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3.43 AVERAGE
3.43 AVERAGE
DNF. 👎🏻 Soooo many sexual inferences, commentary, innuendos. Honestly, it was such a constant stream it deterred from the story. Characters were overblown and almost satirical. Super disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Where to begin with [b:The Author's Guide to Murder|199531723|The Author's Guide to Murder|Beatriz Williams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1719671206l/199531723._SY75_.jpg|214300838]? This novel is like a plaid blanket that's slowly trying to smother you. And much like the frequent mentions of tartan (yes, we get it, its set in Scotland), the book overdoes just about everything!
The first 200 pages are an endless runway before the story's plane ever left the ground. By the time I pieced together what was happening, I was so exhausted from the the setup that I didn't even care who killed Brett—or if it was murder, an overdose, or the world's first literary rapture.
The three main characters gave me strong Golden Girl vibes, but not in a charming way. Think of Dorothy, Rose, and Blanche as caricatures, stripped of their humor (or given bad humor) and dropped into a cringeworthy script. The dialogue between them feels fabricated and tries to be comical but really falls flat. And the stereotyping! The book leaned so heavily on Scottish clichés that I half-expected a bagpiper to march out of the pages. While I understand the authors were aiming for local color, the overuse of plaid and tartan (like the physical words) made me want to declare a personal moratorium on patterns for the foreseeable future. I was sick of reading about plaid!
Plotwise, this book was a buffet of tropes: murder mystery, romance, quirky friendships—plus every tired cliché you can imagine. It was as if the authors decided to throw in everything but the kitchen sink and ended up tossing that in for good measure, too. The result was an overstuffed, disjointed mess that struggled to maintain focus. Despite the multiple character perspectives, the third-person narration lacked cohesion. At times, I couldn’t even tell whose head I was supposed to be in, and by the end, I still didn’t know what actually happened to Brett. Murder? Overdose? A dramatic fainting spell? Who knows? More importantly—who cares?
The blurb describing this book as being perfect for fans of Agatha Christie felt like the cruelest plot twist of all. Dame Agatha would probably rise from her grave in tartan-clad fury to demand her name be struck from any association with this novel. By the time I closed the book, I wasn’t rooting for justice, romance, or resolution. I was rooting for it to end. If you’re tempted to pick up the novel, consider this your friendly reviewer's guide to putting it back on the shelf.
Ive never read anything by [a:Beatriz Williams|4927506|Beatriz Williams|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1575561474p2/4927506.jpg], [a:Lauren Willig|14469|Lauren Willig|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1349230643p2/14469.jpg], or [a:Karen White|7486798|Karen White|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], and I doubt I'll be reading anything more by them anytime soon. I have to recover from the plaid induced PTSD first. Overall 1 star, if I could give 0 I would.
The first 200 pages are an endless runway before the story's plane ever left the ground. By the time I pieced together what was happening, I was so exhausted from the the setup that I didn't even care who killed Brett—or if it was murder, an overdose, or the world's first literary rapture.
The three main characters gave me strong Golden Girl vibes, but not in a charming way. Think of Dorothy, Rose, and Blanche as caricatures, stripped of their humor (or given bad humor) and dropped into a cringeworthy script. The dialogue between them feels fabricated and tries to be comical but really falls flat. And the stereotyping! The book leaned so heavily on Scottish clichés that I half-expected a bagpiper to march out of the pages. While I understand the authors were aiming for local color, the overuse of plaid and tartan (like the physical words) made me want to declare a personal moratorium on patterns for the foreseeable future. I was sick of reading about plaid!
Plotwise, this book was a buffet of tropes: murder mystery, romance, quirky friendships—plus every tired cliché you can imagine. It was as if the authors decided to throw in everything but the kitchen sink and ended up tossing that in for good measure, too. The result was an overstuffed, disjointed mess that struggled to maintain focus. Despite the multiple character perspectives, the third-person narration lacked cohesion. At times, I couldn’t even tell whose head I was supposed to be in, and by the end, I still didn’t know what actually happened to Brett. Murder? Overdose? A dramatic fainting spell? Who knows? More importantly—who cares?
The blurb describing this book as being perfect for fans of Agatha Christie felt like the cruelest plot twist of all. Dame Agatha would probably rise from her grave in tartan-clad fury to demand her name be struck from any association with this novel. By the time I closed the book, I wasn’t rooting for justice, romance, or resolution. I was rooting for it to end. If you’re tempted to pick up the novel, consider this your friendly reviewer's guide to putting it back on the shelf.
Ive never read anything by [a:Beatriz Williams|4927506|Beatriz Williams|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1575561474p2/4927506.jpg], [a:Lauren Willig|14469|Lauren Willig|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1349230643p2/14469.jpg], or [a:Karen White|7486798|Karen White|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], and I doubt I'll be reading anything more by them anytime soon. I have to recover from the plaid induced PTSD first. Overall 1 star, if I could give 0 I would.
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
This was a run listen! It started out slow but I eventually got invested and found myself rooting for the characters. The perfect combination of humor, mystery, romance, and emotional depth.
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-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
I thought this would be super cool because I love reading, books, author stories, solving murders, etc. but this just didn’t cut it for me. I wasn’t absorbed enough to recommend this.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes