Book Review: "How to Solve Your Own Murder" by Kristen Perrin

This mystery had such a cozy, old-fashioned feel to it, I kept expecting Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple to show up! In all seriousness though, this was absolutely terrific, and I loved the unique angle of this book.

In 1965, Frances and her two best friends visit a fair in the English countryside. It’s a wonderful day until they get their fortunes told, because Frances’ fortune predicts she will be murdered. Even though there are doubts to the legitimacy of the fortune teller, Frances takes this very seriously, and spends nearly 60 years trying to figure out who will be her murderer.

Annie, Frances’ great niece, is summoned to her estate in the village of Castle Knoll, to meet with her and her solicitor. But as they ready for the meeting, Frances is found murdered. Annie, an aspiring mystery writer, wants to solve the murder, but given how much dirt Frances dug up on everyone through the years, there’s no end to the number of suspects.

In Frances’ will, she challenged her potential heirs—her eccentric stepson Saxon and Annie—to solve her murder; whoever does it within a week will inherit it all. If they fail, or the police solve the murder first, the estate will be sold. Armed with Frances’ diary and a list of theories, Annie is determined to find out who killed her great-aunt.

To solve this mystery, Annie must also figure out the truth behind another crime that happened nearly 60 years ago. And it very well may be that the same person could have struck again. The closer Annie gets to the truth, the more dangerous it becomes for her.

The narrative shifts between Frances’ diary entries from the 1960s and Annie’s investigation into her great-aunt’s death. There are lots of fun and eccentric characters, a dual mystery to solve, and for a while I had no idea whom to trust. I hope that Kristen Perrin might bring Annie back in another book!