How to Solve Your Own Murder

For fans of It’s 1965 and teenage Frances Adams is at an English country fair with her two best friends. But Frances’s night takes a hairpin turn when a fortune-teller makes a bone-chilling prediction: One day, Frances will be murdered. Frances spends a lifetime trying to solve a crime that hasn’t happened yet, compiling dirt on every person who crosses her path in an effort to prevent her own demise. For decades, no one takes Frances seriously, until nearly sixty years later, when Frances is found murdered, like she always said she would be. In the present day, Annie Adams has been summoned to a meeting at the sprawling country estate of her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, Frances is already dead. Annie is determined to catch the killer, but thanks to Frances’s lifelong habit of digging up secrets and lies, it seems every endearing and eccentric villager might just have a motive for her murder. Can Annie safely unravel the dark mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will dredging up the past throw her into the path of a killer? As Annie gets closer to the truth, and closer to the danger, she starts to fear she might inherit her aunt’s fate instead of her fortune.

About the author

Kristen Perrin

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Praise for How to Solve Your Own Murder
"How to Solve Your Own Murder is a masterclass in the art of mystery. Kristen Perrin crafts a beguiling puzzle from sharp prose, compelling characters, and an irresistibly intricate setup. One of the best and most satisfying mysteries I've ever read." Elle Cosimano, New York Times bestselling author of Finlay Donovan is Killing It
 
Debut novelist Kristen Perrin has done the impossible in delivering readers a quintessential English murder mystery with a fresh, unconventional approach. Idyllic country village? Check. Amateur sleuth? Check. But a fortune teller's grim prediction coming true sixty years later? Now that makes for an enthralling tale. There's no shortage of entertaining, well-rounded characters in this charming and multilayered whodunit, a perfect shelf companion alongside reader favorites like Agatha Christie, Richard Osman, and Nita Prose. Sarah Penner, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Apothecary

I so enjoyed this smart, original murder mystery. It's filled with curious characters and takes place in the most gorgeous setting  the mysterious Castle Knoll and sucked me in from the very first pages. I think fans of Richard Osman will love this one. Beth O Leary, author of The Flatshare

Grab a blanket and mug of English breakfast tea and prepare to get lost in Kristen Perrin s delightful How to Solve Your Own Murder. Perrin flawlessly links amateur sleuth, Annie, to a cast of eccentric characters, a fortune teller s dreaded prediction, a decades-old mystery, and a puzzling murder. With Agatha Christie-like vibes and perfect for fans of The Maid, this is an utterly charming whodunnit I loved it! Karma Brown, #1 internationally bestselling author of Recipe for a Perfect Wife

"A quaint village in southwest England, an amateur female sleuth with the deductive skills of Agatha Christie s Hercule Poirot, and an eccentric murdered aunt come together in a brilliant and masterful whodunnit. For all murder mystery fans this one s for you! Don t miss it." Liv Constantine, internationally bestselling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish

I loved it: warm, clever and wildly original. Elly Griffiths, Edgar award-winning author of The Stranger Diaries

Select a positive superlative and be confident readers will use it in describing this tale. Fans of Alice Bell, Janice Hallett, and Agatha Christie will hope to see more from Perrin, who set aside YA fiction to make her adult debut. Booklist (starred review)

"Puzzle-filled...This is a low-stakes, non-terrifying mystery whose many puzzles fall in the sweet spot between risibly simple and prohibitively complicated. Castle Knoll s unofficial name should be Nest of Vipers. As Saxon, a sneaky, spying child who has grown up to become the town s coroner, puts it: We re all guilty of something. New York Times Book Review

"This debut...announces the arrival of a very bright new talent on the cosy crime scene. Perrin s first mystery has wit, style and suspense as well as a feisty heroine. A delightfully refreshing story of the plots and allegiances that riddle the tiny Dorset village, where everyone has a skeleton or two in their closet. This has a Netflix series written all over it it is that good." Daily Mail

"[How to Solve Your Own Murder] is such an addictive and cleverly plotted read that builds on an gem of an idea to create a treasure trove of a story.... Perrin s writing was wickedly brilliant, insightful and utterly captivating....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." The Nerd Daily

"How to Solve Your Own Murder had me hooked from beginning to end.... The clues and misdirections are brilliantly created....This book is so enjoyable that I found myself doing what I haven't done in a while taking it with me everywhere so I could read even just another page or two. It's a clever and carefully crafted novel that has much to recommend it." Book Reporter

"The pace is quick, the red herrings are plentiful, and Annie s growth from timid wannabe writer to confident sleuth is beautifully rendered. Combining elements of Agatha Christie, Anthony Horowitz, and Midsomer Murders, this is a richly entertaining whodunit from a promising new talent." Publishers Weekly

"Perrin juggles characters and clues with aplomb, sketching in the past via teen Frances journals and immersing readers in the present through Annie s determined, good-hearted point of view. Readers will root for her as she gains hard-won confidence in this entertaining exploration of family secrets." BookPage

"A spellbinding cozy mystery layered with so many twists and turns that readers, right up to the last page, will keep changing their minds about whodunnit and why. Shelf Awareness

Perfectly structured and filled with suspense, Kristen Perrin, making her adult fiction debut, delivers a fascinating and twisting whodunit packed with wit and heart that s perfect for fans of Richard Osman and Anthony Horowitz. The Real Book Spy
 
The plot has a nice sense of propulsion, the mystery definitely captures interest, and Perrin is a smooth writer. Christian Science Monitor

A deliciously inventive new take on the classic murder mystery. I couldn t put it down. Bobby Palmer, author of Isaac and the Egg
 
Kristen Perrin has such a bright, fresh and natural voice - I was utterly absorbed by this classic murder mystery, with a uniquely spooky twist, and whizzed through the entire story in one sitting. Jessica Bull, author of Miss Austen Investigates
 
A clever, captivating debut with an abundance of style. Kate Wells, author of Murder on Malvern Farm

Product details

• Authors: Kristen Perrin
• Publisher: Dutton Books
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 26.03.2024
• EAN: 9780593719800
• ISBN: 978-0-593-71980-0
• No. of pages: 368
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 229 mm x 23 mm
• Series: The Castle Knoll Files; Die Mörderarchiv-Reihe / The Castle Knoll Files
• Subject: Fiction > Suspense