Murder in the Family
A Novel
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4.0 • 77 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
ONE BODY. SIX EXPERTS. CAN YOU SOLVE THE CASE BEFORE THEY DO?
Mega-bestselling British crime novelist Cara Hunter makes her big American debut with a wholly immersive thriller like none you've seen before: written as the teleplay of a true-crime documentary, it has the reader puzzling away, reviewing photos, maps, coroner's reports and other evidence as they read. Can you tell who's lying?
"An excellent, wholly original whodunnit! You won’t have read a mystery like this, and you’ll be kept in the dark right to the end." --Gilly MacMillan, bestselling author of The Long Weekend
It was a case that gripped the nation. In December 2003, Luke Ryder, the stepfather of acclaimed filmmaker Guy Howard (then aged 10), was found dead in the garden of their suburban family home.
Luke Ryder’s murder has never been solved. Guy Howard’s mother and two half-sisters were in the house at the time of the murder—but all swear they saw nothing. Despite a high-profile police investigation and endless media attention, no suspect was ever charged.
But some murder cases are simply too big to forget…
Now comes the sensational new streaming series Infamous, dedicated to investigating—and perhaps cracking—this famous cold case. Years later a group of experts re-examine the evidence – with shocking results. Does the team know more than they’ve been letting on?
True crime lovers and savvy readers, you can review the evidence and testimony at the same time as the experts. But can you solve the case before they do?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This cleverly constructed mystery from Hunter (Hope to Die) offers a full complement of surprises and loads of fun for clue-seeking readers. Twenty years ago, Luke Ryder, the young second husband of widowed mother Caroline Howard, was found beaten to death at the bottom of a stone staircase leading to the couple's garden in London's exclusive Campden Hill neighborhood. The murder, still unsolved, has become fodder for true crime aficionados. Now, the successful television series Infamous has taken up the challenge of solving the case, utilizing a panel of experts including a retired Metropolitan Police officer, a journalist, a barrister, and a forensic clinical psychologist. The director of the season is Guy Howard, Caroline's son, who was 10 years old at the time of his stepfather's death and wants to shut the case once and for all so his family is no longer gossip fodder. The novel is presented in the form of Infamous episode transcripts, plus newspaper articles, emails, text messages, and voicemails between the panel of investigators. It's an effective gimmick, with newspaper clippings often throwing doubt on in-episode conclusions (and vice versa), and Hunter keeps the pacing lively and the cliffhangers plentiful. Armchair sleuths will savor this brisk and immersive puzzle.
Customer Reviews
One of the 5 best of 2023.
I’m always leery of this true-crime format, however, this narrative was tightly-woven, taut and the characters were each unique and necessary. I couldn’t wait for the conclusion and what I got was extremely satisfying and clever. Couldn’t recommend any book more right now
10 Stars out of 5
Easily my new favorite book, and I’ve read thousands of books.