I have been super excited about this book from the moment I heard about it, as I really loved the first book in the series, Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (2022). In this first novel the plotting, pacing, writing style, cluing and characterisation were all top notch. Today’s reviewed title is a sequel, with Ernest Cunningham once again narrating the tale and directly engaging with the reader.

Synopsis
‘When the Australian Mystery Writers' Society invited me to their crime-writing festival aboard the Ghan, the famous train between Darwin and Adelaide, I was hoping for some inspiration for my second book. Fiction, this time: I needed a break from real people killing each other. Obviously, that didn't pan out.

The program is a who's who of crime writing royalty:

the debut writer (me!)
the forensic science writer
the blockbuster writer
the legal thriller writer
the literary writer
the psychological suspense writer.

But when one of us is murdered, six authors quickly turn into five detectives. Together, we should know how to solve a crime.

Or commit one...’

Overall Thoughts
In Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone the writer and the narrator, in the spirit of fair play, directly engage with all but one of Ronald Knox’s Decalogue. In Everyone on this Train is a Suspect (2024) I was interested to note that at the start of the book the author quotes the ninth rule from S. S. Van Dine’s ‘Twenty Rules for Writing Detective Stories’ (1928):

‘There must be but one detective — that is, but one protagonist of deduction — one deus ex machina. To bring the minds of three or four, or sometimes a gang of detectives to bear on a problem, is not only to disperse the interest and break the direct thread of logic, but to take an unfair advantage of the reader. If there is more than one detective the reader doesn't know who his co-deductor is. It's like making the reader run a race with a relay team.’

I wondered how the story would interact with this rule and I will leave you find out how it does.

In Golden Age style we get a map of the train and where each character’s sleeping quarters were, among others, and the story includes a copy of the programme for the writing festival the narrator is taking part in. I like this use of different text types and true to form these pieces of information do include important clues. The festival programme provides a brief intro to each writer involved as a speaker, revealing how these core characters embody a variety of different crime writing backgrounds.

Last summer I made a decalogue of my own for crime writers and commented on the role of prologues and how they can become rather generic and uninteresting. So, it was brilliant to read the prologue here, which is and is not a prologue, as it is an email from Ernest Cunningham to his editor at Penguin about how he won’t write the prologue suggested:

'It's a hard no on the prologue [...] I know how to do it, of course, the scene you want me to write. An omniscient eye would survey the cabin's destruction, lingering on signs of a struggle: the strewn sheets, the upturned mattress, the bloodied handprint on the bathroom door [...] It just seems overly pointless to me to replay a scene from later in the book merely for the purpose of suspense. It's like saying, "Hey we know this book takes a while to get going, but it'll get there." Then the poor reader is just playing catch-up until we get to the murder.'

Nevertheless, the email does indeed foreshadow what is to come and creates suspense, particularly in the multiple postscripts at the end. I like how this author takes a well-used element of the crime fiction novel and does something fresh and new with it. This is something we need to see more of in modern crime fiction.
This is a fictional story, but I enjoyed how both books in the series have a protagonist who is narrating events in the form of a dramatic memoir, which makes an interesting variation:

'So I'm writing again. Which is good news, I suppose, for those wanting a second book, but more unfortunate for the people who had to die so I could write it.'

The opening of the book directly mentions the rules for writing a sequel, and in a humorous way looks at some of the expectations readers can have of them:

'Besides, everyone hates sequels: they are so often accused of being a pale imitation of what's come before. Being that the last murders happened on a snowy mountain and these ones happened in a desert, the joke's on the naysayers: a pale imitation this won't be, because at least I've got a tan.'

This attention to the art of writing gives the novel a pleasing metafictional hue/tone. The metafictional component adds not just comedy to the narrative, but it also contributes to the overall puzzle:

'If you think you don't already know the rules to writing a murder mystery, trust me, you do. It's all intuitive. Let me give you an example. I'm writing this in first person. That means, in order to have sat down and physically written about it, I survive the events of the book. First person equals survival. Apologies in advance for the lack of suspense when I almost bite the dust in Chapter 28.'

The reader wonders why they are being told this, as it seems like a bold move to declare this at the beginning of the tale. Is the narrator trying to wrongfoot us with deceptive honesty? I like how the narrative assumes an intelligent readership.

Similar to the first book, Ernest Cunningham is a helpful and reliable narrator for the puzzle-solving reader. From the get-go Cunningham tells us:

'I'll tell you that I use the killer's name, in all its forms, exactly 106 times from here […] And so I promise to be that rarity in modern crime novels: a reliable narrator. You can count on me for the truth at every turn.'
Yet one of the many things this author is good at, is using an honest and upfront narrator to still get us looking in the wrong s and to misdirect us because we are on such high alert for clues. Furthermore, the fact we have a narrator who tells us so much beforehand, does not hinder the armchair detective, but instead it galvanises them into action.

I have touched upon the puzzle solving aspect of the book several times now, but this is no dry academic exercise to figure out. The characters are not simple ciphers to be decoded and emotions play their part in how events play out and how the ongoing situation is perceived. One aspect I was interested in was Cunningham’s complex feelings of being an imposter as a writer. Wrapped within these emotions is the trauma Cunningham went through in solving the case in the first book. The narrative does not become bogged down in such issues though. The first death in the book is not treated officially as a murder to begin with and Cunningham is rather on his own in wanting it to be murder. His motivations for this are ambiguous. Part of him wants it to be murder so he has a story to write for his second book, but there is always a drive within him to quickly resolve this situation so that the death rate does not escalate like it did in his first experience of solving a crime. I felt this mixture of motives made him more likeable as the selfishness is ameliorated to a degree by his concern and vulnerability.

Cunningham’s girlfriend also brings in another interesting theme into the narrative – that of the dangers of treating life like a detective story, as it can have damaging effects on relationships. In this novel the egotism of the amateur sleuth creates an interesting thread throughout the plot, increasing emotional investment, and importantly it does not derail the plot. At one point Cunningham writes:

'A Golden Age detective doesn't really need characterisation or motive, so to speak: intellectual curiosity is their raison d'etre. It's enough for them to scratch an itch, to solve a puzzle simply because it's there to be solved. I'd started in that place, merely curious at the piecing together, not invested in what the answer might mean. My motives had broadened - I'd wanted to build my book out of it - and then, Wyatt's death being so much more violent than McTavish's, plot-seeking had given way to fear. But all these motives - curiosity to cashing-in to safety - are selfish ones. It's exactly what Juliette had said about whose story I thought this was. Mine.'

I don’t know if I would wholly agree with the sentiment voiced in the first sentence. I think there are examples from the interwar years which would disagree with it. The narrative arc presented in the quote above has been done before in crime fiction. However, the framing of the crime investigation, as shown at the end of the passage is interesting. It brings out the idea of how amateur sleuthing can have its self-centred aspects.

Throughout the book Cunningham directly addresses the reader and one of the topics which crops up frequently in these moments is reader expectations. I think this is a topic that the writer engages with well and in an amusing way too, as the example below hopefully shows:

‘This may be a surprise, but everyone survives the night. I know that's not how things usually go in a mystery. There's the night before, in which halves of conversations are overheard (check) and the complex motives and backstories of everyone are introduced (check), then everyone retreats, as if Broadway choreographed, to their rooms, doors clicking in unison, only for dawn to rise on a tussle in the night, a blood-stained cabin and a victim. Alas, not here. Not yet.'

Moreover, like in John Dickson Carr’s The Nine Wrong Answers (1952), reader theories and assumptions are openly anticipated:

'Here's what you're thinking: [A] is your current primary suspect, by virtue of her being the only person who's been remotely nice to me so far on this trip. Her lack of incrimination is, ironically, incriminating. She was also the only person not in the room during [B’s] death. [C] is currently lowest on your list of suspects, given that he is the kind of reprehensible cockroach who normally winds up the victim in these books, and you consider him too obvious as a murderer.'

[I replaced character names with letters to avoid giving readers more info than they might like.]

Nevertheless, this mystery is not just a mental duel between the author and reader (although this feature is prominent). It also includes much drama and peril, even though at times the conventions surrounding activities such as dangerous stunts (of a Tom Cruise nature) are subverted for comedic effect. Unlike the first book I was hopeless at solving this second case. I did manage to figure some bits out though. Not that my ineptitude dented my reading enjoyment. Like the first book in the series this is a book I can heartily recommend. It is being published on the 29th February 2024, so don’t forget to make a note in your diary. I look forward to Stevenson’s next book!

Rating: 4.75/5
Source: Review Copy (Michael Joseph via Netgalley)

Thanks to Netgalley & the publishers for the Arc. I find myself a big fan of Mr. Stevenson's work, and absolutely LOVED the prequel to this book "Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone". BIG FAN! When I saw this book was finally on NetGalley, and they granted my requested, I screamed with joy! My husband thought I was crazy for being so excited about a sequel.
....
Unfortunately, yes, unfortunately; I was not a fan of this book at all. I was extremely let down. I didn't mind that his family wasn't a part (besides his weird uncle-and that plotline was a real stretch) as most of them were unlikable. What I did mind was that he basically did the exact same thing he did in the first book. Now, it was on a train; no one was related to him, and he was in a book rut. It was so predictable and often corny. Add his constant complaining about writing a book and being type cast as a certain kind of author. It was a long & tedious read. Reading a sequel about an author writing a sequel about how hard it is to write a sequel only for him to re-write the prequel was a bore. I'm sure people will eat this up, but why would I want to read the same book twice? Life's too short. What else is he going to do next? Ernest on a cruise trying to write a threepeat, struggling, and then people dying so he gets an idea? Whomp.

This was really good. I very much enjoyed the previous book in this series, Everyone in my family has killed someone, because it was so beautifully written, and so deeply meta. I was worried, coming into this one, that it would be hard to recreate what was so effective in the first book. I was somewhat correct: at it's core this had the same Golden-Age-turned-modern vibe and a meta, tongue-in-cheek humour that I really enjoyed, but this instalment wasn't as gritty, the characters weren't quite as well developed, and some of the interactions felt more farcical.

Stevenson has an exceptional talent for description: he is a master of the quirkily effective simile, and the way he layers in detail and energy, colour and texture, comes together to create deeply impactful imagery. I also really enjoy how he builds characters, introducing details like clues, letting our understanding of these characters grow with our suspicion. I do not know is Elmore Leonard's are another set of writing rules he subscribes to, but Stevenson does avoid physically describing his characters, beyond what they're wearing. This isn't a problem, but personally I find it harder to connect to them, because I can't really picture these people in a real way. He is an immensely talented writer, and that is as clear in this book, as it was in the first.

I really enjoyed the story of this one, the characters were not quite as realised as the last, but I don't think that hurt anything. These are all first person, so it makes sense that they wouldn't be as real and fully-fleshed to Ernest as his own family. Like the last, the mystery here was complex, the clues slotting together in a comedic, exciting and multi-faceted denouement. Ernest is a wonderful narrator, he is both actively and self-consciously pro-woman, he bows to superior understanding, he appreciates his role as accidental protagonist. In many ways Ernest is the anti-thesis of the Golden Age male detective, because he sees and understands the value of others, he is Watson to the universe's Holmes. In this second book we see Ernest trying to find his feet in this new space, and trying to unlearn some of his bad-habits, I loved seeing Ernest grow as a character, and the way he found confidence in himself.

A last little issue, this is not a romance. It isn't trying to be a romance. But Ernest's relationship with Juliette is possibly the only weak element of this book. Juliette tells us she is not the stereotypical sidekick girlfriend, Ernest tells us she is talented, she is helpful, they are in love. We as the reader see very little of this, we see, in fact, very little of them together. When they are together they converse, they kiss, they don't really seem any closer than any other two people. Given that we didn't see them get together, and we have no real insight into their day-to-day together, Stevenson needs to give the reader a little more to understand why these two are together at all. His lack of physical description is also an issue. Ernest tells us Juliette is beautiful, but we don't know what she looks like, she is not lovingly described. In fact, the only detail we get is that she is 'a head' taller than him. What I'm saying, is that it's hard to picture this loving couple, when you don'y know what they look like, or why they're in love. I hope this series continues, I would love to read another, but I would hope if it does that their relationship is more fully realised.

Overall, this was a fantastically written, well-formed, exciting mystery novel. I throughly enjoyed reading it, and I will be reading any further instalments.

I really enjoyed everyone in my family has killed someone, so I was really excited to be offered the opportunity to read the next instalment.
This time the setting is aboard a luxury train hosting the 50th Australian Mystery Writers Society festival. The story follows Ernie who, once again, finds himself in the midst of a murder mystery! Using the murder as inspiration for his novel, he takes on the role of an investigator in order to uncover the truth behind the crime.

Another fantastic read! I really hope there is a third instalment in the pipeline

Benjamin Stevenson’s first book, Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone, was refreshingly unusual. The author directly addressed the reader and swore to abide by the Golden Age of Detection “rules of fair play”, even helpfully giving, in Chapter One, the page references for all the forthcoming deaths in the book. Stevenson’s follow-up book, Everyone on This Train is a Suspect, adopts a similar technique.

The scenario is that the protagonist from the first book, Ernie Cunningham, has been invited to be on a writers’ panel for a literary festival, accompanied by his partner, Juliette. The festival will take place on a luxury train (the Ghan) that travels through Australia from Darwin to Adelaide. Ernie, as he tells us, is proud to be a very reliable narrator. I’d use the adjectives precise and accurate. For example, Ernie keeps reminding us that he promised, in Chapter One, “I use the killer’s name, in all its forms, exactly 106 times from here.” He also tells us there that the case is solved by a comma – and he’s deadly serious: it really is. You can be 100% sure that, if you read the text carefully enough, there will be enough clues for you to identify whodunnit. If you pay attention to the text, you’ll realise the significance of that comma and may deduce the murderer too. I told you Stevenson writes very carefully indeed!

I really enjoyed the author’s approach to writing the book. The emphasis upon abiding by “the rules” and keeping nothing back from the reader is evidence of very careful writing. However, I didn’t try to work it out for myself. I just enjoyed the plotting; the dialogue; and the playful narration. Yes, there are quite a number of characters involved, but several of them are identified in the Festival Program inserted before the Prologue; and they are all quite different personalities. Ernie is a very human hero (I think that’s an appropriate word for him) and freely admits to messing up. There is one scene involving Ernie and Juliette that I had to read between my fingers, thinking “No! He’s not really going to say that, is he?! NO! STOP DIGGING!” but he did – stupid boy!

This is a really well-written whodunnit and I cannot recommend it more highly. Although it’s stylistically similar to Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone, I felt the plot was quite different. I do hope Benjamin Stevenson finds inspiration for a third, I really do.

#EveryoneOnThisTrainIsASuspect #NetGalley

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

When I saw this book was available to request, I had to request it straight away. I thoroughly enjoyed the first in the series, and this second book was so so good. The style of writing I find quite unique, and even with all the hints and tips throughout the book I still never guessed who the culprit was! A five star read for me.

Everyone On This Train Is A Suspect followed neatly on from the previous novel - Everybody In My Family Has Killed Someone, and finds main character Ernest, having authored a successful book about the events at the ski resort, taking part in a book festival with a twist: it’s held on a cross-country train journey through Australia.

I really enjoyed the meta elements - wherein the previous book becomes the book the character of Ernest has written - and the setting works well as a Golden Age of Crime homage. While I didn’t find it quite as gripping as the first book, it was still a fun read and recommended for those who enjoy their crime on the cosier side.

This is the sequel to Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone, which I really enjoyed. Unfortunately, this one didn't quite live up to the first. As with before there was lots of humour and a few surprises, but there was just too many characters and it all got a bit complicated for me.
I found that I wasn't that invested in the story. Although I did enjoy the epilogue (no spoilers but if there's another on it should go in that direction).
One thing that is genius is that when you look on Goodreads Henry McTavish's one star review is there!

This book is absolutely wonderful. Set on board a train crossing the Australian desert, a literary festival goes horribly wrong when a murder occurs.
Ernest cunningly, a new writer, writes in the first person as a cross between a murder mystery guide and a novel.
He has a dry sense of humour which comes across well and lightens the mood! It's a homage to the golden age of locked- room crime writing and is a must read for crime writing fans.

Rating: 4.5/5

This is the second book to feature the character of Ernest Cunningham, who first appeared in "Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone". Somehow, that one slipped under my radar at the time of publication, so I came into Ernest's second outing cold, but at no point whilst reading "Everyone on This Train is a Suspect" did I ever feel at a disadvantage for not being familiar with book one. If for no other reason than that, Benjamin Stevenson would already have been worthy of some praise - but, as it transpires, there is an awful lot about this novel that is laudable.

Although the mood of this novel is deliberately comedic, there is an absolutely rock solid murder mystery structure at the heart of it, that would not be out of place in one of Agatha Christie's works - and there are regular nods to the great lady and to "Murder on the Orient Express" in particular. I would also draw a favourable comparison with another of my preferred writers, Anthony Horowitz. There isn't simply the fact that Stevenson has his author-protagonist playing detective, as Horowitz does in his Hawthorne & Horowitz series, but there are some stylistic similarities too, not least in the satisfying way that a complicated mystery ultimately makes sense.

An amusing, engaging and impressive leitmotif that runs throughout the book is the fact that the author-protagonist, Ernest, not only outlines the structure of the mystery that he is going to be unveiling, but that he also includes regular updates on the progress versus the plan - and even telegraphs significant plot developments well in advance to make sure that the reader has no excuse for missing them. Now, this could potentially spoil the whole mystery of the reading process, but it doesn't - far from it, in fact. Not only is this approach very amusing, but it is also a little like the skilled magician who tells his audience what they need to watch out for, so that they won't be fooled, but still manages to accomplish the seemingly impossible sleight of hand in front of their eyes.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which may be the last book I finish reading in 2023 (even though it isn't published until the end of February 2024). A great way to finish the year and one of my favourites reads of the past twelve months. I will certainly be keeping an eye out for Benjamin Stevenson's next offering.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

He is back!

Ernest has a on a train, and there has been a murder....

The Australian Mystery Writers’ Society has invited Ernest and other mystery authors onboard!

Ernest needs some inspiration for his next book and he’s hoping this provides the opportunity for it. Things never go to plan though!

Then one of the authors is found dead and as everyone on board is a suspect. the mystery begins!

As with the first book Ernest uses the first person with this book which I love! He starts off telling us exactly what to expect and when and what pages. He even gives clues to who the murderer is! This carries on throughout.

The same was done for the first book published and I enjoyed this throughly too. “Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone”.
I loved how things were broken down at the end and he exposed the motives and secrets of the other authors. I did not see the twists coming at all. I didn’t want to put the book(s) down.

These books will not disappoint you - they are written differently but in a way that will hook you in, keep you engaged and will make you want to read MORE! Keep them coming Benjamin please!


Thank you to NetGalley and the Publishing company for allowing me to have a pre release copy of this book to review - it’s been an absolute pleasure. :)

The other reviews have pretty much said it all: this is even better than the first book. And, within the first few pages, it had answered all my concerns about a sequel - Ernest Cunningham (and presumably Benjamin Stevenson) shared these concerns and smashed it out of the park. Fans of the first book (and others) should definitely read this.

I was a strong advocate of Benjamin’s first novel, the highly acclaimed ‘Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone’ which was written in the first person and littered with guidance and clues to help the reader solve the mystery. ‘Everyone on this Train is a Suspect’ is written in the same style and although I did enjoy reading it, it just couldn’t elicit the same excitement as the first novel as the originality was no longer there.

Another fun read featuring the delightful Ernest Cunningham. Set on a train, it reads as a classic golden age locked room mystery but it is so much more. Wonderfully self-referential and not afraid to make fun of itself. This is a cleverly written book and very amusing. Highly recommended.

Another clever book from Benjamin Stevenson. I loved Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone and this is more of the same.

Everyone on this Train is a Suspect has the same narrator, Ernest Cunningham, simultaneously self-deprecating and sure of his skills at tracking a killer. The tone is light and quirky but there are darker elements in the background. There is more of the hinting at things to come that was a feature of EIMFHKS - telling the reader what's going to happen without quite giving the game away, and plenty of clues to pick up on if you're that way inclined. I just like to read it for the fun of it and find out at the end.

Great fun - and it's set on the Ghan - a train I have travelled on. Perfection.

I absolutely loved reading Benjamin Stevenson’s book, Everyone On This Train is a Suspect. I hadn’t heard of Benjamin Stevenson before, but after reading this book I have bought copies of his earlier books.

I travelled on The Ghan train twenty years ago and loved the idea that the setting of this book was the same train journey through central Australia.

In this case, the train is hosting the the Australian Mystery Writers’ Society crime-writing festival and they are travelling through one of the most sparsely areas in the world. One of the writers invited to take part in the event is the true crime writer, Ernest Cunningham, who is suffering from writers block and just can’t get going on his second book. He is also suffering imposter syndrome with all the other authors on the panel. I loved the way in which he’s chronicling the event in the first person, keeping track of who said what and when on the journey.

As the title suggests everyone on the train is literally a suspect. There’s a lot of tension between the writers and no love is lost between them.

The story unfolds at a good pace. I loved the way in which Ern starts to chronicle and investigate - could it become the basis of his second book?! Ern has an interesting and fun take on things and it makes for an exciting read.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for making this e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I was very lucky to get this book as an ARC and can’t express how excited I was when I got the approval! I loved Everybody in my Family has Killed Someone and so had high hopes about Everyone on this Train is a Suspect and it did not let me down!

This story follows Ernest Cunningham after the events of the first book and his struggles to write a second. The story is set on a train (in case that wasn’t obvious from the title!) and as the journey progresses and a body is discovered Ernest has the struggle that all of his suspects are crime writers and know how to get away with murder!

I’d definitely recommend this to anyone who loved the first book or loves a funny murder mystery! I always enjoy these kinds of books and it didn’t disappoint. Ernest is a very likable narrator to the story and the book had a good pace that kept me wanting more. I am really hoping that there will be more books coming in this series 💕

Loved this book. It reminded me of an Agatha Christie mystery with it being set on a train abd you don't find out the perpetrator until the closing chapters. Very well written and a brilliant read.

Another entertaining book from Benjamin Stevenson, this time set on a train. I loved the first book: Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone so I had to read this one. Highly recommended! Now I can't wait to read the next one.
Thank you to NetGalley and to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

I read the first book just before starting this one and, of the two, I actually preferred this. It still has the 'meta' elements the first one used (someone who writes books about writing books writes a book about their experience...if you see what I mean), but doesn't labour on them quite so much as the first did which I found grew slightly laborious over the course of the debut story.
Here the mystery takes places on a train with a group of writers of varying genres/ literary 'value' appearing at a movable festival.
There's some nice jokes which anyone who has been involved in literary festivals at any level will appreciate, and some 'inside jokes' on the whole publishing industry.
The story moves along nicely and there are some good twists and turns along the way.
If you liked the first book you'll enjoy this and if you didn't read the first - well, you'll do just fine jumping straight into this one.