This was a fun scavenger hunt/murder mystery, something I'd love to play in real life. I found it hard to get fully invested and I almost felt like an outsider at someone else's family party - I wanted to join in and make guesses from the clues, but I didn't really know anyone, the family history, etc, but on the whole, it was an easy read and enjoyable. Thank you to netgalley for the arc.

🎧Audio Book Review🎧

The Christmas Murder Game
Alexandra Benedict

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Guys, you will not believe how long this book has been on my wishlist / tbr!!
As soon as I saw this front cover, title and blurb, I knew it would be my kind of book and it's been in my wishlist ever since! I just never found time to grab it.

Well, let me tell you....it was well worth the wait - and if you're like me and haven't read it yet.....and you love a good murder mystery!.....then definitely go and grab a copy and enjoy!

I loved everything about this!

Basically, Lily had never planned to return to the family home after her Mum died there - but when her Aunt dies and summons Lily and her cousins to return for one last Christmas game, she can't let her down.
The 'players' have to remain in the house for the 12 days of Christmas while 12 clues will be given and reveal the hiding place of 12 keys.
At the end of the clues, whoever has the key that fits the secret room, will inherit the estate.

Oh my! This was a real joy!!

There was mystery, intrigue, bickering, murder and revelations galore during this brilliantly planned out who-dun-it and I loved every second.

I can't say anything else about the plot as there would be too many spoilers - but it was genius! The way the clues read, then as the family chatted, trying to work out the clues, this revealed just a little bit more about the past to keep us guessing about the real reason they had all been summoned back.

I thought all the characters were great - all the different personalities and the ranging dynamics between siblings and cousins were perfect - so like a real family - without the murder of course!

I am obsessed with this and cannot wait to get my hands on the remaining books in this set - I won't be leaving it quite so long to read them, that's for sure!




💕Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my ARC copy - this is my honest review 💕

This book had a great premise that didn't fully follow through in the execution for me. I loved the setting, but the characters were a bit too one-dimensional and the story too predictable.

This for me took a while to get going and it didn't start holding my interest properly until half way through the novel when the Christmas game got into full swing. I did enjoy the writing and the narration but wasn't gripped by the story if I'm honest.

I started to read this books as it’s getting near to Christmas and I thought it would be fun. Well …. It wasn’t fun. It was however a gripping read, that’s so twisted it could almost be real. Families can be very complex, but the one in this book is just sick, jealous and totally twisted. I would say this is a festive read, but I would say it was an entertaining one.

I received this book from the publisher via net galley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a little bit of Christmas mystery fun. I did guess some of it, but I had fun getting there, even when it was a little silly! I’m definitely intrigued by the authors other work and will be looking some out! I live a murder mystery and the Christmas spin was just what I needed at this time of year.

3 stars.

Lily Armitage has never wanted to return to Endgane House, the scene of her mother's unsolved murder. The aunt who raised Lily has recently died and her final wish is for Lily and all her cousins to return to Endgame House to play The Christmas Game one last time with the winner inheriting the house.

It was the cover of The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict that appealed to me initially, closely followed by the title and the blurb. I think the black, white and red design works exceptionally well.

The story begins quickly, immediately drawing the listener in, as we are introduced to Lily and her backstory. Laura Costello pitches the narration perfectly, showing Lily's trepidation at the thought of returning to the place where her mother was murdered. Alongside this, the pace never lets up but doesn't feel rushed.

Lily has no desire to inherit Endgame House, in fact, she'd be happier if she never saw the place again. However, her aunt has promised that by playing the traditional Christmas Game, where riddles are solved to reveal a prize, the clues will also reveal the identity of the murderer.

Cliches can't be avoided as they are used to add menace to the story; the rules mean that anyone who leaves the property forfeits their chance of winning, phones are confiscated and a snow storm means the house is cut off from the outside world. When one of her cousins is found dead, Lily realises that someone is willing to go to extraordinary lengths to inherit the house and that her own life is in danger.

Narrated by Laura Costello ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
by Alexandra Benedict ⭐⭐⭐

I absolutely loved the premise of this book. It definitely a book that I would buy just on that alone, however when it came to the delivery there was something missing. It just never went to that next level I was hoping for.

In saying all that I probably would not buy this for a friend but I would definitely still be recommending it.

A solid three-stars.

I absolutely adored this novel! It's exciting, unique, and original, keeping me on the edge of my seat with every word! The characters (which include LGBT+ representation) are incredibly complex and realistic and there's one plot twist after another that I genuinely could not predict. Even when the "villain" is finally revealed, there's an hour left in the audiobook and yet, unlike most other whodunnits, the rest of the story is still just as interesting and action-packed as the start. I wholeheartedly recommend this novel to absolutely everyone as it's fresh, satisfying, and thrilling throughout!

The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict
(Narrated by Laura Costello)

Entertaining mystery story set during Christmas.

Family members were gathered again in this house, not only to celebrate Christmas, it’s to solve the puzzle. The winner would inherit the house.

The story moved along was somehow predictable, but it’s still an enjoyable read. The idea was interesting. Good pace. Easy to follow by the narrator.

I randomly requested this book purely by the title and cover. The setting is perfect for this time of year and I had never read or listened to a Christmas based thriller before. The book starts off really well and was well paced through out but a bit predictable at times. This book would be ideal for anyone who loves odd Christmas traditions, puzzles and mysteries. I would highly recommend the audio book version of this.
Thanks to Bonnier UK Audio and Netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

*3.75 stars

I am glad I took the risk of trying this book, it was entertaining at another level!

The story is about a great mansion house whose inheritance is decided on an endgame played from Christmas to New Year and whoever solves all the puzzles and wins at the end will be the new owner of the house. Some play the game for greed, some for revenge and a few to solve the long-forgotten death mysteries of people lost to the game.

This eerie setting combined with a snow ambience is everything I could hope for right now. Plus the puzzles in the form of sonnets were another unusual element for poetry readers like me. The start, the pacing and the conclusion were all done well. Besides the minor predictive events, it was all crafted eloquently.

Genre: #mystery #thriller #christmas
Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️

Thank you @netgalley @bonnierbooks_uk @a.k.benedict for the ARC. What a wonderful story!

Unbelievably predictable with obvious points which were, I imagine, supposed to be shocking plot twists. Disappointing.

It's not a pile of presents by the tree this year, it's a pile of bodies!

Entertaining Christmas thriller, as an estranged family is brought back together, due to the conditions of one relatives will, to solve a series of puzzles and win the inheritance.

Ideal for fans of locked room mysteries and anyone who loves bizarre Christmas traditions. I loved it.

I love a locked door mystery, add in a game, an isolated setting, and no idea who to trust and this is a sure fire win. I loved that this book included clues that the reader could try to solve as they read.

Following a group of cousins as they try to solve clues to inherit the family home. With murder, grudges, and secrets galore I loved this book from start to finish. A definite one sitting read.

Murder? Christmas? For mystery lovers, this is the book for you to ring in the holiday season. I highly recommend the audiobook version.

A modern take on the classic country house murder mystery with a festive backdrop? There was no way I was going to be able to resist this! Benedict ticks all the right boxes for fans of Christie, Conan Doyle and 'golden age' murder mystery fans. Those who like their murder stories unrealistic and game-like, rather than gritty and true to life.

The point of view character is Lily, a woman who is reluctantly spending Christmas in the stately home where she grew up, in honour of her aunt's dying wish. Lily left the house when her mother died, and has not been back in the twenty years since. Now she and her cousins have been brought together to play a high-stakes version of the treasure hunt they used to enjoy as children. But this time the prize is the deeds to the house itself - a prize it turns out that someone is willing to kill for. Unknown to the others, Lily is playing for something else - the promise of finding out how her mother really died. With everyone snowed in (of course) and mobile phones locked away in the village to prevent cheating, Lily must solve the clues and try to avoid becoming the mystery killer's next victim.

The concept is extremely far fetched and there's a couple of plot holes. But it's not easy to write a proper closed room mystery in the age of the internet and smartphones. The reader needs to shut down the bit of their brain that keeps saying 'but why didn't she just....' and 'but what about...' and other such unhelpful interjections. If you can do that and suspend your disbelief, you can sit back and enjoy.

Benedict's writing style is very good - far better than I'd expected for a fun murder mystery. I really like her turn of phrase and her similes are brilliant. If she wrote something in a different genre I think she could be up there with the literary novelists. It was a pleasure to read just for that. She vividly conjured up the house and the characters. Lily is a likeable and sympathetic heroine, and the supporting characters are generally good - either loveable, hateable or intriguingly ambiguous. One is perhaps just too much of a caricature of nastiness. I did manage to work out 'whodunnit' but I couldn't be completely sure until the big reveal. It's very compelling , particularly towards the end.

The story works well as an audio book - it is linear and has a clear narrative that is easy to follow in audio. The narrator speaks clearly and reads at a good pace although she could have varied voices between characters more.

If you want to enjoy an old fashioned style murder mystery in the run up to Christmas, you can't really do better than this. It's fun, well written and will keep you guessing - and once you've read it, your own Christmas groans about relatives will seem minor in comparison!

Thank you Net galley, Bonnier UK Audio and Alexandra for letting me listen to this audiobook.

I really enjoyed The Christmas Murder Game. It was gripping from the start and loved the idea of finding the keys behind the clues. There was some nice twists and turns to the narrative which kept me guessing until near the end
.The Narrator, Laura Costello really suited telling this story. The pace of her speaking and general tone of voice was great for me.

Will be looking forward to reading more of Alexandra's books in the future

For years, Endgame House has hosted The Armitage family's Christmas game. Lily and her cousins were presented with a set of clues and had to solve the riddles their mother and aunt carefully crafted.
Years has passed and memories of Endgame House are now tainted. Lily's mother committed suicide and her uncle and his wife died in a car accident soon after.

Lily intended to leave all those bad memories behind when she received a letter from her aunt Liliana who'd just passed, inviting her to one last Christmas game. In her letter, aunt Liliana reveals that Lily's mother was in fact murdered. The only way for her to know the killer's identity is to take part in the game that will take place thoughout the twelve days of Christmas at Endgame House.
Lily finds herself in her childhood home, surrounded by her estranged cousins, all of them are competing to win of the ultimate Christmas game and therefore become the new owner of the house. But Lily's aware of a looming danger, will she be able to protect herself and those she loves ?

The premise of this book is interesting, I liked the setting (old country house) and the whole family tradition thing. I'm also a sucker for a good "whoddunit" mystery. In theory, this story had everything going for it, but I feel like it wasn’t well executed. All the characters were flat, one dimensional caricatures : Lily's the tortured soul, Rony is the good guy, Sarah's the obnoxious b-word, Ms. Castle is the stern housekeeper etc...
I've had such a hard time accepting/believing some things in this book that it made it impossible for me to be totally immersed in the story:
- Let's beging with Liliana's letter. How much of a sadist must one be to make a "theme" out of her sister's death ? How can she be so cruel and out of touch with reality to think that it's acceptable to put her orphan niece through all this ?
- To be honest, they're all a bunch of weirdos with toxic (and highly inappropriate) dynamics and relationships. Why's everyone flirting with everyone like they're not cousins ?
- Apart from that, the way everyone reacted to the murders was so bizarre and unnatural. The cousins they grew up with had been killed in cold blood, but everyone was like "okay let's go back to our game, shall we". And even when they mentioned the unknown killer that was probably among them, it was like they were talking about some random neighbourhood kid who egged the house and not ... A KILLER.
- Last but not least, I wish the author made it possible for us readers to solve the riddles. Is it just me or did most answers lie in Lily's childhood memories and were impossible to decipher ? Ha ! Maybe is was just me, I couldn't get one single riddle. The answers all seemed far fetched.
- Without any spoilers, the story's somewhat predictable, don't expect any shocking plot twist.

🎧 Audiobook narration : 4/5 Nice work ! I didn’t feel lost or confused once despite the fact that there were a dozen different characters played by the same person !

Thank you NetGalley and Bonnier UK Audio for giving me access to this audiobook for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this. The most exiting thing for me was unexpected plot twists, this keot it very suspensful for me. I finished the book recently so I put this on in the background and the narration added more to this feel of the book for me overall.