I am a fan of Benjamin Stevenson's previous books and I feel just as excited by this one, they always grip me and keep me hooked.

I loved the first one I ready by this author and was eagerly looking forward to this one. I wasn't disappointed!
I love how this is written in the first person, and the slightly humorous aspect to the writer's thoughts.
I won't give away the plot, but you will be in for twists and turns that will leave you guessing until the very end. I didn't have a clue whodunnit!
I will certainly look out for more by Benjamin Stevenson because he spins a great tale!

3.5 stars rounded up
Ernest Cunningham #2

It’s the 50th anniversary program of the Australian writers festival and the guest of honour is Henry McTavish, best selling author of the detective Morbund series, which just so happens to be Ernest’s favourite author. The anniversary celebrations are to take place aboard the famous Ghan, a train that travels from Darwin to Adelaide, crossing the desert regions. Seven writers board the train, including Ernest who is a guest speaker as a debut author. At the end of the line, five authors remain alive, and one is in handcuffs. When the first murder happens, surely it can’t be too hard to solve, after all these people are experts in the field of detection. Most importantly, from Ernest’s perspective, maybe he’ll get the inspiration for that crucial follow up to a successful debut novel. Ernest promises that he will be a reliable narrator for the dramatic events about the Ghan, as of course, he still following Ronald Knox’s 1929 10 Commandments of detective fiction. However, only time will tell if Ernest follows through with his promise, and of course, let’s bear in mind that one star review! This time a comma saves the day, not a full stop!

The starting point of the novel is witty and amusing but then it takes a while to get going and I admit to struggling with it for the first third or so. For example, there are a lot of author’s details, much moving up and down the train and wining and dining. The second half is much faster paced than the first, and there are some vivid and entertaining scenes and one very good action movie worthy scene that does require some disbelief suspension, but it is really good! As the novel progresses, it delves deeper into each author and we learn a few things about them that are very unexpected.

I do enjoy the ever present humour and the tone the novel is written in, and there are some clever clues to spot such as the killers name will be mentioned 106 times, precisely. Naturally, I don’t count them myself, but Ernest does help us out a bit, however, of course I don’t spot the actual killer which turns out to be a bit of a surprise! I probably shouldn’t have laughed at the end scenes (no, I definitely shouldn’t) but it does have some elements of the dramatically absurd.

As a book fanatic, I thoroughly enjoy the bookish element of this novel and it’s quite illuminating on aspects of the industry. The setting on a train that passes through parts of Australia is excellent and there are some accompanying good descriptions, giving a real sense of place.

Overall, yes, I do enjoy the wit and humour and it can’t be denied that the author has a way with words. However, I don’t enjoy this one as much as the first book as it takes much longer to get into.

With thanks to NetGalley, and especially to Michael Joseph for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

I was a huge fan of the previous book by this author and was desperate to get stuck in to this one.

Ernest is back, and a semi successful author after writing a book about the family murders from the first book. He and his girlfriend join a book tour on the Ghan with a few other authors and would you believe, murder follows him.

The setting of the train in this book was absolutely glorious, I enjoyed Ernest's manner just as much and I will always be happy to have him talk to the reader.

The murder and the mystery are not quite as explosive as the last book but this is a perfect choice for anyone who enjoys witty thrillers.

An absolute joy.

I was sent this ARC in return for an honest review.

Having loved the first book in the series, I was very excited for this, and I’m thrilled to say it did not disappoint. I figured out the anagram pretty much immediately, but other than that there were enough twists and turns to keep me entertained throughout.

This book?! Wow. I dont think I’ve ever read one like it and the narrative was just outstanding. I couldn’t have liked how it was written better and the whole story itself was just fab.

I haven’t read the first one and stumbled straight across this one and decided to go for it. I had a train journey coming up, and thought, what better to read than a train themed murder mystery! It certainly made my train go faster and even softened the blow for the cancellations and waiting at cold stations I subsequently had to endure.

And also, well played author. I will now go and read your first book because you made it irresistible and now I find I must go and read it because not only did I enjoy this one so much, it sounded epic from the brief throwbacks we got in this one. Reading it first it by no means a prerequisite and you can enjoy this one just fine on its own but I can’t wait to go back and experience the first story.

I loved the plot, story, characters and writing and the whole set up and idea of it was just so clever. Can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a murder mystery this much and I’m honestly incredibly excited to read what else this author will produce.

Tremendous…!
The follow on from ‘Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone’ and our intrepid protagonist, still yet to fully recover from his last murderous escapade but now an author in his own right, has somehow garnered an invitation from the renowned Australian Mystery Writers’ Society to attend their festival on the luxurious Ghan train. What could possibly go wrong? You may well ask! A group of authors, a famous train, and a killer - as the bodies mount, the suspects and the motives grow. Enter Cunningham, stage left. Just tremendous once again - a propulsive plot populated with an entertaining and well drawn cast, an immersive and enormously witty narrative with humour dancing off every page not to mention the delicious literary references throughout to the Golden Age of Crime. Enormously entertaining and even better, if possible, than the first outing.

It took me a while to settle into this one and I kept having to go back to the previous page but that’s nothing to do with how the book is written but it is the kind of book that is best read when the reader has lots of time to sit down, relax and have no distractions. It’s cleverly written with lots of humorous moments and I can’t wait to see what is next for Ernest

For me this sequel was as good as the first book. It was fast paced it was clever. I was hooked. Like the first book the writing style takes a minute to get used to but i had a great reading experience.

A well known festival organiser once said that authors are the cheapest dates. You don't have to do much to impress them, just give them an opportunity to hold forth, and some snacks, and they will be yours.

The sixth authors invited for the trip of a lifetime on the 5 star train the Ghan (Afghan) Express, on a trip across the interior of Australia, are expecting something quite different. And they get it. It's just not the luxury travel journey they had in mind! More a variation on Agatha Christie's famous novel, with seething tensions becoming evident, and as a result, bodies appearing with alarming implications...

With a crime writers festival on the way you might think that there is already enough "expertise" on the train to solve this mystery but what if one of the sleuths is in fact the perpetrator? After all, they all specialise in doing how to get away with murder...

This is a much anticipated follow-up to a usually successful debut novel, so expectations will be high. There is a lot of humour in this book, in addition to the mystery of course, and it gives some (often disturbing) insights into the publishing world and writers' egos. Fans of Benjamin Steadman's quirky style of writing and meta approach are likely to enjoy this. It gets 3.5 stars.