Reviews with content warning for Infidelity - Murder in the Family

Originally I expected to give this book three stars, because it seems to be trying to make a point about the way true crime media often re-traumatizes victims and crosses boundaries in the pursuit of sensationalism. However it did not do this well, and that aspect fell flat. I bumped off another half star about half way through because of the casual sprinklings of racism/copaganda and zionism throughout, but it was the last 15% of the book that really pissed me off and caused me to put it at 2 stars. The end of this book is so disgustingly ableist, makes absolutely no fucking sense, and heavily leans into the demonization of mental heath conditions/trauma. It reinforces the idea that trauma makes people violent to the point of senseless murder. I am so angry right now, the book had a really great ending all mapped out, a road it could’ve taken, and instead it did exactly the same nasty shit that true crime tv so often does (which is ironic considering the author seemed to be *trying* to make a point about that).

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kristenreads's review

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mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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infjkiki's review against another edition

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mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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savvyrosereads's review against another edition

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mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Rating: 4/5 stars

Told in a multi-media format styled after a true crime documentary, MURDER IN THE FAMILY follows six experts trying to solve the cold case murder of Luke Ryder, who was killed in the garden of his expensive estate twenty years prior.

This was the May pick for my book club, and for some reason I was really hesitant to pick it up—probably because it wasn’t a book that was on my radar before it was chosen. Fortunately, once I finally read it I was pleasantly surprised! I found this one super enjoyable and entertaining the whole way through, LOVED the format (though heads up that I feel like this one would be VERY difficult to follow on audio and I’m glad I went with the ebook), and overall got relatively invested in the story.

I did feel like parts of the plot were very predictable and I saw all of the twists coming. I also thought the ending was a bit too “easy”—and honestly I wrote an entire alternate whodunit in my head that I like more.

Still, if you want a fun quick mystery, I would recommend this one, and I’m looking forward to discussing it with book club!

CW: Death/death of parent/murder; statutory rape; mentions of hate crimes, racism, and homophobia

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beccaand's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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starglitters's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The actual murderer is not that surprising, especially if you apply Book Logic to it. However, for a book that markets itself with “can you solve it before they do?”, the revelation doesn’t really hinge on the actual evidences collected throughout the book.

Still pretty enjoyable.

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vikart's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

"Murder in the family" is an uniquely written book that presents a case from the past within a show script with a handful of other formats, as well.

Personally, I enjoyed this book a lot. However, I can't say it's a perfect read (for me). This is possibly due to my lack of attention, but I found myself getting lost between who is who whenever speech is delivered at a later date as it does unravel rather quickly. On the other hand, the plot involves a lot of twists and you are allowed, along with the characters within the book, to get lost in the thread before recollecting and finding a proper string to tug on.

Now, if the question is "should I pick up this book?", then I'd answer you this.
Pick it up. It's an unique experience compared to other books, but beware. This is not everyone's go to due to the writing and presentation. You may like it or you may not. That is up to personal preference.

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