5 Stars from me
I loved this book so much. It’s a Modern Marple and I ended up buying it for 3 family members.
I’m a big fan of the rare epistolary novel and here it’s given a fresh and modern twist, with the letters being in the form of emails. The book also feels pacy not just because the emails are relatively short but because they’re written from several character perspectives, so we start to build up a real picture of the town and of what might be going on. Also perhaps because we’re reading the appeal brief alongside two junior barristers who have been asked to read over the correspondence to see if their view accords with that of senior counsel’s, makes the reading feel that much more time-pressured (in a good way).
You can be the detective here too because all of the clues are contained within the correspondence file, so it also feels immersive.
Overall one of the top books for 2021 and I would highly recommend it.
What they say
In a town full of secrets…
Someone was murdered.
Someone went to prison.
And everyone’s a suspect.
Can you uncover the truth?
Dear Listener – enclosed are all the documents you need to solve a case. It starts with the arrival of two mysterious newcomers to the small town of Lockwood and ends with a tragic death.
Someone has already been convicted of this brutal murder and is currently in prison, but we suspect they are innocent. What’s more, we believe far darker secrets have yet to be revealed.
Throughout the Fairway Players’ staging of All My Sons and the charity appeal for little Poppy Reswick’s life-saving medical treatment, the murderer hid in plain sight. Yet we believe they gave themselves away. In writing. The evidence is all here, between the lines, waiting to be discovered.
Will you accept the challenge? Can you uncover the truth?
The standout debut thriller of 2021 that delivers multiple brilliant twists and will change the way you think about the modern crime novel.