Book Review: Rules of Murder by Julianna Deering

The second book that I received to review from Bethany House Publishers was a murder mystery entitled “Rules of Murder: A Drew Farthering Mystery,” written by Julianna Deering. This book promised to be on the same level and intensity of an Agatha Christie novel, set in the 1930’s. As a lover of historical fiction and mystery novels, I was excited to dive into this story.

As promised, the time period was enthralling. I enjoyed reading about a time in English history when life was a little bit more simple, and more glamorous than the life that we lead today. The start to this book was wonderful with colorful characters, descriptive plot settings and even some humor. Seldom do books immediately grab my attention but this one did. However, my intrigue did not last long. Several things throughout this book fell flat for me, including the fact that the main character’s own mother was one of the murder victims, yet he continues on in trying to solve this crime with as much zeal and enthusiasm as when he was reading his own murder mystery book. The first victim was someone of whom Drew did not like for several reasons, but when his own mother is murdered as well, one would expect some level of despair, even if he did not have a very close relationship with his mother. Shortly after his mother’s death he is shown to still be wooing the heart of the feisty young American who is visiting his country, and attacking the entire mystery with humour. It did not seem to fit with the story -line in a realistic way.

Additionally, this book is one where many characters are introduced in quick succession and unless you read the book beginning to end without much pause, it is easy to forget what part each character plays. I found myself lost on a number of occasions simply because I was reading several books at one time and I found many characters quite forgettable and quite frankly, unbelievable at the same time.

This novel does have some interesting plot twists and will keep the reader guessing until nearing the end, however it is not a mystery that I would highly recommend for the level of writing and the unbelievable characters. I was more interested in the description at the back of the book cover than I was in the actual story.

I give this murder mystery a 2 out of 5 stars. If you are looking for an Agatha Christie-type novel, there are others that  would better offer believable characters, plot lines and will additionally keep you on your toes with twists and turns. Unfortunately this was not my favorite mystery and will soon be forgotten for other, more interesting reads.