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3.5
How to Kill a Crime Writer
ByPublisher Description
After the untimely death of her bestselling crime novelist mother, a young woman teams up with the fictional “ghost” of the heroine from her mother’s series in order to solve her mother’s murder.
After the tragic death of bestselling crime writer Annie Morrisey, her daughter, Niamh, moves into her mother's country cottage to take care of her mother’s estate. Shut away from the world, Niamh doesn't actually have to deal with the grief of her mother's untimely passing. Until the day that two things appear: the advance copy of her mother's final book lands on the doorstep and Leah Rebecca Overton appears in the kitchen.
Having a stranger appear in your house would be concerning at the best of times, but Leah isn't a stranger—she's the ultra-competent sleuth heroine from Annie’s novels. The antithesis of Niamh in every way, she's lived in the fictitious character's shadow for years. But why (and how) has Leah turned up now? And why can only Niamh see her? Leah is the last thing Niamh wants in her house or in her head, but she can't ignore the sleuth...especially when Leah suspects there may have been more to Annie's death than first suspected.
After the tragic death of bestselling crime writer Annie Morrisey, her daughter, Niamh, moves into her mother's country cottage to take care of her mother’s estate. Shut away from the world, Niamh doesn't actually have to deal with the grief of her mother's untimely passing. Until the day that two things appear: the advance copy of her mother's final book lands on the doorstep and Leah Rebecca Overton appears in the kitchen.
Having a stranger appear in your house would be concerning at the best of times, but Leah isn't a stranger—she's the ultra-competent sleuth heroine from Annie’s novels. The antithesis of Niamh in every way, she's lived in the fictitious character's shadow for years. But why (and how) has Leah turned up now? And why can only Niamh see her? Leah is the last thing Niamh wants in her house or in her head, but she can't ignore the sleuth...especially when Leah suspects there may have been more to Annie's death than first suspected.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesHow to Kill a Crime Writer Reviews
3.5
“Review of ‘How To Kill A Crime Writer’ by Sarah Lotz, due to be published on 26 February 2026 by Harper Collins UK, Harper Fiction.
Niamh is coming to terms with her mother Annie’s unexpected and untimely death. Niamh has moved into her mother’s cottage, in a quiet hamlet in the Countryside, unable to bring herself to read her mother’s final book, Overlooked, or listen to the final voice notes Annie sent.
Seemingly from nowhere, the main protagonist in Annie’s book series, PI Leah Overton, appears leaving Niamh confused and questioning why her subconscious has manifested Leah. The answer lies in Leah’s belief that as part of Niamh’s grief journey, she should embark upon a ‘grief quest’ to get to the bottom of how Annie died.
Add in a missing ladder, a missing phone, crippling social anxiety, a cat named Brian, twitchy neighbours and stolen gnomes and you have an extraordinary story full of sarcasm, humour and grief that has fiction colliding with reality.
The story is well executed, both Niamh and Leah are well developed, and though there are dark moments of grief, the undercurrent of humour runs deep. The ending was a surprise twist, and unbeknownst to the reader is carefully threaded throughout the story. A recommended read.”
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