This latest book by J Hallett is every bit as gripping as previous ones. I like her style of writing via messages, emails etc, and quickly got to know the various characters. Layers of deceit and manipulation are gradually resealed, and the story takes some quite horrific turns. I definitely recommend reading this book.

I did like reading this book and found the storyline interesting. It’s about a group of students on an MA Art course at a university, and the external examiner is not sure if something has happened to one of the students. We are presented with a huge pile of Doodle and WhatsApp messages to read through to try and make sense of what has happened. I have read all of Janice Hallett’s books and this is one is an interesting take on society today and what happens when people get too caught up in their own emotions.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance reading copy.

So far, I've felt that Janice Hallett has consistently put out compulsive and clever books and I'm pleased to say that The Examiner is no different.

Told through a combination of emails between an independent examining body and correspondence between the tutor and students of an Art MA course, this book tells a highly entertaining and engaging story that has had some surprising elements and had me desperate to pick it up and see what was going to happen. We follow the course throughout the year to an event on which the students' final grade will be based and uncover what motivates each of the students and their tutor and what they will do to succeed.

I have read everything Hallett and am yet to be disappointed. If you have been a fan of her previous works, then you're going to enjoy this one!

'The Examiner' by Janice Hallet uses the author's characteristic epistolary style to unpick events on an art masters program at Royal Hastings University. Told through texts, email messages, essays, diaries and tutor feedback, the reader gradually comes to understand how a course with six students, focused on combining arts and the corporate world, could go so wrong and lead to murder.

I have really enjoyed Hallet's previous books. The writing style is clever and in this one, the combination of public and private messages, enables Hallet to play with what people want to portray about themselves and the reality. The twists and turns were good and the conclusion satisfying. For me though, there were too many times I had to suspend disbelief, such as when the students submitted long essays that shared a lot of information about what was going on. I also felt certain characters were under-developed and as a result this was not an emotive read. However, it was a fun one and sometimes that is all you need!

Another enjoyable crime novel from Janice Hallett, The Examiner is full of twists and turns (some more predictable than others). I'm all for a bit of madness in a mystery, and one of the things I like most about Hallett's writing is that she doesn't take herself too seriously. But I found I really wanted more from her characterisation this time round: the whole disparate cast come across as two-dimensional with unrealistic voices - even making allowances for the expected double-bluffing and disguises.

The Examiner is a wild ride and a fun read, but not Hallett's best.

'The Examiner' by Janice Hallett.

Six Students. One Murder. Your Time Starts Now.
The students of Royal Hastings University's new Multimedia Art course have been trouble from day one. Acclaimed artist Alyson wants the department to revolve around her. Ludya struggles to balance her family and the workload. Jonathan has management experience but zero talent for art. Lovely Patrick can barely operate his mobile phone, let alone professional design software. Meanwhile blustering Cameron tries to juggle the course with his job in the City and does neither very well. Then there's Jem. A gifted young sculptor, she's a promising student... but cross her at your peril.
The year-long course is blighted by accusations of theft, students setting fire to one another's artwork, a rumoured extra-marital affair and a disastrous road trip. But finally they are given their last assignment: to build an interactive art installation for a local manufacturer. With six students who have nothing in common except their clashing personal agendas, what could possibly go wrong?
The answer is: murder. When the external examiner arrives to assess the students' essays and coursework, he becomes convinced that a student was killed on the course and that the others covered it up. But is he right?

I read this book over 2 days, I couldn't put it down. All my guesses for what might of happened or who was killed or got murdered were wrong. That's a good mystery.
Janice Hallett has done it again, another brilliant book. The way she writes her book is so unusual but it just works.
Anyone a fan of murder mysteries, give this book a go or any of the authors previous books.
Thankyou to NetGallery UK, the publishers and the author for letting me read a copy in return for an honest review.

Enjoyable read but sadly fell flat for me. Didn’t have the magic of Twyford Code and didn’t live up to the originality of The Appeal. I raced through it enjoying the familiarity of Hallett’s writing style but it felt weak as a story. I had started to feel this with Alperton Angels, too many moving parts that made me feel that the bigger plot would be exactly that, bigger, but it wasn’t and left me feeling underwhelmed. I think if this was your first Hallet it would be enjoyable but not one I would recommend.

Once again, Janice Hallett has created a novel full of suspense, humour and drama - and one where the twists just keep on coming!
In The Examiner, the setting is Royal Hastings University and a new art course aimed at mature students. Our motely crew consist of:
Alyson, an acclaimed artist
Patrick, who struggles with the required technology
Cameron, who is disinterested,
Jem, who is gifted but suspicious of those around her
Jonathan, whose family owns a gallery
and stressed single mother Ludya.
Also, we have course tutor Gela Nathaniel.
The discussion all takes place via Doodle (the university internat chat), group chats, professor feedback and personal diaries of the students as the course progresses. And we soon discover the individual cliques, and personalities of the group. Along with the smaller mysteries that are occurring.
And the reader is soon drawn into the darker puzzle of the storyline as we and 'the examiner' endeavour to determine what has really been happening during the course duration and if there really is something to fear on the night of the project revelation!
Just brilliant!

WOW! Janice Hallett is an auto buy author for me every single time and this book continues that for me. I absolutely loved it and will be recommending to everyone as a must read for summer 2024!

I’ve read all of Janice Hallett’s previous books so was really pleased to receive a review copy of The Examiner. As with Hallett’s other novels the book is written as a serious of texts, blog entires, diary posts and WhatsApp messages, this time between students on an M A course.

The story had my gripped from the beginning, which was a good thing as clues to the mystery at the heart of this are dropped casually throughout, so a reader has to have their wits about them. I read a lot of crime fiction so usually see twists and turns coming but there were a number on here that surprised me, a couple that made me gasp out loud.

To summarise, this is a really well constructed novel. The characters are so believable. It’s funny and clever and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Janice Hallett has a unique style for her books. Just like her other books, The Examiner is set out as both private & group messages, student essays & tutors reports collected together to form a story. While everything seems to be going well on the surface apart from a clash of personalities, one of the students suspects something isn't quiet right.

Every time you think you know where the story is going, the next set of documents change everything you thought you knew. With twists right up until the end, this is a must read!

The Examiner gives a fascinating insight into the lives of students and coordinators on the new BA in Multimedia Art at Royal Hastings, University of London. However, nothing is quite what it seems and some of the insights are disturbing. Once again, Janet Hallet delves into the depths of people’s thoughts and opinions through her unique writing style.

The reader is only given transcripts of diary entries, texts, e-mails, official assignment content and chat room gossip. As you read on secrets, lies and aspects of students’ lives hidden from their classmates and tutors are slowly revealed. The reader is privy to the same correspondence as the examiners as they help decide whether the course will be renewed the following year and to confirm the grades awarded are acceptable. There are also transcripts of the examiners’ texts and e-mails on reading all the information.

The humdrum, boring and somewhat catty correspondences include the typical concerns of students looking to make the grade but a dark and jagged puzzle emerges and the reader is drawn right into the mysteries enticed by the intriguing characters, their drive to succeed and their hidden agendas.

With thanks to the publisher Viper Books for the Netgalley ARC.

"That's something they don't tell you about teamwork. It can normalise the horrific. If you break everyone's role down into their micro-responsibilities, then the horrific thing is only the sum of those parts. No one person feels responsible for the fuck-up in its entirety. A 3D version of 'I was following orders'...
And Me? I caused the main problem, so I felt I should at least help solve it. End the terrible cycle we were all trapped in. That's another side-effect of teamwork. Lack of emotion, absence of empathy - whatever it is that got us that far down the road...is contagious."

An Media Arts Masters course at a London University, or is it? Janice Hallett is back with another mind-blowing mystery, portraying the perils of teamwork through messages from six students, their course leader and of course the examiner. Whilst I always begin a book by this author looking for unusual behaviour from her well-drawn, often not necessarily likeable, characters, I can never identify the undercurrent until she wants the reader to. A few shocks and plot twists is a very mild way to describe how intricate and compelling the author's unusual novels are, this one focusing on dark academia and other themes I can't reveal with spoilers. I enjoyed reading some of the inspiration for the novel in the recommendations. An auto-buy (or in this case auto-request from NetGalley) author for me, it's another five star read.

FROM THE COVER📖

Six Students. One Murder. Your Time Starts Now... The mature students of Royal Hastings University's new art course have been trouble from day one. From acclaimed artist Alyson who seems oddly overqualified, to hapless Patrick who can barely operate design software, and city boy Cameron who blusters his way through assignments. Not to mention Jem, who's a gifted young sculptor... but cross her at your peril. The year-long course is blighted by students setting fire to one another's artwork, a rumoured extra-marital affair and a disastrous road trip. But finally they are given their last assignment: to build an art installation for a local manufacturer. With six students who have nothing in common except their clashing personal agendas, what could possibly go wrong? The answer is: murder. When the external examiner arrives to assess the students' coursework, he becomes convinced that a student was killed on the course and that the others covered it up. But is he right? Only a close examination of the evidence will reveal the truth. Your time starts now...

REVIEW ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Have to be honest I was disappointed in this but I did have very hopes. I loved the Appeal and The Christmas Appeal I really couldn't put them down sadly I have found while Hallett's other novels are good they don't in anyway compare to The Appeal.

They are certainly unique in terms of plots and how the books are set out( emails, text messages etc) I have found that the books outwith The Appeal end up being too far -fetched and they all share a strange tone about undercover agents and government secrets which I don't really get or like this was very much the case here.

I was hooked from page one until I was about 30% the way though then I felt it dragged on and became repetitive I got the sense something was going kick off, and there was lots of secrets and lies among the chats but even with the twists I that I never saw coming I felt it lacked something am not sure if it was way the material was presented or the fact the their were lots of LONG essay bits that just didn't flow .

The synopsis tells us- Six Students. One Murder. Your Time Starts Now- So, you go in knowing there is going to be a murder. Yet,over halfway through I was still waiting for something to actually happen or mention murder while the ending swiftly addresses the murder and mystery I felt it never flowed quite as well as it could. I found the ending quite far-fetched and not too relatable, plus I felt there was a lot of plot lines left unaddressed.



That being said as usual her writing is amazing to plot a book in the ways she does is true talent All the main characters have their own, distinctive voices mostly horrible ones and I was impressed with how the art the candidates create comes to life on the page and becomes visible to the reader. It is an intriguing story and the afterword explains a lot behind the plot idea. There was great twist among the murder plot which I really didn't see coming but in hindsight I could see the hints of it looking back, this in particular was very clever and is what makes Hallett stand out as a writer.

While this was let down for me it was still a very good book , the alternative approach that Janice Hallett takes with her books, giving the reader the same chance to solve the mystery as the characters reading the documents for the first time always makes her work extremely compelling and complicated.

Fans of Hallett's work will like this
and am sure she will pick up a fair few new fans with this.

Thanks a million to the publishers who approved my request for this ARC it was much appreciated.

As with previous Janice Hallett's books. She writes her stories using a variety of multimedia narrative. In The Examiner we get to read the story through emails, WhatsApp group messages and a university chat forum.

Six Students. One Murder. Your Time Starts Now...

This is what the beginning of the synopsis tells us. So, you go in knowing there is going to be a murder. Yet, over halfway through I still didn't know who or even if anyone had died. But, this is the beauty of Hallett's writing. She peppers the narrative with just enough information to keep you enticed.

The characters involved in this story are easy to relate to and to imagine. Slowly we unravel information about each of them and that's when the mystery deepens. Who are we meant to believe? Is what they are saying the truth?

This is a chunky book to read. It took me a while to get through. Bearing in mind I only got time to read little chunks here and there. But, the style of writing helps to be able to put down and pick up the story easily.

I'd love to know how Hallett plots her stories. There's twists galore. Timelines to think of and a cast of characters who may or may not be telling the whole truth.

Perfect.

At Royal Hastings University, trouble is brewing on the new Multimedia Art course. Six students begin the masters programme, but chaos ensues from day 1. Soon come the accusations of theft, the rumours about an affair, evidence that students work is being sabotaged, even a road trip that ends in complete disaster, and it’s not long before everything goes wrong. As an external examiner assesses the students work, it’s clear that a murder has taken place, but who is dead? And who has tried to cover it up?

Have to say I’m a bit on the fence about this one I’m afraid!! I adore Janice Hallett’s clever style of writing and the mixed media format, (I mean all her other books have been huge hits with me), but I think the actual plot and storyline is what lets it down a little because of how overly focused this book is on minuscule details. At times it’s very convoluted, and that’s before we get any background on these six students and their stories and links to other people. It all gets a little bit too confusing and things are just a little bit too unbelievable.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Hallett’s books, and I did indeed race through this once, I just can’t help feeling a little underwhelmed that it didn’t hit the same as the rest of her works, like The Alperton Angels which is one of my favourite crime novels! I had such high hopes for this and I think this fell a bit short of my expectations.

Would recommend if you’re a fan of Hallett’s work (I’ve seen plenty of really positive reviews for this, so might just be me), but I’d start with her other books if you’re new to her stuff <3

I love Janice Hallett's writing so was very excited to have a copy of her new one - I'm so happy to say that I adored this one! It follows a group os students on a new art MA course at university. As with all Hallett's books we follows the story through the University's intranet Doodle, plus some WhatsApp messages and emails. It becomes apparent from the beginning that there is a possibility that someone has gone missing from this course but no one seems to be sure so I was intrigued from the very start! Like always with this author I just happily get swept up in the story as I find it impossible to figure out what's going on and I love that. This one took some very unexpected turns, and I wasn't keen on the twist midway but it didn't stop me enjoying the story as a whole. I really enjoyed this and I definitely recommend it!

I suppose I have only myself to blame, starting this on my only morning off - but I hold Netgalley and Ms Hallett responsible too! She should really come with a health warning - do not start unless you can finish in one sitting. And I certainly did. You keep thinking, "just one more page, and I'll get up and oh, do some chores, feed the dog (feed myself) etc".
Well, for about 8 hours I subsisted on coffee and biscuits, and (metaphorically speaking) not a child in the house washed, but it was worth it. The best thing about a Hallett book is that you keep thinking about them after you've finished, re-assessing your assumptions, and admiring the way she has played you - and, of course, you know full well you're going to have to re-read it in the context of what you know now. Not many thriller writers can say that.
For me this one didn't hook quite as quickly as some of her others - the set-up with the college bumf etc was a teensy bit tedious - but then, I don't see how she could have gotten around it, whilst staying true to her signature style, and it did set the scene and atmosphere well. Despite this, her subtle exposition of the characters, mainly through emails, college messaging system, and WhatsApp, keeps the reader hooked. I guess at this stage, fans will know that the author has very unreliable narrators/communicants, so part of the fun is trying to see through the information given, to the personas behind it. Hallett is a genius at using our own preconceptions and assumptions against the reader - though this is an added bonus: we get a great mystery, and possibly spend a bit of time questioning ourselves.
The characters were, on the whole, horrible people one way or the other, but their interactions were a joy to behold - from a safe distance! Hallett is excellent at drawing characters in a fairly sparse medium, with very little physical description easily inserted, and she also uses it to subvert our expectations and further muddy the mystery waters - skillful and entertaining.
Possibly the murder mystery escalated a bit too much towards the end, but at that stage I was so invested that I was willing to go with the flow, and absolutely HAD to know what happened. I can't say much more without spoilers, but this was a thouroughly addictive read, with a smidgen of social commentary - nothing too heavy - thrown in for good measure, and a nice psychological poke at our programmed views of others.
My thanks to Netgalley for the ARC, all gushing opinions are my own - but definitely meant; I'll be re-reading, possibly very shortly.

Janice has done it once again. This was one of my most anticipated reads of this year, and I was lucky enough to get an ARC on netgalley. (Thank you, Netgalley).

This is one of the best books I've read this year, maybe even my new favourite.

We follow 6 students who have been hand selected for an MA degree in Art. They all have their own personal and secretive backgrounds. The twists and turns that this book took, I swear, gave me whiplash. Once, I thought it was going in one direction, and I was figuring out what was going to happen, it went totally somewhere else. The revelations around 70% had me hooked.

To be fair, the whole book gripped me, it's so easy to read as it's all in multimedia, even though I found it hard to follow at times (a me problem not the book) I just went and reread it 😅

Such an intense and gripping read. Go read it. Well, when it's out on 29th August 2024!

Janice Hallett is an auto-buy author for me, everything she has written is so much fun to read. I'll be getting a physical copy to add to my collection (one day I'll get them signed, is the hope!) but this went straight to the top of the pile when I got approved for an e-arc on Monday morning. I was on a Zoom meeting when I got the approval through (no, YOU were checking your emails whilst on another call!) and I knew I'd be bumping it to the top of my list.

Janice tells her stories through the medium of email exchange, Whatsapps, text messages and transcripts, to name a few. It's a brilliant way to narrate a mystery story as it keeps one thread of the story hidden from you until later on, so you've no idea who to trust.

This works really well in The Examiner, which takes place on an MA Arts course. Several students taking part in a course that requires them to deliver their own projects whilst working on a combined piece to be presented at an event at the end the course.

Most of the story moves forward through a Doodle intranet service provided by the university, and captures the group chats, professor feedback and personal diaries of the students as the course progresses.

They're not a particularly likeable bunch, but this is a necessity! As is always the case with Janice's books, she gives snippets of the characters so you are never really sure who to trust. There are lots of twists to further keep you guessing and I genuinely wasn't sure where it was going until the end, thus proving she is a master of her craft.

If you've read Janie's other books, you're going to love this and if you are new to her tales I am envious that you have a whole stack of books to read of hers.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.