A mystery in epistolary form? Sign me up!
Before going in, I had heard a lot about Janice Hallett. Her unique take on mysteries—where every crime, every clue, and every suspect is presented via emails and messages—sounds as fun as it is intriguing. So it's with much anticipation that I finally pick up her debut and see for myself what all the fuss is about.
And The Appeal definitely starts off strong. We're immediately dropped into the fray and the action, being privy to the private conversations that fly back and forth between all the different characters. There's no setup to get through, no background we need to know first. The format lends an undeniably zippy feel to the whole thing, and you can't help but turn the pages, wanting to read just a little bit more.
But somewhere around the 80-page mark, I started getting confused. Because where is the mystery? I thought I'd signed up to read a murderous play, but all I got thus far was small-town petty drama. And the more I read, the less appealing it got.
For me, a large part of the issue is that the murder isn't even alluded to until more than 250 pages in. If that sounds like a lot of pages to get through before anything happens, I assure you it was. In the meantime, we must wade through so many emails and messages detailing the small and seemingly inconsequential minutiae of life and play. Yes, there were a few nefarious whiffs here and there, but they felt more like interpersonal drama than anything substantial enough to uphold the weight of a proper mystery.
Once the murder happens, things do pick up. But here again, I feel like I have to nitpick a little. The way the investigation unfolds is a little bit awkward. It's two lawyers trying to figure it out while a third lawyer who already knows everything eggs them on, so it comes across somewhat forced. Not only that, but they must examine the crime from every possible angle. That means every suspect and every theory is talked about at length, and it was so detailed as to be bordering on tedious. I even started having trouble keeping it all clear and square in my mind.
And yet, for all my misgivings, when we do finally reach the end, it comes together in a satisfying way. That, plus the interesting format, has me intrigued. This is a debut, so perhaps some of the issues I ran into were just growing pains and more writing experience would iron it out? I have a few more of Janice Hallett's books lined up and time will tell.
Readaroo Rating: 3 stars
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