Review: Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests - KJ Whittle

Review: Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests - KJ Whittle - January 2025

Let me tell you about a book that had me at “hello” and lost me at the very last course.

The premise of this one is, quite simply, one of my favourites. Seven strangers gather at Serendipity’s for an anonymously hosted dinner party, and as the evening draws to a close, little black envelopes appear in front of each diner, each one revealing the age at which they will die. Delicious, isn’t it? It’s the sort of hook that has you reading the blurb twice and tucking the book under your arm before you’ve even made it to the till.

And for most of its length, the story delivers on that promise. The opening is wonderfully atmospheric, with the rainy night, the candlelit table, and a group of strangers who are spooked but not quite shaken enough to run for the hills. When the first guest dies at their foretold age, just two weeks later, the unease really begins to creep in. Was it a tragic accident or something far more sinister? I found myself hooked, turning pages with a cuppa going cold at my elbow. I loved that the story is told through the guests’ own perspectives, which gives each character room to breathe and makes the central question feel so personal: how would you live if you knew your number was up? There’s a lovely thoughtfulness running beneath the mystery, and KJ Whittle balances the two beautifully as the years tick by.

Now, here’s where I have to be honest with you, because I am an ending gal through and through. For me, a book lives or dies by its final chapter, and this is where things fell flat. After such a gorgeous build-up, the chapter that finally reveals the reasons behind each character’s death felt very lacking. All that tension, all those questions, all those years of waiting, and the answers just didn’t carry the weight I’d been promised. It felt rushed and thin, as though the story had been simmering away for hours only to be served up lukewarm. I closed the book feeling disappointed, because the groundwork was so strong that I wanted the payoff to match.

That’s what brought this down to three stars for me. It’s a book with a cracking idea and a fabulous start, but if you’re a reader who needs a satisfying landing, as I do, be prepared to be left wanting a little more.

That said, if you love a high-concept mystery and can enjoy the journey without needing the destination to knock your socks off, it’s still well worth a look, especially on a rainy evening with a blanket and a biscuit or two.

Amazon: https://link.amazon/B0gPzu4YZ