I Only Read Murder

My new favorite sleuth!

She’s a washed up actress best known for playing butt kicking Pastor Fran without a penny to her name or a job on the horizon but she’s deliciously delusional. In her reality she’s still the STAR...when she receives a post card from her...not so ex husband...she thinks he’s ready to reconcile, only to find out that’s not the case and then murder strikes. And it has to be about her, right? It’s a laugh out loud romp!

At last, I've found a Cozy Mystery series (I really dislike the Z in Cozy but the genre seems to be an American invention - albeit one that the Canadians excel at, so the American spelling prevails) that has the kind of dry humour and deadpan irony that make me smile.

The GoodReads reviews of 'I Only Read Murder' seemed to split between those who hated it (DNFs and one-star or two-star reviews) and those who loved it. The most common cause for hating it was that the main character was unpleasant and the people around her weren't much better. It seemed to fall short of what some readers expect of a Cozy in terms of the warm and fuzzies. I took this as good sign and dived in.

I could see immediately that the haters were right about Miranda show more Abbott not being likeable. She's a narcissist who is prone to magical thinking and who tramples over everyone she meets in pursuit of her starring role in her own life. The thing is, she's DESIGNED not to be likeable. She's chaotic and overwhelming and difficult to be with but it's her personality that makes the story work. . Yes, she's selfish, completely self-absorbed but her narcissim means that she often doesn't notice or understand how the people around her relate to one another. This makes her a perfect filter for the exposition of a mystery. She's confident and unreasonably demanding so she changes the behaviour of the people around her, forcing them out of their ruts. She's funny, although often not intentionally, and beneath all the drama and the posturing and the attention-seeking, she is quietly vulnerable.

I was amused by Miranda Abbott's inability to make sense of the behaviours and expectations of the inhabitants of Happy Rock, a small coastal town in the Pacific Northwest that her husband has spent the past fifteen years running the 'I Only Read Murder' bookshop while she has been trying to revive her I-used-to-be-a-TV-star career in the Hollywood Hills. Some of my amusement and Miranda's bemusement comes from the nature Happy Rock itself. It is as unrealistic as Jessica Fletcher's town of Cabot Cove, but where Cabot Cove is seen as quaint and charmingly old-fashioned in a way that speaks of American big-city-dwellers nostalgia for a world they've never known but would like to think exists, Happy Rock crosses the line from quaint to crazy fairly early on in a way that I think shows you've-got-to-be-kidding-me response of the Canadian authors to American small-town mythology. The residents of Happy Pebble make the residents of Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegone seem streetwise and savvy.

One of the things that will either sell this book to a reader or leave them cold is the humour around 1980s American crime shows. Miranda spent six years starring as Pastor Fran, an itinerant minister who travelled America fighting crime with high kicks and karate chops, often working undercover and wearing as little as possible. Some of the humour is about the reverence the fans have for this now-only-available-on-VHS show and some of it comes from Miranda's tales about what really happened on set. To a degree, these two views of the show mirror the slightly delusional way the inhabitants of Happy Rock see their town and how Miranda sees her career.

Some people may find the first half of the book a little slow. This isn't a book where the first murder happens ten pages in and you spend the next fifty pages waiting for the second body to drop. 'I Only Read Murder' follows the rules set down by the Pastor Fran writers: spend the first half getting the audience to guess who is going to die and the second half trying to figure out how Pastor Fran will uncover the murderer. The murder comes exactly halfway through, although by then I was getting itchy for a killing even though I hadn't figured out who was going to die.

I was surprised to find that the plot was quite clever. All the clues had been laid out. I had all the information. I had a suspect pool rich with strange people with combative histories, dark secrets and bizarre attitudes. Despite all that, I was completely blindsided by the identity of the murderer. It was such a bold idea that I wanted to applaud when I was told who the killer was.

I know this may not be a book for everyone but its dry, low-key humour, the cleverness of the plot, and the refusal to keep the grimy nature of the real world completely at bay, worked for me. I also liked that this was a cozy mystery where everyone but Miranda, who has to have the subgenre explained to her, is fully aware of how cozy mysteries work but where their grasp on the real world is often less firm.

I'll be back for the second book, 'Mystery In The Title' later this year. show less

Oh. my. gosh. It takes a lot to make me laugh out loud. But brothers Ian Ferguson and Will Ferguson did just that - many times over with their new book, I Only Read Murder.
Miranda Abbott played a crime busting, karate kicking Pastor for many seasons on television. But, the offers are few and far between now. When a cryptic postcard arrives, she is sure things are on the upswing, so she happily packs her bags and heads to the small town of Happy Rock.

Here's the thing - Miranda still sees herself as a star. Her perceptions, actions, dialogue and certainty that she is still fodder for the gossip columns is priceless. "But no one recognized her, or if they did, they were too intimidated to approach."

Happy Rock is home to a large cast of show more quirky characters - all who could be found in the pages of a book. There are many characters but its very easy to remember who's who. Again, the interactions and dialogue is so very good. Much more laughing from me!

One of townsfolk is the owner of the local bookstore - that only sells murder mysteries. The one passion that the entire town has is their beloved yearly play. Hmm, could a role in it be a comeback for Miranda? And then, a cast member is killed. On stage. or And no one saw who did it. Perhaps Miranda's Pastor Fran skills, combined with the the knowledge that can be gleaned from a murder mystery book, could be of use? Especially the cozy mystery tactics!

The authors have excelled at weaving every facet of a cozy mystery into their homage - amateur sleuths, small town, quirky residents, misdirection, every player one is a suspect, no sex, overt violence or profanity. Instead it's a comfortable, entertaining, light hearted and truly very funny read. An easy five stars.

This is the first in a planned series. This reader can't wait for the next entry. show less

Actress Miranda Abbott is in a bit of a slump in her acting career - a fifteen year slump. After achieving fame as Pastor Fran - crime solver and karate chopper, her career has hit hard times. She's relying on her downtrodden assistant Andrews for paying her rent and taking care of her. She finally hits the bottom when her agent offers her the role of the grandmother in a Metamucil commercial.

Then she gets a postcard that takes her on a journey to her past - a sixteen hour bus journey. She winds up in Happy Rock, a very small town in the Pacific Northwest. She and her husband Edgar had honeymooned there after Pastor Fran tanked. Edgar fell in love with the place and stayed by buying the local bookstore, but Miranda headed back to show more Hollywood. But now she has nowhere left to go.

Her happy dreams are dashed when she arrives only to have Edgar ask for a divorce. She winds up staying in a B&B owned by one of her biggest fans. Bea even has Pastor Fran nights where the old videotapes are dragged out and played again and again. Determined to ger back with her husband, Miranda auditions for the tenth annual presentation of Death Is the Dickens but only manages to get the one-line part of a maid who dies in the first act. The lead goes to Annette Baillie - former morning show star turned real estate agent and very much a local celebrity.

When Annette dies in the first act by drinking poison, it is up to Miranda and her new friends to solve the crime and free her now-ex-husband who has been arrested for the crime. There are lots of suspects from the local drama teacher who went to Yale and is constantly butting heads with Annette to the car mechanic who just can't remember his lines and whose business Annette threatened to the local teen Miranda beat out for the part of the dying maid.

This was an amusing story filled with caricatures more than characters. From the ditzy Miranda to the fanatic Bea and all the rest, the story is filled with intriguing people that I came to care about. I liked the way Miranda kept accusing suspects who were quickly proven innocent. She was persistent and did finally find the correct villain. show less

I Only Read Murder by Ian Ferguson and Will Ferguson is a book that I found a challenge to finish (I wanted to quit reading after the first three pages). Miranda Abbott is an extremely unlikeable character. Miranda is so self-absorbed that I am surprised that she noticed someone was murdered. I believe the story is meant to be humorous, but I found myself cringing and rolling my eyes (instead of laughing). The story takes place in a cliched small town with unoriginal characters. The secondary characters are flat. The pacing is slow (snails move faster) and repetitious details (it was so bad that I knew the information by heart by the end of the book). The author spelled everything out to readers (like we are dimwitted nitwits). There show more are inconsistencies in the story as well. The murder does not happen until nearly halfway through the story (reminded me of trudging up a big hill on a very hot day—it takes forever to get there). The investigation by Miranda (who thinks she knows everything about investigating a whodunit from the character she played on a television series) is simple and so is the crime. The killer is obvious. I ended up skimming to the end (I was fed up with Miranda). The ending had me groaning in disbelief. I Only Read Murder was cliched, trite, and monotonous. show less

I must say that this book was not up to my expectations of something written by the Ferguson brothers. And why, oh why, did they have to set it in Oregon? I can think of lots of Canadian locales that would have served just as well.

Miranda Abbott is a washed up actress who hasn't had a decent part in years. Her career highlight was as Pastor Fran, a peripatetic minister who solved a murder in every town she visited. (I couldn't help but think of that TV series The Littlest Hobo where an intelligent German Shepherd wanders from town to town helping people with their problems.) That's long behind her, she can't pay the rent on her apartment and her agent fires her. Then she gets a postcard from Happy Rock, Oregon. Miranda thinks it's from show more her estranged husband, Edgar, and that he wants to get back together so she borrows money from her assistant, Andrew, and takes the bus from LA to Portland (something so out of her realm of experience that she can't believe other people often do this). Happy Rock was where Miranda and Edgar spent a delayed honeymoon at the end of which Edgar decided to stay and run the local bookstore (also called I Only Read Murder). However, when she finally talks to Edgar she finds out that he wants a divorce, not a reunion. Pastor Fran has fans in town, including the police chief, and they suggest that she stay to take part in the annual amateur theatrical. Miranda thinks that perhaps she can win Edgar back by wowing him in the lead. Except she doesn't get the lead. The local real estate agent is given that role and Miranda is offered a subordinate one. At first, Miranda is outraged and ready to head back to LA but then she thinks maybe Andrew will realize she is a different woman if she accepts this lesser role. It takes until the middle of the book for the murder, which takes place on stage on the night of the dress rehearsal, to occur. And despite the fact that there were at least 100 people in the theatre when this happened (an audience as well as all the stagehands and actors), no one knows who did it. Cue Miranda (who is also a suspect) to channel her Pastor Fran persona to solve the murder. Of course, she does and by the end there looks to be some hope for Miranda and Edgar.

The Fergusons are known for comedic writing and there are some pretty funny spots but not enough to overcome the trite setting and plot. There's going to be a second book in the Miranda Abbott series but I think I'll give it a pass. show less

When Miranda Abbott's acting career as a detective takes a downward slide, she returns to a small town in an attempt to patch up her ailing marriage. Miranda becomes embroiled in a local theater production, and winds up trying to solve the suspicious death of one of the actors that occurred during a performance. The quirky locals hide their secret jealousies and grudges, and it is up to Miranda to use her sleuthing skills to help uncover the events leading to the tragic death onstage.

This is a rather slow-moving novel up to the last few chapters, and Miranda acts like an annoying prima donna throughout the book. Things are wrapped up in a scene worthy of Dame Agatha herself, although there are many complicated twists and turns to get show more there. The writers definitely took the opportunity to poke fun at both small townies and Hollywood actors.

I received this novel from NetGalley and from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own entirely. show less