I DNFed at 27%. Im sorry about it because I loved her other book but the narrator especially the dad was too much, I can’t do that Boris Johnson style posh boy voice. I tried reading it physically after and just couldn’t get the stupid voice out of my head. It really took away from the story.

This is my first book by Bella Mackie and I have been missing out!

What A way to Go is a witty murder mystery told from 2 perspectives, one dead and one alive. This makes for a fun, witty approach to the classic murder mystery genre. It has some quite dark humour ( which I love ) and Bella does a fantastic job with her writing style to combine a balance between character development and plot direction. There are some great character, some likeable, some outrageously not. This is a sort of book Id happily re read /listen to multiple times.

This was narrated by Kimberley Capero, Gabrielle Glaister, Colin Mace who did a fantastic job in being in-tune with the characters and made the narrative come to life even more


4.75 stars for Storygraph, 5 stars for another review sites

Known for her hugely successful debut novel How to Kill Your Family, Bella Mackie is a novelist who's done the nearly impossible - she's followed it up with a second book that might actually be even better!

Anthony Wistern's is a life to die for, blessed as he is with success, riches, a beautiful wife, a good looking family, and more lovers then you can shake a stick at. Unfortunately, that's exactly what he does.

So, when this unpopular zillionaire is, shockingly enough, found dead at his own birthday party (under some very peculiar circumstances), the jury is out as to whether he was murdered or not. Be that as it may, this story is less about the possible murder or suicide of Wistern than the gloriously unruly cast of characters Mackie has gathered to entertain her readers.

And what a sterling job they do in the process of doing just that! From his resentful wife and deeply dysfunctional offspring, to a legion of spurned lovers and his many disgruntled colleagues and acquaintances, it is hard to find anyone who's actually SAD that Anthony Wistern is dead...

Once Anthony is gone, it quickly becomes clear that as far as his nearest and dearest are concerned, his assets and lifestyle weren't just to die for, but very possibly worth murdering for. But who in fact did the deed?

Mackie has delivered a wickedly funny and clever tale, and her use of the afterlife device in this story is a hilarious and brilliant touch.  Can you tell that I liked this book?! This one gets five stars. I strongly recommend it if you're looking for some light, caustic and witty entertainment!

I was so excited to receive this audiobook as I absolutely LOVED Bella Mackie's previous book. Sadly I just can't say the same for this one. I liked the sound of it and parts of it really did make me laugh but, ultimately, perhaps for me to love a book, I need to at least one of the characters to like and there was just no-one for me to root for in this story. They were all just so utterly repugnant that I couldn't care less what happened to them. The only one who was really remotely likeable was 'The Sleuth' but I really didn't like the narrator's voice (sorry - feel horrible writing that!) so I was put off that character too. It won't put me off reading another of Bella's books in the future as I do think she's a great writer and I do love her humour just please give me someone to like!

4.5 stars
This book tells the story of a murder from the point of view of three people: the murdered man from a kind of limbo, the murdered man's wife and a young woman who comments on real crimes on the internet in her spare time and uses the murder of her neighbour to try to be somebody. Bella Mackie has once again created horrible, self-centred and rich characters. They hate each other and create ridiculous and exaggerated situations. Nevertheless, the book has a social critique, a very acidic humour that is very reminiscent of her first book. It is not a quick or easy read, but it is entertaining, and although the characters are made to be hated, you can almost be on their side.
The truth is that this author's ability to create obnoxious and insufferable characters is impressive, and at the same time keeps you totally glued to the story.
Really liked the three narrators that create the perfect atmosphere for the audiobook.

It’s not always necessary to like the characters in a book, but I found most of the cast in this murder mystery to be unlikeable and annoying. I liked all of the different PoV’s, including that of the deceased, Anthony, but I really didn’t care how he died. I persevered, but found it hard going at times and it turned out to be kind of boring and not at all humorous. Many thanks to NetGallery and HarperCollins UK Audio for allowing me to get an early copy of the audiobook - shame it fell a little flat for me, but I am grateful for the opportunity nonetheless.

I'm very sorry but I gave up on this half way through. I wish I'd read it as a book rather than an audio as I think I'd have finished it. The characters were too horrible to relate to, which meant I didn't connect with them, and regrettably I found the female narrator's voice gratingly strident.

Thank you for my advance copy.

I found this a bit of a slog I'm afraid - too long to want to stick with unpleasant characters and it didn't grip me at all as a result!

Bubbling over with repugnant rich people, Bella Mackie’s story about the untimely demise of Anthony Wistern, and the resulting fall-out caused by his complete sense of self entitlement, is hilarious. Indignant in the afterlife, Anthony must remember how he’s died, in order to pass through the ‘sorting office’ and on to the next phase of death. Despite making an obscene amount of money whilst alive, he’s not that bright, so it hasn’t quite occurred to him where he might be heading. Meanwhile he’s absorbed with observing how the impact of his unexpected departure implodes his already dysfunctional family, in the hope that he’ll discover just what actually caused him to kick the bucket in the middle of his lavish 60th birthday party.
The narrators were spectacular, and I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook, which is out now. With huge thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK audio for the review copy. I’ll definitely be reading more from Bella Mackie. Five big shiny ones from me.

I had a lovely time with this wonderfully terrible family; they’re all absolutely horrendous, but it’s so satisfying to get to know them as you try to uncover Anthony’s final moments. Bella has a gift for crafting addictive characters, even the ones you don’t necessarily like.

What I liked most about this book was the setup, it follows the recently deceased in a kind of purgatory, where they have to figure out how they died by watching their loved ones navigate life after their passing.

It was a fast paced, entertaining whodunit with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments.

2.5

now i don’t have much experience reading thrillers so maybe this is just me but HMMM

firstly, i love the premise of this story?? basically it’s set in a world where in the afterlife you need to find out how you died by watching your family & close ones (murder mystery vibes!!) which i thought was so so cool

however, the execution was a little rough 😭 it jumped between povs a LOT (each chapter was a new pov & they were like an average of 3 pages) & also it jumped between flashbacks & present time too so it was really hard to get a sense of what’s happening

the main plot was interesting-ish, but i struggled to connect with any of the side characters. it was a little boring from around the 20-80% mark, not a lot was said and it didn’t really add much to the story

i don’t know if this is spoilery, but i really didn’t like the ending?? it just felt so unsatisfying?? like something just feels so off & i can’t exactly put a finger on why but yeah

thank you so much netgalley & book buzz au for the arc!

Thanks to Netgalley and Bella Mackie for the advanced copy of this book. I agreed to give a honest and unbiased opinion voluntarily

I listened to this book on audiobook and I found it hard to connect with. I didn’t find the characters relatable. This was my first book I read from this author.

Well this was peculiar… but I quite liked it! All of the characters are AWFUL- from the rich crooks to the obscenely entitled offspring to the true crime ghouls. It’s hard to say if anyone had any redeeming features. Yet, in a book a wealthy man trying to solve his own murder after he died, the comedically dreadful characters is what’s called for. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that I did find myself rooting for some of them in spite of how truly terrible they were. I am a sucker for hilariously petty parodies and dark humour after all. Although, in fairness, I especially enjoyed the true crime podcaster, with her seamless ads for products in the midst of her very serious “investigation”. Listening to the audiobook version, I also very much appreciated the multi-cast narration. As a mystery, it was a little slower paced and predictable, but as a character driven story, I wasn’t really after too much in the way of action (though there were some spiky surprises). Plus the ending was very amusing. So, if you like reading about unlikeable characters and you want an interesting spin on an afterlife story, then this book will be for you. Quite different to How to Kill Your Family, this was still quirky, fantastical and jolly good fun for those of us who like reading about nasty rich people getting their just desserts!

Rating: 4/5 bananas

Great story, such a clever concept. Really enjoyed it and loved the different narrators voice and tone throughout.

I did feel some aspects were slightly drawn out however I did really enjoy it. I didn’t guess the ending which is a total winner!

I will be posting on Instagram soon

This was a great audiobook! First of all, I loved characters' voices and multiple POVs style in the book. The story was very captivating as well and even hilarious in some parts. Definitely recommend checking this one out!

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an arc audiobook.

Thank you NetGalley for letting me read / listen to this book - for an honest review in return.
I loved Bella Mackie’s last book so was really excited to get this, honestly though I can’t say I ever really got into it. It’s a bit of a slow burner for me and I didn’t want to not finish it.
The story is told from 3 people - Anthony, the main character - Olivia - his wife and Jade - the Sleuth. His character is a rich egotistical man and how after his unfortunate death, we try and work out who did it? The story tells us about his family and we are led down a few paths for who it could be.
I’m not sure it’s one I would recommend, maybe if you like who done it’s? But it’s not been my favourite.
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With nary a likeable character to be seen, What a Way to Go is a glib, cosy, and slightly fantastical murder mystery.

Mackie’s sharp and witty narrative was so engaging, and I couldn’t help but revel in the unpleasantness of Olivia and Anthony. The South Gloucestershire waiting centre was such a creative and intriguing setting and I loved the omniscient quality of the perspectives of the characters held there.

The narration was equally sharp and biting, and perfectly captured the banter between characters. I particularly loved the quality of Olivia’s narration - it perfectly captured her unapologetic self centredness.

Thank you HaperCollins UK Audio for a copy of this audiobook. Opinions expressed are my own.

Very different to How to kill your family but I loved it just as much. Dark, funny and exciting, a modern day ‘who done it’. The characters were very love-to-hate And I can’t wait for the next one.

Sharp, clever writing that is both funny and makes you wince at the awfulness of the people described. Nobody is spared Mackie's razor keen observations. Anthony Wistern has the sixtieth birthday party to end all sixtieths, particularly for him, when he ends up impaled on a spike in his own lake. The book is narrated by the dead Anthony Wistern, his wife Olivia and a young woman called Jade, obsessed by true crime and convinced that Wistern was murdered. Blackly amusing and brilliantly plotted. I loved the audiobook because the three narrators were perfect for the characters and it brought the whole book to life.

This book started off well but sadly couldn't keep up the momentum, Apart from Anthony Winston, the dead guy and the after life bits, all the other characters were horrid, just lots of bickerng about the dead guys money and after a few chapters I jumped to the end, just to see what happened and that was underwhelming as well, but it made me glad I didn't waste anymore time on it. The narrators Kimberly Capero, Gabrielle Glaister & Colin Mace did an excellant job with the telling of the tale.