Murder In the Family by Cara Hunter (Review by Jessica Heatherly)

Rating: 5/5 stars

The format of this book alone gets five stars! What an immersive and unique reading experience! Written as a teleplay for a true crime documentary, there are newspaper articles and evidence files displayed throughout the book so the reader gets to experience what the six experts see when they see it. There are also text messages, emails, and Reddit threads that show the reactions of some experts and the public after each episode ends.

Outside of the distinctive format, the story itself is full of jaw-dropping twists that keep you flipping the pages! A new investigative streaming series has cast a group of experts to look at a cold case with fresh eyes and, hopefully, figure out whodunnit! In 2003, the murder of Guy Howard was a mystery. No one was able to determine how or why he was murdered in the garden even though his wife and two step-daughters were home at the time of the murder. His stepson, who was ten at the time, is now an acclaimed filmmaker and heading up the production of the series. The team of experts in varying fields have been assembled to shed their own shade of light on the situation. As the story evolves, not everyone is who they seem to be and some of them may be closer to the case than originally revealed. Each “episode” of the show ends with a bang and your jaw will drop at the surprise conclusion!

If you’re a fan of true crime, cold cases, and live TV with twists, this book is definitely for you!