Thank you Atria Books, #partner, for the advanced copy of The Killer Question in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Atria Books
Published: August 5, 2025
Summary:
Janice Hallett, “the new queen of crime” (Electric Literature), returns with a fresh, edge-of-your-seat mystery that takes place at a pub’s weekly trivia night, revealed through quiz categories, phone messages, and email correspondence.
Sue and Mal Eastwood run an isolated rural pub called The Case is Altered where a weekly trivia game has revived its flagging fortunes—that is, until a body is found in the nearby river. Soon after, a mysterious new team arrives and shakes up the diverse field of regulars by scoring top marks in every round…every week.
Meanwhile, Sue and Mal have a secret of their own. Before arriving here, they were caught up in a secret police operation which meant they had to leave town—and whatever happened back then seems to have finally caught up with them.
Five years later, the pub lies derelict, and their nephew Dominic is determined to make a documentary about their story. What happened at this unassuming pub? And can a single question really kill?
My thoughts:
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…I absolutely love Janice Hallett’s books! I’ve now read five of her books & each one is my new favorite!!
Three words to describe her writing style: clever, innovative and fun!
This latest book once again utilizes that unique writing style that I’ve come to love, and now expect, from Hallett’s books. I don’t know anyone else that can tell an entire story using this format and keep me completely engaged from start to finish like she does and yet…once I reach the end, I always want more! Using mixed media, text messages, emails and group chats, it is so easy to become part of the story, feel as is these messages are coming straight to you!
I loved the Quiz Night angle here. It really kept me on my toes and while I myself am not a quiz person, I did find myself eagerly trying to put all the clues together. The use of the dual-timeline really made things interesting and this is where I find the sheer brilliance of the author’s plotting coming into play. Every time I thought I had my finger on where things were headed, a new twist would pop up.
This book, as with all her books, as just so clever and really work my mind. And I love them so much. If you haven’t read one of her books yet, I highly recommend giving them a try!
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