Annie Adam's is back living at her moms attempting a new novel when she receives a strange letter in the mail from her Great Aunt's lawyer. She is being called back to her mom's hometown for a reading of her aunts will, except her aunt isn't dead, she's very much alive. At least she was until Annie arrived in town. The reading of the will happens, only after her aunt is found murdered in her study. The catch to receive her inheritance? Annie has to solve her aunts murder, but she isn't the only one. Her cousin, a detective, and a land developer are all competing to solve the murder and get the inheritance for themselves.
Since I am in my mystery/thriller era, it only made sense for me to request this when became available on netgalley. It actually sounded pretty close description wise to one of my recent reads (Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone) so it was a no brainer for me.
How to Solve Your Own Murder is told from the point of view of Annie as she is investigating her aunt Francis' murder with some chapters wholly devoted to snippets from Francis' teenage diary about her life just before one of her best friends disappeared, never to be seen again. These diary entries lead Annie to attempt to solve not only Francis' early demise, but also the disappearance of Emily.
I gave this book ⭐⭐⭐💫. The reason being that I felt more connected with Francis' character through her diary than I did detective Annie. What Francis was experiencing in 1965 had a far more intriguing plot line than that of a woman in her 70-80's who died under mysterious circumstances. I enjoyed the story as a whole well enough but the investigation through Annie's eyes just didn't hold or pique my interest. I really think this book will be enjoyable for anyone who loves a good mystery that showcases some historical snapshots. Since this is the first in a series I will definitely be picking up the next one to see if I feel more of a connection with Annie and the rest of the community of Castle Knoll.
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