Published By: Viper
Pages: 208
Released On: 26/10/2023
One dead Santa. A town full of suspects. Will you discover the truth?
Christmas in Lower Lockwood, and the Fairway Players are busy rehearsing their festive pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, to raise money for the church roof appeal. But despite the season, goodwill is distinctly lacking amongst the amateur dramatics enthusiasts. Sarah-Jane is fending off threats to her new position as Chair, the fibreglass beanstalk might be full of asbestos, and a someone is intent on ruining the panto even before the curtain goes up.
Of course there’s also the matter of the dead body. Who could possibly have had the victim on their naughty list? Join lawyers Femi and Charlotte as they read the round robins, examine the emails and pore over the police transcripts. Will the show go on?
*****
Thanks to Viper and Rachel from Rachel Quin Marketing for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I mean, is there a more coveted book out this winter time?
It is fascinating how easy this format becomes to read. When I first read The Appeal, it took a little while to figure out, especially as it was a digital ARC so the formatting wasn’t 100% as it would be in the book. And then The Twyford Code, which became a little easier. And then the Alperton Angels, which became second nature. And now with this, which is again written in email and message form. And I instantly got to grips with it. It’s such a unique form of writing, one I’d never thought of before, but now I can’t think that any of these books could be written in any other way. It’s a stroke of genius.
I was also a bit worried that, because The Appeal came out a couple of years ago, and I’ve read a lot of books since then, that I wouldn’t remember the characters or the context anymore, but you just immediately get absorbed into it. I can’t explain how, but it’s like you know these people personally and like you’ve never been away from them.
Janice wonderfully sets the scene, with over half the book gone before the dead body appears. This might have felt drawn out, a bit slow, but it’s expertly done. It gives us the context and we really get invested so that when THE THING happens, we’re fully in it and desperate to see what happens next.
We find most of the old cast – the loved, the liked, and the disliked – but there are also some new additions which help freshen it up. There are a lot of characters but none seem to overbear the others (unless that is their character’s trait). Enough time is given to each, even in a book this short, and I have really grown to love them.
It is a short book at just over 200 pages, and only took me a couple of hours to get through. It’s the ideal read for a cosy winter evening (even if I did read it when it was 28 degrees outside)! She manages so much in such a short time but it never feels lacking in any way.
I generally don’t like long books as I never feel they warrant being that long and therefore feel too much effort to read. But I would have gladly read more of this, even double the length, because it is so easy to read and just thrilling.
I have no doubt that Janice will continue with this winning streak of books. She’s one of the most unique, original and fantastic writers around, and a new release is always cause for celebration, and so far, I haven’t met a Janice Hallett book I didn’t immediately love. And I do believe there is a new book due out in September 2024, and I’m already ticking off the days.
Books By Your Bedside 