Review by Booklist Review
Hallett's latest (after The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels, 2023) solidifies her reputation as an author who writes outside the box. Her plots are presented in unusual ways; here, the story is told via a series of online posts, memos, and diary entries. The Master of Art program at Royal Hastings University is losing students and funding, but Professor Gela Nathaniel recruits six students to register for the autumn term. Most have little artistic experience, but they all seem eager to add a master's degree to their resumes, even if they find the course challenging. Their final grade depends on a group presentation for a local business, RD8, to promote the company's new online-payment system. However, the further the reader gets into the story, the more bizarre and twisted it becomes. People aren't who they seem to be, and peculiar situations and danger abound. Even the most astute reader is unlikely to guess the unexpected conclusion. A remarkable book from a talented author and a good choice for readers who like the quirky and unusual.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Combing through emails, essays, texts, and chatroom messages, a mysterious "examiner" uncovers the hidden motives of six graduate students enrolled in a multimedia art course at London's Royal Hastings University, in the convoluted latest epistolary mystery from Hallett (after The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels). With varying degrees of skill, the students--established artists Ludya and Alyson; gallery owner Jonathan; bored executive Cameron; art supply store owner Patrick; and emerging audio artist Jem--create elaborate art installations while forming friendships and rivalries that mask their true reasons for taking the class. As the communications wear on, it becomes clear that there's been a murder among the group, and that many of the students are concealing secret identities. With her colleague's help, class instructor Gela Nathaniel attempts to follow the clues to uncover the killer, but her efforts only propel the narrative to a tangled, unsatisfying conclusion. The initial novelty of the format collapses under the plot's increasingly intricate mix of climate activism, nuclear threats, and latent Cold War intrigue. This is likely to leave readers lost. Agent: Markus Hoffmann, Regal Hoffmann & Assoc. (Sept.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Hallett's (The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels) latest again utilizes an epistolary style, incorporating texts, message board postings, emails, and student essays to tell a gripping story. Readers enter the lives of six art students who are beginning a one-year master's program. The program is led by Gela Nathaniel, who is facing the loss of the art program altogether if she can't show that students in the program will make connections to real-world (i.e., commercial) entities. When the six students of disparate backgrounds start the program, they find that the biggest challenge they'll face is not the coursework but the personality conflicts among them. As the infighting and competition gets worse, these conflicts lead to a toxic environment that could prove deadly as well. VERDICT Where some suspense novels rely on one unreliable narrator to flesh out the mystery, Hallett builds intrigue with a cast of unreliable (though consistently intriguing) characters, which means the twists keep coming. Recommended for fans of academic mysteries and those who enjoy puzzle-within-a-puzzle mysteries such as Cara Hunter's Murder in the Family and Anthony Horowitz's Magpie Murders. --Jane Jorgenson
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A mystery unfolds through email, letters, essays, and online correspondence. Six students begin a one-year master's degree program in multimedia art at a British university that has recently been forced to cut many of its fine art programs and redesign the degree with an eye toward art's business relevancy. They come together as strangers, representing an eclectic mix of ages and backgrounds. Some are artists, while others have more tangential connections to the art world. But over the course of the year, strange things happen. Someone appears to go missing, or maybe is even dead. Something is stolen. Almost everyone has secrets, including the leader of the program. The novel actually begins at the end, when an external examiner brought in to assign grades instead gets drawn into anomalies in the documented online conversations and some additional emails and materials that have been made available to him. He prepares to confront the students as they unveil their final project, an installation designed for RD8 Systems Ltd., a tech and communication business. Novels structured like a series of message-board postings almost inevitably feel gimmicky and all too clever. This one surprisingly breaks that mold. Though we spend nearly 500 pages primarily in the online company of only a few characters, Hallett skillfully introduces twists as much as halfway along. The secret to the success lies in the realistic, somber tone that only grows darker as truths are revealed. Played for comedy, the whole thing would have seemed superficial, but as a commentary on art's current role in academia and business, as well as the darker side of human ambition and gullibility, Hallett's unconventional novel proves both creative and astute. Dare we say it? A tour de force. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
