but still jumps at the chance to travel to a small island to work with the legendary – and legendarily demanding – director, Tony Rees.

Soon she discovers that on this set, nothing is as it seems. There are rumours of accidents and indiscretions, of burgeoning scandals and perilous schemes. In the midst of this chaos, Marissa is herself drawn into an amateur investigation of the real-life murder that is the movie’s central subject.

The only problem is the killer may still be on the loose. And he might not be done.

This is not the heart-racing thriller I expected it to be. It is, instead, a slow-burn mystery, taking its time to develop. I enjoyed the behind-the-scenes action described on set. It gave an interesting peak at the business of making movies.

The book is written in first person and I think the author did a brilliant job in creating Marissa’s peculiar voice. It kept me hooked to the point the slow build-up of events didn’t bother me. I also though the podcast discussions between the characters added to the mystery even though they didn’t reveal anything new.

An intriguing exploration of human character amidst the glamourous but toxic world of show business, this is a funny entertainer coupled with a murder mystery.

This ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Pushkin Press.

An ok read - has a bit of the farce about it, and you could imagine it as a film itself. The book is about the film industry and the lengths legendary director Tony Rees will go to in the making of a film. The film is really beset by major problems, and when Marissa Dahl is called in as editor when the previous editor leaves, she quickly realises something is seriously amiss. The film is set on the island where a young girl was murdered over twenty years earlier and attempts to tell the story and find out who really murdered Caitlyn. Marissa is a stickler for discipline and her routines and quirks become part of the story. I made the assumption she is on the autism spectrum and it was good to see a main character, who is a successful female in her field, with these traits. Not a gasp out loud whodunnit, but a pleasant read nonetheless. #netgalley #prettyasapicture

3,5 ⭐️

Pretty as a picture is a slow burn suspense story with plenty of movie references that I’m sure will appeal to those in search of a light mystery set in the movies industry.

Marissa Dahl is a socially awkward film editor who suddenly finds herself working on a movie about the real unsolved case of a murdered girl. A remote island location, a tyrannical director, several crew members fired and a new murder for her to solve with the help of a couple of teenage Nancy Drew wannabes, are some of the ingredients of this story that, although enjoyable, fell a bit short for me in some aspects.

I liked Marissa and her quirkiness and appreciated her take on the film industry. Her interactions with Grace and Suzy, the teen detectives and hostesses of the true crime podcast interspersed throughout the story, were always fun to read but it also made of this more of a juvenile read at times. The general tone was more of a cozy mystery than a thriller.

The podcast snippets were a fun way for the reader to try and guess what had really happened on the island.

Although not as twisty as some other mysteries, I was still surprised by some turns but feel like some aspects could have been better resolved as there were some plot holes left at the end.

Mix of cozy mystery with a thriller atmosphere, some fun dialogue and original characters that made of this an enjoyable yet not memorable read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pushkin Vertigo for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.