Murder in the Family is a hurricane of fresh air in the whodunnit genre. It was one of my holiday reads, and from the moment I started, I didn’t want to put it down.
I was even disappointed when my flight touched down because I wanted to keep going. The worst part about the book was nearing the end, because I knew that there’d be no way my second book could live up to it. I haven’t felt like that about a book in years.
It’s written in the style of a script from a Netflix true crime show. If I’d known that in advance, I might not have bought it, because I would have assumed that would get tedious. But Cara Hunter writes with such skill that it reads like you’re watching the show. In summary: Amazing!
THE *INSTANT* NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY AND TORONTO STA BESTSELLER
*THE FIRST EVER STAND-ALONE FROM AUTHOR OF THE DI ADAM FAWLEY MILLION-COPIES-SOLD SERIES*
**A Financial Times Best Book of 2023**
**A Guardian Best Crime and Thriller book of 2023**
'This devilishly clever, ground-breaking novel will keep you guessing' IAN RANKIN
'This book had me riveted to the page. It is original, inventive and totally 21st Century... Just brilliant!' JANICE HALLETT
From the author of IN THE DARK and CLOSE TO HOME comes a brilliant standalone thriller you'll never forget
Strangely, I’d call this book an anti-page turner.
It’s one of those stories where you almost don’t want to find out what happens on the next page – but you’re compelled to. It’s not a relaxing book, as it brings up all sorts of social anxieties about neighbours, cancel culture, social norms, and family problems.
Right from the off, you get the sense of lives unravelling over something so stupidly avoidable. And yet it is so believable. The cringe factor never drops below 10. Very different and very clever.
'Terrific and hugely thought-provoking' Ian Rankin
'One of my ten best reads of the year. Easy five stars' Lisa Jewell
* Waterstones Thriller of the Month - August 2023 *
* * *
You can choose your house. Not your neighbours.
WELCOME TO YOUR DREAM HOME . . . Salma Khatun is extremely hopeful about Blenheim, the safe suburban development to which she, her husband and their son have just moved. Their family needs a fresh start, and Blenheim feels like the right place.
MEET YOUR NEW NEIGHBOURS . . . Shortly after they move in, Salma spots her neighbour,…
It’s a Jack Reacher book. For me it’s an annual treat now—a tradition—like Christmas. Comforting. Familiar. Reliably enjoyable.
Admittedly, there once was a time when a Reacher book would have automatically been my number 1 favourite book of the year, and they aren’t quite as good as they used to be, but Jack is still such a great character he’s almost become writer-proof. Can’t wait to reach number 28.
The gripping new Jack Reacher thriller from the No.1 bestselling authors Lee Child and Andrew Child.
Gerrardsville, Colorado. One tragic event. Two witnesses. Two conflicting accounts. One witness sees a woman throw herself in front of a bus - clearly suicide. The other witness is Jack Reacher. And he sees what really happened - a man in grey hoodie and jeans, swift and silent as a shadow, pushed the victim to her death, before grabbing her bag and sauntering away.
Reacher follows the killer on foot, not knowing that this was no random act of…
Teenager Deenpal Mander has the most valuable superpower you can imagine. He can heal anyone of any illness or injury. His parents and aunt died when he was young, before he had the power to save them. Now he has nobody looking out for him. He comes to Manchester hoping to learn how he got this ability, and maybe find other people like him who can do extraordinary things. More than anything, Deenpal craves a family. But his incredible gift makes him a target for unscrupulous criminals who dazzle him with money and fame, and tempt him into selling his soul. Can there be any salvation for the boy they call Jesus of the North?
My daughter said that she found this book spooky, but in a good way. She liked the fact that it was about a girl who was already a ghost.
I couldn’t get a huge amount more out of her about the book (she’s nine, and it’s the same when I ask her about what she did at school ☺) but I can say that she took the book everywhere, and tried to read it after lights-out, while getting dressed in the morning, and finished it off while we were at a restaurant having a celebratory family meal.
