Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

245 reviews

amrithi's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder

alynnhays's review against another edition

funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

P L O T
Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone follows Ernest "Ernie" Cunningham as he attends his unconventional family reunion. Ernie is a reliable narrator explaining his family dynamic a piece at a time by revealing information about each family member. Because of this, the plot felt twisty in the best way. 

T H E   G O O D
The character development was very strong. I cared for Ernie, he made me laugh, I knew his internal monologue, and I empathized with his emotional and moral struggles. The author helped me understand the motives of characters that I had originally disliked. No character was one-dimensional, and I really appreciated the effort it took to create a story I was invested in.

I felt like I actually had a chance at solving the mystery and was able to figure out one key clue which felt exciting. Still, the ending left me shocked! By no means was this book predictable!

T H E   B A D
My one and only criticism happened in the epilogue. One final detail lacked clarity. I ended up Googling to see if others felt the same and found some discussion that helped clarify my confusion.

R A T I N G
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I wish I could experience it for the first time again - it's an absolute gem that left me spellbound and eager to share with everyone!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Torture, Murder, Violence, and Infidelity

Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Infertility, and Suicide

aliciavalenski's review

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility, Murder, Grief, Alcohol, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Vomit, Car accident, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Police brutality, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Child death, Gore, Medical content, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Torture, Violence, Gun violence, and Infidelity

cerysl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Confinement, Death, Grief, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Abandonment, Drug use, Medical content, Murder, Police brutality, Suicide, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Infertility

alliallialli's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Suicide and Child death

imagemaps's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Child death

kimberleyw12's review against another edition

funny informative lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Murder, and Death of parent

Minor: Addiction

puddleshoes's review

dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Medical content, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Murder, Death, and Child death

Moderate: Drug abuse, Addiction, and Confinement

Minor: Gun violence and Abandonment

oxfordcommas91's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

This was an amazing cozy mystery that really hit the sweet spot of Agatha Christie-esque whodunnit with some fun twists along the way. In this unique book where our narrator helps authors write mystery novels (amazing mystery novel inception here…) and frequently breaks the fourth wall to talk to the reader, we are engulfed in the family drama of the Cunninghams, all of whom have killed someone. But this book isn’t quite what it appears to be on the surface. With dark humor and plenty of red herrings along the way, this book sped to its satisfying and gasp-worthy conclusion. I read this book in only a few sittings - I honestly had a hard time putting it down. This isn’t a twisty psychological thriller that will keep you up at night and instead relies on pretty straightforward murder mystery mechanics that are really good for a reason! This book just works. Can’t wait to read Stevenson’s 2024 sequel!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gore, Kidnapping, Infidelity, Murder, Mental illness, Drug abuse, Child death, Confinement, Addiction, Car accident, Cursing, Violence, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Suicide

Moderate: Vomit

sareidle's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book has a different vibe than I was expecting from the title and cover art. There were moments of humor, but the conspiracy surrounding the Cunningham family dominated the tone of the majority of the story. The plot itself was convoluted without all of the bait and switch from the narrator, so it was confusing to figure out what the "truth" was. I enjoyed the concept of applying Golden Age Mystery rules to a contemporary setting, but feel that it was better executed in the sequel, Everyone on This Train is a Suspect.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Torture

Moderate: Addiction, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, and Mental illness

Minor: Alcohol and Death of parent