I read it at the same time as reading Dickens’s Bleak House and was struck by how structurally similar they are. WATERSTONES THRILLER OF THE MONTH ****** THE SUNDAY TIMES CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH ***______________________________________’This is a case you’re about to become obsessed with. The number of characters was a lot which slowed me down to turn back to remember who was who, but it was still enjoyable to chase the clues to find the perpetrator! The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels was an instant Times and Sunday Times bestseller on its launch in January 2023.

I know Hallett has found lots of success with this book and clearly she has a mind for intricate plotting, but this one simply wasn't appeal-ing (sorry, I had to do it) to me.Every character is acutely well-observed, as are the social interactions between them, the constant low-level battle for status within the group and the rapidity with rumours and speculation spread from one to another. As the reader races through the book, an accumulation effect occurs, with various strands of the narrative emerging. I was sceptical, too, before reading it as there are too many books that say they are similar to Christie’s style but ended up being a big disappointment. I was surprised by the identity of the murderer, and that is the only positive thing that I have to say.

Perfect for fans of Ruth Ware and Lisa Jewell, this international bestseller and “dazzlingly clever” ( The Sunday Times, London) murder mystery follows a community rallying around a sick child—but when escalating lies lead to a dead body, everyone is a suspect. There is also the risk of your text becoming quite dry due to the potential for reduced characterisation.And with its long list of potential suspects and almost more red herrings than I could count, I didn’t have a chance in figuring it all out before the final reveal.

Creative writing students are often instructed to 'show, not tell' when it comes to their characters and Janice Hallett is certainly an absolute master of this. Instead of just writing "bit late, be there in a sec" what we all would normally do, it was more "bit late because I ran into character X who told me a dirty secret about Y, which made me want to do Z before I could run the errand A. Overall, this was suspenseful with compelling characters that engaged my inner sleuth and kept me turning the pages. Maybe I'm overthinking this, but I got the impression that the story sometimes had to fit the messages and that made for some weird and elaborate mails or whatsapps.

When something odd would pop up I would mentally file it away and then wonder how it fit into the big picture. Issy is a nurse on a geriatric ward and is delighted when her new colleague Sam Greenwood and her husband Kel agree to audition.