Synopses & Reviews
A dual narrative, feel good mystery in which a woman, Frances, spends a lifetime trying to prevent her murder as predicted by a fortune teller at a country fair when she was just 17. When she is in fact murdered nearly 60 years later, her great niece Annie must solve the crime to avenge her great aunt’s death, and in so doing uncovers the dark heart of the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, where she might just find herself in the path of the killer.
In 1965 a fortune teller warns 17-year-old Frances that one day she’ll be murdered. And one year later a girl is missing, but it’s not Frances. It’s her best friend Emily. Frances spends a lifetime compiling dirt on every person she meets, withdrawing deeper into her obsessive investigations as she tries to prevent her own murder and solve the case of Emily’s disappearance.
In the present day, twenty-something Annie has just moved home to London when she is summoned to a mysterious meeting by her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint and charming village of Castle Knoll, Frances has been murdered, just like she always said she would be.
When Annie discovers Frances’s diary from 1965, she finds herself tangled in her great-aunt’s investigations, seeking justice for Frances, and maybe Emily, too. Can Annie unravel the mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will digging up the past throw her into the path of the killer?
Review
"How to Solve Your Own Murder is a masterclass in the art of mystery. Kristen Perrin crafts a beguiling puzzle from sharp prose, compelling characters, and an irresistibly intricate setup. One of the best and most satisfying mysteries I've ever read."—Elle Cosimano, New York Times bestselling author of Finlay Donovan is Killing It
“Debut novelist Kristen Perrin has done the impossible in delivering readers a quintessential English murder mystery with a fresh, unconventional approach. Idyllic country village? Check. Amateur sleuth? Check. But a fortune teller's grim prediction coming true sixty years later? Now that makes for an enthralling tale. There's no shortage of entertaining, well-rounded characters in this charming and multilayered whodunit, a perfect shelf companion alongside reader favorites like Agatha Christie, Richard Osman, and Nita Prose.”—Sarah Penner, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Apothecary
“I so enjoyed this smart, original murder mystery. It's filled with curious characters and takes place in the most gorgeous setting – the mysterious Castle Knoll – and sucked me in from the very first pages. I think fans of Richard Osman will love this one.”—Beth O’Leary, author of The Flatshare
About the Author
Kristen Perrin is originally from Seattle, Washington, where she spent several years working as a bookseller before moving to the UK to do a Masters and PhD. She lives with her family in Surrey, where she can be found poking around vintage bookstores, stomping in the mud with her two kids, and collecting too many plants. Her middle grade novel, Attie and the World Breakers was published in German, Dutch, and Polish. How to Solve Your own Murder is her adult debut.