Six mature students, along with their course tutor, embark on a year-long MA multimedia art course. As personalities clash, it soon becomes obvious that one of the students has stopped attending, possibly murdered.
Fans of author Janice Hallett will be familiar with the style of her novels, a story told through a variety of mixed media. The same style is used in The Examiner, a deliciously wicked and twisty whodunnit. I say whodunnit but until the glorious big reveal at the end, we don't know the what, why or how either. The author has this amazing technique of drawing you in and leaving tantalising little hints, the problem is you don't even realise they are hints until the end and then you are scrabbling back through the book to check what you've previously read. (Slight aside, having read the author's previous books on my Kindle, I knew I'd want to flick back through the book regularly. I invested in the hardback this time around and would recommend a physical copy for any of Janice Hallett's books).
The media used to convey the story has been pared down to three types; chat messages using the university intranet, emails and WhatsApp messages. This voyeuristic style is so moreish I wanted to devour the book in one sitting, but I didn't. I found myself looking for distractions so that I could draw out my time spent engrossed in the story. This is the only problem with the book, you don't want it to end.
The six students on the course are a very mixed bunch. I found myself disliking some of the cohort almost immediately. The style of writing highlights the danger of making decisions based on text, so much subtly is missed when everything is text-based. Over time my opinions about each one of them changed, even going full-circle for some individuals. Being a fly-on-the-wall when so many massive egos and hidden agendas are at play certainly brought back memories of my professional life, I'm sure many other people will feel the same.
I had a vague idea of what was happening pretty early on, and when I say vague I mean an idea that is so nebulous I wouldn't dare risk anything on it. It's the delicious twists and turns that we go through, along with shocks and surprises, that really make this outstanding read, one which I'm sad to have finished, knowing it will be a while before the author produces a new book. I fully envisage the next book to increase the variety of mixed media used, maybe a soundscape or some 3D clay models! Until then, I guess I'll just have to re-read The Appeal.
Author Details
Janice Hallett studied English at University College London and spent several years as a magazine editor, winning two awards for journalism. She then worked in government communications for the Cabinet Office, Home Office and Department for International Development. After gaining an MA in Screenwriting at Royal Holloway, she co-wrote the feature film Retreat and went on to write the Shakespearean stage comedy NetherBard, as well as a number of other plays for London's new-writing theatres. Her debut novel, The Appeal, was a Waterstones Thriller of the Month and won the CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger award. The Twyford Code was named the Crime and Thriller Book of the Year at the British Book Awards and The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels was a Richard & Judy Book Club pick. Her fourth book, The Christmas Appeal, is the Sunday Times bestselling follow-up to The Appeal. Her latest novel, The Examiner, will be published by Viper in 2024. When not indulging in her passion for global travel, she is based in West London.
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