Author: clarehux

A Haunting in Venice (2023)

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Whilst Kenneth Branagh’s Poirot has been met with some controversy from die-hard fans, this did not stop me from booking a cinema ticket to see A Haunting in Venice on opening weekend, and I am glad I did.

A Haunting in Venice is very loosely based on Agatha Christie’s Hallowe’en Party, and I say very loosely! Whilst we have similarly-named characters and Easter egg nods to the original text – the appearance of Poirot’s beloved friend and writer Ariadne Oliver, the party in question, allusions to apple bobbing (where the victim in the original book came to their demise) and a secret garden – this is a very different tale which stands on its own as a Poirot mystery.

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Cluedo – Treachery at Tudor Mansion

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Another version of Cluedo – this time the classic story is in an escape room format for you and all your family and friends to enjoy. It follows the usual Cluedo storyline with a familiar aim: to find out who killed Dr Black, where the murder took place and what weapon was used.

“You and five other guests have been invited to join Dr Black for an evening of fine dining and a chance to discuss some personal business. After dinner, he announces he intends to blackmail you all. Shortly after, the power goes off and you find Dr Black dead! Armed with only your wits, you must escape and determine who killed Dr Black, where they did it and with what weapon.”

Tabletop escape games are getting more and more popular, so I was keen to get stuck in. I will always get sucked into a Cluedo spin-off too, and I am pleased to say I was not disappointed!

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Little People, Big Dreams – Agatha Christie

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I don’t usually review children’s books, but this is a must as I would have loved to have read this as a child. I have loved murder mysteries from a fairly young age – when I was younger and discovered Agatha Christie, my mind was blown as to the possibilities of the genre. Some may think that knowing about her life is more suited to both teens and adults, however given the right context and medium, she can be of interest to a younger audience too.

The Little People, Big Dreams series introduces children to famous people from a wide range of backgrounds including artists, inventors, musicians and writers. When I saw they had released one for the late, great Agatha Christie, the Queen of Crime, I had to check it out.

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The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

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Two stories in one – a mystery within a mystery – I jumped at the chance to review The Woman in the Library by award-winning author Sulari Gentill. From the blurb:

“The Woman in the Library is an unexpectantly twisty literary adventure that examines the complicated nature of friendship – and shows that words can be the most treacherous weapons of all.”

It sounded intriguing and not like your typical whodunnit – I had to check it out!

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The Retreat by Sarah Pearse

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As I settle into my summer holiday, I imagine arriving at LUMEN, a beautiful, luxurious wellness retreat off the coast of England. So picturesque, a perfect place to unwind, or so the guests thought! I, on the other hand, had a heads up from the cover:

I rubbed by hands together with glee – this was not going to be a relaxing stay for anyone – quite the opposite in fact! Tension-filled and action-packed, with so many twists and turns, the atmosphere could be cut with a knife. Right up my street, I devoured this book and finished it wanting more. Whilst this was my first Sarah Pearse novel, it definitely won’t be my last – highly recommended!

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The Afterparty (Apple TV+)

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When a high school reunion goes wrong, and a guest is found murdered in his own home at the VIP afterparty, Detective Danner (played by Tiffany Haddish) and her team swoop in to interview the guests, search for clues and solve the case. Everyone is a suspect and no one can leave until the killer has been revealed.

A slick, fast-paced murder mystery comedy, which unravels episode by episode as the clues start to appear and secrets start to emerge – I enjoyed being part of Danner’s investigation, as the detective storytelling format felt familiar but had an interesting new twist on the whodunnit genre.

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The Appeal by Janice Hallett

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This is a cosy mystery with a difference – a modern epistolary with a murderous twist! Set in the little town of Lockford, an amateur dramatics society, The Fairway Players, are in the midst of putting on a performance of All My Sons, which is not going smoothly; running alongside this, a heart-wrenching, but questionable, charity appeal for an ill little girl called Poppy. Tragically, a murder has occured, but when we begin, the reader does not know who is dead or why it happened. From the blurb:

‘Roderick Tanner QC has assigned law students, Charlotte and Femi, to the case. Someone has already been sent to prison for murder, but he suspects that they are innocent. And far darker secrets have yet to be revealed…the murderer is in plain sight!’

Charlotte and Femi need to sift through the information, distinguish the truth from the lies, find the clues and avoid the red herrings. However, Tanner hadn’t just assigned the case to them, I felt like he had also assigned it to me! In a flash, I immersed myself into the world of The Fairway Players. Trying to stay impartial and look for the facts, I got cracking on solving the case.

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The Maid by Nita Prose

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An interesting take on the classic murder mystery, with Molly the Maid, an amateur sleuth no one would have expected. Editor turned writer, Nita Prose, introduces ‘a truly original heroine’…

I am your maid. I know about your secrets. Your dirty laundry. But what do you know about me?

Molly the Maid

I read about this new release from fellow mystery bloggers and wanted to check it out for myself. Described on the inside cover as ‘escapist and charming,’ where ‘the truth isn’t always black and white – it’s found in the dirtier, grey areas in between.’…could The Maid live up to all of the hype?

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Cluedo – The Play

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I own four different versions of the Cluedo boardgame, often play Cluedo on the computer, was an avid watcher of the TV gameshow of Cluedo as a child, have seen the eighties movie Clue a billion times, and even read the Clue comic. When I heard there was now a theatrical version of Cluedo touring the country, of course, I bought tickets on the day of release. How could I miss it?

The premise of the play is simple and closely follows that of the boardgame and the eighties film, but is set in the UK….

When Miss Scarlett, Professor Plum, Mrs Peacock, Reverend Green, Mrs White and Colonel Mustard arrive at a party one stormy evening, they are surprised to find they have all recieved the same intriguing invitation from Mr Boddy. It soon becomes clear that they all have something to hide as the mystery and hysteria grows and the inhabitants of Boddy Manor are killed off with a variety of familiar weapons, leaving everyone to wonder, who will be next!

My dream come true, from the director of The Play That Goes Wrong, this new, hilarious whodunnit ticked all of my Cluedo-loving boxes!

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