The Examiner
Ratings16
Average rating3.8
What sorcery is this? How is it possible to turn a whole host of WhatsApp group messages and college intranet group chats into a twisty mystery, where nothing is as it seems? Once again, I have survived that particular rabbit hole.
The Examiner is the story of six students on a newly formed art course. Five of them are mature (I use the word mature in the loosest possible way) students, the sixth barely out of her teens. The most mismatched, volatile group you are ever likely to encounter.
Then, one of the group goes missing, but the others appear to be covering it up. One thing's for sure, all is not as it appears to be on this particular art course.
As with all of Hallett's books, nothing is straightforward in The Examiner. Just when I thought I had it sussed, the other shoe dropped, and then another, and another. 👞
None of the characters are particularly likeable, but even that made the whole experience enjoyable.
If you're looking for a riveting, fun read, go get yourself a copy of The Examiner. You'll be glad you did.
4.25 stars Mystery told through mixed media (emails, chat transcripts, school online platforms) following the students of a newly created master in multimedia art from their first assignments to their final group project which takes a turn for the worst.
Janice Hallett wrote yet another great puzzle box mystery ! In her usual style of mixed media, she crafted a fast paced, page turning mystery full of twists and compelling (with good and bad traits) characters. I also really liked the academic and art world setting. The plot was clever and so many of the twists really surprised me, some in a positive way while others I was less interested in or I couldn't suspend my disbelief enough. It wasn't my favourite of her books (The Appeal and The mysterious case of the Alperton Angels are still on top) but I certainly preferred it to The Twyford Code which I didn't really gel with. I won't get into any plot points as to avoid the many spoilers there is for this book. Still I had a great time reading this and I'll be looking forward to read her next book as always.
On the plus side, reading a mystery set in British academia distracted me from current events in the US. On the negative side, everything else. Granted, I'm the farthest thing from an expert on the genre, but knowing what crime I am supposed to solve seems like a minimum requirement, and I remained in the dark for more than half of the story. Getting most of the answers in an info dump of previously unseen correspondence between the critical parties felt a tad too convenient. YMMV if you are a better sleuth than I am; it's very possible that the clues were there all along, but I was too oblivious to notice them. I had sworn off Janice Hallett after [b:The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels 61157639 The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels Janice Hallett https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1663000500l/61157639.SY75.jpg 95686980], but epistolary novels have been my catnip ever since [b:Up the Down Staircase 160320 Up the Down Staircase Bel Kaufman https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348028242l/160320.SY75.jpg 154741], back in what is now kindly known as the “mid-century” era. This time I mean it!
4.5 ⭐️
This is my third book read by Janice Hallett and I just have to say I'm obsessed. I love the formatting of her books, it makes them so unique and interesting. The storytelling in The Examiner was top tier and kept me hooked until the end! I absolutely loved this book and I can't wait to read more from this author!
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.
I like a lot of aspects of this book, especially the scrutiny of group dynamics and the myriad ways they can run afoul or lead people down usually unfathomable paths. I wonder how many more mysteries Hallett can write in this e-palimpsest style.