Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess

 Welcome to Murder Week

Book Summary

In this delightfully funny and heartfelt new novel from the author of the “bittersweet page-turner” (The New York Times) The Last Book Party, an American woman travels to the English countryside when she discovers tickets her late mother had purchased for a murder mystery simulation in a small British town.

When thirty-four-year-old Cath loses her mostly absentee mother, she is ambivalent. With days of quiet, unassuming routine in Buffalo, New York, Cath consciously avoids the impulsive, thrill-seeking lifestyle that her mother once led. But when she’s forced to go through her mother’s things one afternoon, Cath is perplexed to find tickets for an upcoming “murder week” in England’s Peak District: a whole town has come together to stage a fake murder mystery to attract tourism to their quaint hamlet. Baffled but helplessly intrigued by her mother’s secret purchase, Cath decides to go on the trip herself—and begins a journey she never could have anticipated.

Teaming up with her two cottage-mates, both ardent mystery lovers—Wyatt Green, forty, who works unhappily in his husband’s birding store, and Amity Clark, fifty, a divorced romance writer struggling with her novels—Cath sets about solving the “crime” and begins to unravel shocking truths about her mother along the way. Amidst a fling—or something more—with the handsome local maker of artisanal gin, Cath and her irresistibly charming fellow sleuths will find this week of fake murder may help them face up to a very real crossroads in their own lives.

Witty, wise, and deliciously escapist, Welcome to Murder Week is a fresh, inventive twist on the murder mystery and a touching portrayal of one daughter’s reckoning with her grief, her past—and her own budding sense of adventure.

My Thoughts

Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess has a good premise, but I found the story to be on the bland side. Catherine, or Cath as she prefers to be called, is a lackluster character. She is not excited when she discovers her deceased mother paid for two tickets to a murder week in Willowthrop, England (I would be thrilled). It turns out that Cath is not interested in English mysteries nor does she read mystery novels (she does not know what she is missing).  Overcoming grief, healing childhood wounds, a self-discover journey, and having an adventure are on the agenda for Cath.  Cath is having trouble after the death of her mother even though they were not close (look up absentee parent online and you will find a picture of Cath’s mother).  There were some quirky characters in Willowthrop (Cath could take a page or two from their books).

I never felt a connection between Cath and her deceased mother (I wanted there to be an emotional tie). Cath seemed more connected to Mr. Groberg, her mentor and renter.  You could tell that Cath cared about Mr. Groberg.  The pacing was lethargic, which was not helped by the long-winded descriptions. The picturesque depictions paint a picture, but they slow down the story.   The mystery game was not as much fun as I thought it be.  I wish the whodunit had been more engaging and fun.  It lacked excitement and suspense. The emotional moments were not quite right.  They are slightly off (like a person missing their mark on the stage) and they lack depth.  Of course, no vacation would be complete without a romance.  The story had an uplifting ending. Welcome to Murder Week was cute but nothing to write home about.  

Eyeglass Shop Door

Welcome to Murder Week is available from Amazon*.  This was not a good book week for me. But I did try a new author.  I am continuing to branch out (get myself out of my book rut).  You never know if you will enjoy a book or not until you try it. There are some page turners coming out later this month and I will be sharing them with you.  I am heading off to an appointment (I hope I can get my mother there too!).  I will return on Tuesday, June 17 with Dying to Sell by Ellery Adams and Tina Radcliffe.  It is the ninth A Hope Street Church Mystery.  I hope that you have a relaxing and upbeat weekend.  Take care and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader

*I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book.  I am not required to leave a review.  The comments and opinions expressed are strictly my own.

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