REVIEW: The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill

Theo has one dream – to become a bestselling author. Determined to make her mark in the literary world, she heads to the US on a whim to stay with her brother Gus and focus on her writing. But her plans take an unexpected turn when she befriends a famous author, Dan Murdoch, at a local bar – and then he turns up dead. Suddenly, Theo finds herself as the prime suspect.

As Theo grapples with the shocking turn of events, she realizes that Dan may not have been the person he seemed to be, and there is something sinister going on in the world of publishing. Desperate to clear her name and uncover the truth, Theo sets out on a quest to find out who killed Dan and why.

As she digs deeper, Theo uncovers a web of deceit, conspiracy, and hidden motives, with clues leading her to a shadowy online platform called The Shield. With her own life in danger, Theo must unravel the mystery before she becomes the next victim.

A mystery wrapped in another mystery wrapped in an eccentric retro package - this was a strange little novel full of charm and bloody murder.

We meet Theo after a bad time that was certainly not a breakdown and watch as she slowly builds up a new life with her brother and some new friends before it all tumbles down - little moments of bliss and watching relationships grow that really set the scene before the intensity kicks in and our quiet writer becomes an amateur homicide detective in all sorts of absurd situations. At times Theo’s naivety and unawareness of the dangers around her made me endlessly frustrated - I almost gave up on him; but then she kind of grew on me in a way in a femme fatale, film noir way but also in the way that people sometimes just don’t see what’s glaring obvious in front of them.

The narration was an eclectic mix of long trains of thoughts or conversations with running sentences and intense dramatic scenes with snippets of articles and social media sprinkled in - at times it felt a little jarring but it definitely gave a real sense of getting into Theo’s mind and going through it with her.

This gives me almost classic slasher film vibes, think Misery meets NCIS. A standard whodunnit but with an intriguing sepia-toned lens to make something very entertaining.

⭐⭐⭐

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