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3.31 AVERAGE

ceelynnn's review

3.75
mysterious
funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Disclaimer: I listened to the audiobook.

I was really interested in the premise of this book, even if it felt a bit cliche and done before. And well…it didn’t do anything new.

Was it funny in bits? Yes, although the very British and millennial humour got boring sometimes. It felt very YA, and might have done better for me had it been YA originally, maybe with a younger set of characters.

Did I want to know where it was going? Yes! I finished it in two days, obviously I was intrigued by the plot (I originally wrote ‘gripped’ but that feels too intense).

Did I like it? Erm…somewhat?

I wouldn’t pick it up again.

Claire “Kirby” (I don’t remember her surname) is a journalist in a small rural village, eager for a fresh start after leaving her life behind in London. She moves in with the “Deadbeats”, a group of thirty year olds living in a flat in Crowhurst. A murder from the nineties still has its grip on the small town, and is brought back into the limelight when a true crime influencer (GenZ, loves a vape and has a dark, short bob) arrives on the scene.

Yes, the premise sounds interesting so far, doesn’t it?

Well it all goes horribly wrong when this influencer goes missing and “Kirby” decides to investigate.

Side note: I just graduated from studying a journalism degree, and the FIRST thing I have to say is this woman annoyed the ever living daylights out of me. 

She just shouldn’t be a journalist. She completely misses big clues, does no real investigating, and very much does not understand her role.

It really took me out of the book at points when I had to seriously question who gave her a job in the first place.

Oh and her flatmates? Annoying. They all annoyed me. They were pretty one dimensional and I didn’t care for them at all.

What I will say is the twist at the end was good! Not great, and I didn’t really see it coming (maybe I should’ve now looking back at it).

The pacing was a bit off for me too, but it might be a personal preference so don’t let that get you down.

I’d recommend this for a lighthearted murder mystery book, but I wouldn’t expect too much of it.

I think other people could really enjoy this book! Just not me…
emmymk's profile picture

emmymk's review

3.0
dark mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

geyrsturzflug's review

2.75
funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
challenging emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

cc04519's review

3.0
adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
francescasoph's profile picture

francescasoph's review

0.5
slow-paced

Boringly predictable. 

graugold's review

3.0
adventurous tense fast-paced

regular_joe's review

3.0
funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

auntiepeculiar's review

4.0
dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced