Reviews

The Very Merry Murder Club by Robin Stevens, Serena Patel

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mehsi's review

5.0

A fun anthology featuring a whole bunch of fun mystery + murder stories.

This was SO difficult not to read but I really wanted to save this boy for Christmas. And I managed to do that, but I had to hold myself in many a time.

In this delightful book we get 13 short stories by various authors. There is mystery, simple and harder, there is murder, stabs and poison. Most of the stories take place in the now with a few exceptions (and one didn’t work). I loved how diverse the stories were featuring characters from all colours, with various reps, with LGBT feelings or parents, and more. It is such a delight and it made me smile. I loved the various mysteries as well, two featuring my favourite setting… snowed inn, um, in. XD It was great how some of the mysteries were solved within a heartbeat while others took a tad longer. I do have to specify that normally I am not the kind of girl who likes the easily solved ones or where the character just magically knows, but it worked in this one. It was just right.

I loved how each story was presented as if it was a file in an archive of The Very Merry Murder Club.

My favourite stories would be: Scrabble and Murder, Ice and Viper, and Shoe-Dunnit (with the fab quote: Herriot laughed, bemused. “You’re an old soul, aren’t you?” “No, just autistic.”).

With the story about the dancing, I wasn’t sure how I felt about them taking the trophy/swapping it. It just seemed too far for me. I would have rather had them solve the mystery and get things fixed.

There were three stories I wasn’t sure about. The first was It’s Snow Crime. Technically a good story, however it felt like it was either part of a series or just a part of a whole book. There were things happening that had me confused, like with the villain, or how grandma was a spy apparently? It just didn’t work for me. Then there was Frostwilds which I skipped after reading a few pages. Why did I skip? Because while it had that wintery setting… it just didn’t fit at all with the tone or the mood of the book. Suddenly we are transported to a magical winter world with a monster lurking around. Then there was the one about the funhouse. Again, fun to read at times, but I don’t know because it was more fantasy/more magical and had a very inconclusive ending I just wasn’t a fan of the story.

There are also various reps included in the book and I have to applaud for the autism and the ADHD rep. Those were just perfection.

I loved the illustrations, there style was just so much fun, though I just wish there were more of them and not just one per story. Haha.

So as you can see, I had tons and tons of fun reading this book. It was a perfect read for Christmas!

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

emminkirjakasa's review against another edition

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adventurous informative lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

🇬🇧 The stories were on a different level in terms of quality and festivity. Only some of the stories contained murder, and I would have liked more of them. Some of the stories felt like they were missing something, and I couldn't really get a hold of them. In some of them I felt like the number of pages ended a little too soon or the story had to be ended really quickly.

Fun stories, some of which you could also read as Easter approaches. 😆

🇫🇮 Tarinat olivat laadultaan ja jouluisuudessaan eri tasolla. Vain osa tarinoista sisälsi murhia, niitä olisin kaivannut enemmän. Jotkut tairinoista jäi vajaiksi, eikä niihin ihan saanut otetta. Osassa tuntui sivumäärän loppuvan hiukan kesken tai tarina lopetettiin todella nopeasti.

Hauskoja tarinoina, joista osan pystyi lukea myös hyvin näin pääsiäisen lähestyessä. 😆

(Posted on 26.3.)

Content Warnings

eshalliday's review

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2.0

There are some real clangers here, but also a couple of wee gems.

booknerdjo's review

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3.0

I have mixed feelings about this book.

It was clearly written and compiled with diversity at the forefront, and I completely understand that all children need to see themselves represented in the books they read. Unfortunately, however, I feel that quality has been sacrificed in the process.

The stories are mixed - some are fun and gripping, others are a bit dull. There's not really enough mystery in my opinion, and definitely not enough murder - the title is pretty misleading.

That said, it's a fun festive read and I fully support the mission behind it.