How to Solve Your Own Murder is an excellent inter-generational murder mystery that will root itself in your brain and plant itself firmly there. It is such an addictive and cleverly plotted read that builds on an gem of an idea to create a treasure trove of a story.

Recently, I have been craving good mysteries with cosy settings, characters that steal my heart instantly and twists that make me gasp out loud. This book met all of those wishes and so many more in a story that I will recommend to anyone who will listen. In short, this was a wonderful murder mystery, packed to the brim with twists and turns.

With the boom of films like Knives Out, the type of mysteries that dig into wealth and complex familial relationships have become hot property—doubled by the popularity of Saltburn. Perrin taps into that sense of peeking behind the curtain into the lives of the extremely wealthy and that particular sense of class that pervades every aspect of British culture.

As an American expat in the UK, she gets a bird’s eye view of our class system and how it dominates life. This book is great in unpicking that glamorous façade of the upper class to reveal a dark and bloodstained truth lying beneath. In particular, I really enjoyed the throughline of the violence of that money and how it was obtained. There’s a seediness to it all, which contrasts wonderfully with the finery. It all feels entered around appearances and they are often deceiving. Also, it is a form of manipulation— becoming more key as the story progresses. The financial aspects in particular are keenly felt throughout, as the main theme is that of inheritance. This is a double edged sword though, with secrets and lies also becoming part of a legacy that weighs heavily on the shoulders of many characters. At the same time, it is infused with that classic charm of Golden Age British mysteries—it feels like you could be reading a Christie or watching Midsomer Murders from the quietly claustrophobic, picturesque and oddly charming little village. All of this makes for a brilliant, smart and highly entertaining read.

Perrin’s writing was wickedly brilliant, insightful and utterly captivating. I adored the use of timeline weaving in this book as we flip between Annie and Frances—both of whom are encountering their own mysteries and developing dynamics between characters. Their voices are distinctive and yet you can see their similarities shine through. Perrin really digs into the central theme of fate. Frances’ tarot reading defines her entire life and has ramifications that cause ripples that grow into tidal waves. It deftly plays with that eternal question of if you could know your fate, would you choose to do so? At the same time, it also adds a meta gloss to the story, akin to the knowing nods to said classic mysteries referenced earlier in this review.

The reader is keenly aware of Frances’ fate, as is Annie who is reading these diaries in real time. It adds a tragic air of inevitability to proceedings, but you best believe both timelines have plenty of surprises in store. On this note, the twists are very well done and upend the story each time. You feel the walls closing in on you as Annie’s investigation becomes ever more perilous. Because of the unique situation from Frances and a certain gauntlet thrown down early on, Annie is fighting an uphill battle in a town that does not welcome outsiders into its confidences that easily.

How to Solve Your Own Murder is an ingenious, insightful and incisive read. If you’re looking for a good mystery that will keep you hooked until the early hours, look no further.

Can you solve a murder before it happens? This was deliberately messy but in a really engaging way. I loved the premise for the story and was hooked from the start. Great fun

All Annie has ever known about her Great-Aunt Frances is that she is reclusive and very rich, now she has been summoned to meet her. However, before the meeting can take place, Frances is murdered and Annie must solve the case. Given that Frances was told by a fortune-teller that she would be murdered, she has spent her life compiling evidence to try to find out who which leaves Annie with lots of suspects, lots of motives and a fantastic reward if she succeeds.
I really loved the premise in this story, someone trying to solve their murder before it happens. The plot has huge holes in it but it is very clever and the narrative bounces along at a decent enough pace. It's not a particularly demanding book but it does entertain.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this book but I thoroughly enjoyed it and looked forward to reading more each day.
Annie lives with her Mum in a huge house in Chelsea. One day she receives an unexpected letter that her great aunt Frances wishes to see her.
Heading to the countryside house, Annie is nervous and then discovers her great Aunt has been killed. Annie must now work to find out what happened.
In the past, Frances received threats and a fortune telling her she would be killed. Was the prophecy right all along?
A great read, I liked the way we learned about Frances and her friends thought the diary. Sadly I had no idea who the killer was! I would highly recommend this book.

Loved this, a really enjoyable book and great writing, I loved the dual timeline, and it never felt muddled.

I would 100% recommend this to fans of mysteries and good writing in general!

I really hope this does become the first of a series,

I thoroughly enjoyed this book .In 1965 when Frances Adams was a teenager she was told by a Fortune Teller that she would be murdered so she lived her whole life being paranoid and in fear all the time of the prediction coming true .Sixty years later it did !!! The story is fast paced ,gripping with some great characters and twists and turns and I didn't guess who the murderer was ! Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC .

I really enjoyed reading this book. I was a little unsure to begin with but once I got into it I couldn’t put it down! Loved the way it was told by two points of view, flipping between times to solve the murder. 100% would recommend reading it.

Thank you!

I can’t express how much I loved and enjoyed this novel. It’s a gripping and smart debut that kept me completely captivated and that deserves five stars and more.

The protagonist is Annie Adams. Recently made redundant, she’s dedicating her time writing her first novel while living with her mother in her great-aunt’s house in Chelsea. Annie has never met her great-aunt Frances, but she’s heard all about her and the fortune she was told when she was 17 years old predicting her own murder. Frances then spent the next sixty years trying to figure out who her murderer could be, living in a constant state of fear and paranoia.

Annie is taken by surprise when she is summoned to Castle Knoll, Frances’ estate, to discuss a change in her will. And things become more intriguing after Frances is found murdered in her own home and her will states that the entire estate will be left to the person who will solve her murder within a week. Her competition is Saxon, Frances’ nephew on her husband’s side, who believes that the estate should be rightfully his, and detective Crane, who partners with her to share information about the case.

Annie is convinced that Frances’ murder could be linked to the disappearance of her friend Emily sixty years earlier and never solved. As Annie reads Frances’ diary, she gets to know her great-aunt and she is determined to seek justice for her. A big estate, a long list of suspects, a toxic friendship, and a village full of secrets keep Annie busy as she receives death threats and the clock is ticking to solve the murder.

How to Solve Your Own Murder is a fast-paced and unputdownable debut and I can’t wait for its sequel and more adventures and murder-solving for Annie!!!

This was a very entertaining and fun cosy crime mystery.
After having her fortune read in 1965 Frances strongly believes that one day she will be the victim of murder. She spends the rest of her life gathering evidence about everything and everyone in her village in case the inevitable prophesy comes true.
The story unfolds in 2 timelines – one in the present day narrated by Annie and the second in 1965/66 uncovered in diaries by Annie’s Great Aunt Frances. This is tightly plotted and well written with interesting characters that are layered and well-drawn.
I loved the way the plot swings seamlessly from the past to the present uncovering little clues along the way.
Annie is likeable and relatable. It feels like there is definitely more to come from her and Great Aunt Frances.
Overall, this had a sound plot and excellent premise. Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley UK for the ARC.

I just reviewed How To Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin. #HowToSolveYourOwnMurder #NetGalley

Absolutely brilliant! Well-written and fast-paced without any unnecessary narratives. Really enjoyed this book and the title really doesn’t do it any justice as it’s so much MORE than what it initially claims.

Couldn’t put this down once I’d started it. Really well done to keep me gripped until 2:45am!

Frances Adams always knew she’d be murdered ever since it was predicted by a fortune teller in 1965. Determined to prevent it from happening, she spends her life compiling files on everyone close to her, digging up any dirt she can uncover. Everyone thinks she is mad until, nearly sixty years later, her body is discovered in suspicious circumstances. Annie, her great-niece, has been summoned to the English village of Castle Knoll by Frances, only to find her dead on her arrival. Determined to find her killer, Annie uncovers long-forgotten secrets that not only provide possible motives but also put her own life in danger.

The book’s blurb instantly intrigued me and I was delighted to discover, upon reading, that this was exactly my sort of book. Told from two perspectives, we meet, in the first, Annie, who is slightly perplexed as to why she would be asked to go to meet her great-aunt Frances at her stately house in Castle Knoll. Annie is an outsider, thrust into a village where everyone knows everyone else, and now she is having to treat all the people she encounters with suspicion as she knows that any one of them could be the killer. I liked Annie and admired her tenacity, continuing with her investigation even when she knows that many of the people she meets are desperate for her to fail.

The story is also told through the diaries of Frances, who details events from the 1960s, after the fortune teller predicts her demise. These chapters were enjoyable and I liked discovering her early life and the events that made her the way she was prior to her death. Although we never actually meet Frances as an older woman, it is testament to Kristen Perrin’s writing that we develop a fully-rounded picture of her and understand how she was not the odd woman many thought she was.

The plot is strong and will appeal to fans of classic whodunnits as we meet a plethora of shady characters, each with their own potential motive for wanting Frances dead. I was happy with the way the story played out, even if I didn’t manage to name the perpetrtor!

It looks like this is the first book in a new series and after thoroughly enjoying How to Solve Your Own Murder, I will be looking forward to reading the next.

This book was a tale of two halves for me.
I began by loving it and didn't want to put it down, As the story progressed, however, I became a little bored. There were so many different theories about who could be the murderer, that it became confusing and less interesting.
I read to the end and have very soon afterwards forgotten who the murderer actually was.
Not for me, sorry. Thanks to Netgalley.

Annie’sGreat Aunt Frances has died , in fact she was murdered .
Sixty years ago at a fair a fortune teller told Frances she would be murdered , since then this premonition has shaped her life leading her to fall out with friends and an increased sense of paranoia.
Annie is summoned to Frances’s sprawling country estate and vows to find the murderer,.
There is a mix of past diary entries with the present day and it works well and makes for an easy read .
An enjoyable read!
Thanks to NetGalley and Quercus books .

A cracking good read and if this is the standard to be expected of this author I would have no hesitation inreading again. Great Premise. Great Characters. Great Book.

When Frances Adams recieves an ominous fortune from a fairground fortune seller, her life is sent into a tailspin. Decades later the fortune appears to have come true, with Frances murdered in questionable circumstances. In order to inherit Frances' fortune, her great-niece, Annie Adams, must find Frances' killer. If she doesn't the estate will be sold off to developers. As she investigates and learns more about her great-aunt Frances, Annie unwittingly unearths another murder. But will she find the killers of both before it's too late?

This was a delightful, whodunnit that had me guessing until the end. There were so many twists and red herrings, that I genuinely couldn't pick the outcome. The characters were all fascinating - from the scheming Saxon to the hemp-growing Archie, and their stories all intertwine with each others.

And for a book full of murder, drugs, secrets and betrayal, this was a positively wholesome story of families, redemption, and what people will do for those they love.

I read this in a day - it was a fun, fast-paced read. Loved it.

~ Many thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

This was such a fun read! With a novel twist on the classic “Whodunit”, the murder victim Frances is an elderly woman who has been convinced since her teenage years that she will be murdered, so has kept files on those around her accordingly.

Having never met her Great-Aunt Frances, aspiring writer Annie feels compelled to solve the riddle of Frances’ murder – especially when she finds out that, should she find the culprit within a week, she will become the sole beneficiary of Frances’ immense estate.

What follows is a tale told across two timelines. We see Annie as she gets to know the villagers, their secrets, and their foibles, and we also get to know Frances from excerpts of the diary she kept as a teenager, as read by Annie. This has the bonus of getting the reader invested in Frances as a character, despite her demise so early in the book.

I loved the characters in this book, and the relationships that builds between them and Annie, as the “newcomer”. I did work out a lot of the twists early on, but that didn’t hamper my enjoyment of this cosy mystery.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

1965, Three teenage girls - Frances Adam’s and her friends, Emily and Rose - visit a fairground and Frances has her fortune told, which she finds disquieting but believes in it.: “Your future contains dry bones. Your slow demise begins right when you hold the queen in the palm of one hand. Beware the bird, for it will betray you. And from that, there’s no coming back. But daughters are the key to justice, find the right one and keep her close. All signs point toward your murder.”

We then cut to the present day and Annie Adams learns that she is to be a potential beneficiary of her great aunt Frances’ will, when she is summoned to her stately home for a meeting, but before this meeting can take place Frances dies, and her will requires Annie and another relative to investigate and compete to find her killer, the winner inheriting the estate, provided the police don’t get there first.

Interweaved with the ensuing events are excerpts from a journal (which Annie finds), written by her great aunt, which reveals much of her story following the fortune telling.

Annie believes that the routes of her demise lie in her great aunt’s youth, and so many of the youngsters around at that time are still living locally, many of them with reason to see her silenced.

This is an interesting spin on the ‘private detective’ investigation genre, and the story unfolds at a good pace with the reader, like Annie, trying to make sense of the evidence as it is revealed.

I read this book from a pre-publication copy kindly supplied by the publisher, but this is an honest review with no concession to their generosity.

This was a fun and fresh take on the cosy crime novel and I loved it.

17 year old Frances is told by a fortune teller that she will be murdered in the future… 60 years later her great niece Annie is tasked with solving Frances’ murder.

The story flits between modern day as Annie investigates and diary entries written by Frances when she was young. Soon Annie realises that Frances’ death may be related to the disappearance of her friend back in the 1960s and things start to unravel.

Both storylines are great and really gripping which is rare in a split timeline story, usually you find yourself rushing through one part to get to another but I genuinely really enjoyed both.

There was an Agatha Christie-esque vibe to the story with the big cast of supporting characters who all had their own motives and secrets which are revealed in time.

I loved spending time in the world of Castle Knoll and highly recommend to anyone who is a fan of the whodunnit, cosy crime genre.

How to Solve Your Own Murder starts with the premise of sixteen year old Frances hearing a fortune teller tell her she will be murdered. I was immediately hooked. We follow Annie, relative of Frances, who tries to solve Frances' murder before the others in order to inherite her fortune. At the same time, we can see some journal entries that sixteen year old Frances wrote and uncover the past and the present.

The title is a bit of a misnomer, because the way Frances sets up her will, it’s left up to her relatives to solve her murder. I really enjoyed the story and I liked a lot Annie and detective Crane!

An enjoyable village murder mystery. 4/5 stars.

This is a classic Midsommer murders/ Miss Marple-style murder mystery. Tiny, chocolate-box English village – check. Everyone in town knows everyone – check. Everyone has secrets they’d kill to keep – check. Dynamic young heroine, doing her best to crack the case, à la Nancy Drew – check. Handsome local detective who gets on rather well with our heroine creating the potential for future romantic entanglement – check.

As far as I know this is a standalone story, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it becomes the first book in an amateur detective series. The author does a lot of work in How to Solve Your Own Murder to establish the village setting and her main character’s sleuthing credentials. I think it would be a shame if, having put in so much effort, she didn’t get to return to them.

I like the way the present-day story is interspersed with extracts from Frances’ 1960s diary. It helped maintain the story’s momentum and, although the pacing did drag slightly a couple of times, overall it was good.

My only other criticism is that Annie faints a couple of times and the narrative skips forward to when she has recovered. I would have preferred not to miss the bits of the story when she was out for the count! Also the ending, with its sudden flurry of high drama, felt a bit rushed. This might also explain why I felt that there’s unfinished business here and another book or two will probably follow this one.

Overall: an entertaining classic murder mystery. If this is the start of a series, it’s a promising one: I’d certainly like to see more of Annie’s handsome detective friend.