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3.32 AVERAGE
3.32 AVERAGE
shoe-dunnit: 4/5 stars LOOOOVE the autistic rep!!
it's snow crime: 2/5 stars wtf was this (slay gay teacher tho)
the beast of bedleywood: 3/5 it was cute!
the christmas heist: 5/5 LOVE A HEIST
cool for cats: 3/5? love all things cats but i wasn't 100% sure of what was going on
it takes a thief to catch a thief: 3/5 so true nanny
the frostwilds: 4/5 i enjoyed this it was a nice little story!!
scrabble & murder: 5/5 i love kids solving murder
the ticking funhouse: 5/5 this WAS SO FUN? i wish i knew what happened at the end omg
ice and fire: 3/5 liked it, wasnt my fave but i appreciate the nod to class prejudice
silent night: 5/5 i really enjoyed this one, neighbour stories are always so fun
no piste for the wicked: 2.5/5 ehhh this one was alright, but i didn't really care about it
the cove(n) at christmas: 3/5 same with this one, although i just kept picturing phoebe bridgers
it's snow crime: 2/5 stars wtf was this (slay gay teacher tho)
the beast of bedleywood: 3/5 it was cute!
the christmas heist: 5/5 LOVE A HEIST
cool for cats: 3/5? love all things cats but i wasn't 100% sure of what was going on
it takes a thief to catch a thief: 3/5 so true nanny
the frostwilds: 4/5 i enjoyed this it was a nice little story!!
scrabble & murder: 5/5 i love kids solving murder
the ticking funhouse: 5/5 this WAS SO FUN? i wish i knew what happened at the end omg
ice and fire: 3/5 liked it, wasnt my fave but i appreciate the nod to class prejudice
silent night: 5/5 i really enjoyed this one, neighbour stories are always so fun
no piste for the wicked: 2.5/5 ehhh this one was alright, but i didn't really care about it
the cove(n) at christmas: 3/5 same with this one, although i just kept picturing phoebe bridgers
Overall rating of 3 stars.
For a book called ‘very merry murder club’ the number of murders are very limited. Across all 13 stories there is only a handful of murders. There’s some sinister mysteries and thrillers which are enjoyable but some of the stories are just bonkers with ludicrous writing and characters, whilst others try to pack far too much in into essentially a short story. If anything, this anthology leads with the best story first - Shoe-dunnit by Elle McNicoll and then the ones that follow go on a sort of rollercoaster from awful to good. I’d also say the reading age varies massively throughout the book which can make the stories feel disjointed and be hard to adjust to.
Some other stories I liked aside from Shoe-dunnit were The frostwilds, the ticking funhouse (although very annoyed this was not longer as it ends on a cliffhanger), Scrabble and murder and The coven at Christmas. I only wish that Robjn Stevens had written a story in this anthology as I love her work.
4.5/5 - Shoe-dunnit by Elle McNicoll
2/5 - It’s snow crime by Roopa Farooki
3/5 - The beast of bedleywood by Annabelle Sami
2/5 - The Christmas heist by Abiola Bello
2/5 - Cool for cats by Patrice Lawrence
3/5 - It takes a thief to catch a thief by Maisie Chan
4.5/5 - The frostwilds by Dominique Valente
4/5 - Scrabble and murder by Nizrana Farook
3.75/5 - The ticking funhouse by Benjamin Dean
3/5 - Ice and fire by Joanna Williams
3.5/5 - Silent night by Serena Patel
4/5 - No piste for the wicked by E L Norry
4.5/5 - The coven at Christmas by Sharna Jackson
For a book called ‘very merry murder club’ the number of murders are very limited. Across all 13 stories there is only a handful of murders. There’s some sinister mysteries and thrillers which are enjoyable but some of the stories are just bonkers with ludicrous writing and characters, whilst others try to pack far too much in into essentially a short story. If anything, this anthology leads with the best story first - Shoe-dunnit by Elle McNicoll and then the ones that follow go on a sort of rollercoaster from awful to good. I’d also say the reading age varies massively throughout the book which can make the stories feel disjointed and be hard to adjust to.
Some other stories I liked aside from Shoe-dunnit were The frostwilds, the ticking funhouse (although very annoyed this was not longer as it ends on a cliffhanger), Scrabble and murder and The coven at Christmas. I only wish that Robjn Stevens had written a story in this anthology as I love her work.
4.5/5 - Shoe-dunnit by Elle McNicoll
2/5 - It’s snow crime by Roopa Farooki
3/5 - The beast of bedleywood by Annabelle Sami
2/5 - The Christmas heist by Abiola Bello
2/5 - Cool for cats by Patrice Lawrence
3/5 - It takes a thief to catch a thief by Maisie Chan
4.5/5 - The frostwilds by Dominique Valente
4/5 - Scrabble and murder by Nizrana Farook
3.75/5 - The ticking funhouse by Benjamin Dean
3/5 - Ice and fire by Joanna Williams
3.5/5 - Silent night by Serena Patel
4/5 - No piste for the wicked by E L Norry
4.5/5 - The coven at Christmas by Sharna Jackson
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3/5 stars
MEAN RATING: 3.1538
OVERALL REVIEW: I loved the diversity in this anthology, I just feel like loads of the stories barely even fit the theme. It was quite underwhelming.
INDIVIDUAL REVIEWS:
MEAN RATING: 3.1538
OVERALL REVIEW: I loved the diversity in this anthology, I just feel like loads of the stories barely even fit the theme. It was quite underwhelming.
INDIVIDUAL REVIEWS:
The Cove(n) at christmas: 3/5 stars. It was good. I have nothing more to say
No Piste for the Wicked: 3/5 stars. It was a fun murder mystery, but I wish the killer(s) had been foreshadowed a bit more.
Silent Night by Serena Patel: 4/5 stars. The mystery element of this one is probably my favourite so far. It was thoroughly enjoyable.
Ice and Fire by Joanna Williams: 3.5/5 stars. Very good but not incredible. I liked the setting.
The Ticking Funhouse by Benjamin Dean: 4/5 stars. The best written technically so far, and one I was particularly looking forward to as I've enjoyed his work in the past. Very fun and twisty.
Scrabble and Murder by Nizrana Farook: 3 stars. A fun murder mystery with scrabble thrown in
The Frostwilds by Dominique Valente: 3/5 stars. It was perfectly enjoyable. Being polar fantasy, it pushed the theme a little bit.
It Takes a Thief to Catch a Thief by Maisie Chan: 4/5 stars This was a very fun story, it even had me smirking at the end!
Cool for cats by Patrice Lawrence: 2/5 stars. Wasn't particularly interesting, the writing was choppy, and it wasn't Christmassy enough for my liking.
The Christmas Heist by Abiola Bello: 2.5/5 stars. It was meh. VERY forgettable for me. Also I was rather tired while reading, which can't have helped, not that I had much interest anyway because I don't think I like books about music.
The Beast of Bedleywood: 4/5 It's not your traditional mystery, and it may also be pushing the 'merry' part of this anthology's title, being set at New Year's, but I raced through this one. When you're not checking to see how many pages you have left, that's when you know it's good! Will be keeping my eye out to see what Annabelle Sami writes next.
It's Snow Crime by Roopa Farooki: 2/5 stars. The dialogue was written so weirdly and the plot was not well-crafted at all. Dare I say it was an example of how not to write a mystery. Also I think there were far too many main characters for how short the story was. Only not a one star because the prose wasn't badly written
Shoe Dunnit by Elle McNicoll: 3 stars. Good but not incredible. The quote about masking was very good.
adventurous
slow-paced
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No