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Welcome to the June round of Read Mystery With Me! If you’re new, here’s the deal: Every other month throughout the year, I’ll be picking a mystery novel to read. Each day during that month (until we reach the end of the novel) we’ll read a chapter or two and post our thoughts about what we’ve read in a private chat. Please note, you do have to be a pai…

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Welcome to the April round of Read Mystery With Me! If you’re new, here’s the deal: Every other month throughout the year, I’ll be picking a mystery novel to read. Each day during that month (until we reach the end of the novel) we’ll read a chapter or two and post our thoughts about what we’ve read in a private chat. Please note, you do have to be a paid subscriber to access the chat.

You can read further guidelines for Read Mystery With Me (RMWM) here.

This Month’s Pick

Dead Man in a Ditch by Luke Arnold (note: this is the second book in the series)

Back Cover Summary

A former soldier turned PI solves crime in a world that's lost its magic in this brilliant sequel to actor Luke Arnold's debut The Last Smile in Sunder City.

The name's Fetch Phillips -- what do you need?

Cover a Gnome with a crossbow while he does a dodgy deal? Sure.

Find out who killed Lance Niles, the big-shot businessman who just arrived in town? I'll give it shot.

Help an old-lady Elf track down her husband's murderer? That's right up my alley.

What I don't do, because it's impossible, is search for a way to bring the goddamn magic back.

Rumors got out about what happened with the Professor, so now people keep asking me to fix the world.

But there's no magic in this story. Just dead friends, twisted miracles, and a secret machine made to deliver a single shot of murder.

Welcome back to the streets of Sunder City, a darkly imagined world perfect for readers of Ben Aaronovitch and Jim Butcher.

Reading Schedule

4/1 to 4/30: Chapters 1 through 82 (three chapters each day)

4/30: Final thoughts and wrap-up

The fun starts in a few days. Grab a copy of the book and get ready to read!

Welcome to the February round of Read Mystery With Me! If you’re new, here’s the deal: Every other month throughout the year, I’ll be picking a mystery novel to read. Each day during that month (until we reach the end of the novel) we’ll read a chapter or two and post our thoughts about what we’ve read in a private chat. Please note, you do have to be a paid subscriber to access the chat.

You can read further guidelines for Read Mystery With Me (RMWM) here.

This Month’s Pick

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

Back Cover Summary

On a day that begins like any other, Harriet Westaway receives a mysterious letter bequeathing her a substantial inheritance from her grandmother. Hal knows there’s been a mistake; her grandparents have been dead for more than 20 years, and she hasn’t had anyone to help her since her mother died three years ago. But the bills are piling up and Hal is running out of options. Down on her luck and worn thin by the weight of adulthood, Hal can’t help but wonder if the cold-reading skills she’s honed as a tarot card reader might help her claim the money.

Soon, Hall finds herself at Trepassen, the sprawling estate in the English countryside where the deceased Mrs. Westaway‘s family has gathered to pay their respects and claim their bequest. But it doesn’t take long for Hal to realize that there’s something very, very wrong about this strange situation… and the inheritance is at the center of it

Reading Schedule

2/1 to 2/25: Chapters 1 through 50 (two chapters each day)

2/28: Final thoughts and wrap-up

The fun starts in a few days. Grab a copy of the book and get ready to read!

Welcome to the inaugural round of Read Mystery With Me! Every other month throughout the year, I’ll be picking a mystery novel to read. Each day during that month (until we reach the end of the novel) I’ll read a chapter or two and post my thoughts about what I’ve read. Read along with me and join the discussion using the subscribe button below!

Please also read the guidelines for Read Mystery With Me (RMWM) here.

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This Month’s Pick

Murder At The Mill by M.B. Shaw

Back Cover Summary

A picture hides a thousand lies . . . And only Iris Grey can uncover the truth.

Iris Grey arrives at Mill Cottage in a picture-perfect Hampshire village, looking to escape from her crumbling marriage. She is drawn to the neighbouring Wetherby family, and is commissioned to paint a portrait of Dominic Wetherby, a celebrated crime writer.

At the Wetherby's Christmas Eve party, the mulled wine is in full flow - but so too are tensions and rivalries among the guests. On Christmas Day, the youngest member of the Wetherby family, Lorcan, finds a body in the water. A tragic accident? Or a deadly crime?

With the snow falling, Iris enters a world of village gossip, romantic intrigue, buried secrets and murder.

Reading Schedule

12/1 to 12/23: Chapters 1 through 23 (one each day)

12/24 to 12/26: Happy Holidays

12/27 to 12/28: Chapters 24 through 27 (one each day)

12/29: Chapters 28 and 29

12/30: Chapters 30 and wrap-up

If you miss any days, don’t worry. The posts will be in the archives for you to view whenever you’re ready.

Here again is the subscribe button to join the club:

Subscribe now

Hope to meet you there!

Announcing Read Mystery With Me (RMWM)! Every other month throughout the year, I’ll be picking a mystery novel to read. Each day during that month (until we reach the end of the novel) I’ll read a chapter or two and post my thoughts in a private chat about what I’ve read. I invite you to join along and share your thoughts in the chat as well!

*You will need to supply your own copy of the chosen novel if you wish to participate.

Why should you participate?

Because talking about stories is fun. Sharing opinions and ideas is invigorating. And having someone else say they resonated with something in the book that you did also can be cathartic.

We’ll share theories and contemplate clues. Our minds will be collectively blown by well plotted twists and unexpected red herrings. Together, we’ll catch the villain and solve the case!

As a bonus for those of you who are usually lurkers, like me, it’s a chance to engage in discussions about books in a safe space. Part of the reason I’m starting a reading club on this cozy corner of the internet is to break out of my own shell a bit. Or at least put a tiny crack in it.

How are the books chosen?

This first one, Murder At The Mill, I have picked to start us off. Going forward, at the end of each session I will post a poll of six possible books for the next RMWM choice. You guys will vote on what we read next.

The pool the books are chosen from will mostly be from my TRL mystery novel pile. And I have a LOT of them. Honestly, much of the books will be random and older. Anywhere from a a few months to several years older. If you want to read the newest and freshest of the mysteries being released, this isn’t the reading club for you.

How will this work?

Excellent question. Every other month, starting in December, we will pick a book. We will read it day-by-day, one or two chapters at a time, and finish it by the end of that same month. Easy-peasy. At the end of each day (EST time), I’ll update a private chat for the book club with a recap of what’s happened so far and share my thoughts on what we’ve read.

Then, it’s your turn!

You join the discussion in the private chat. There are some guidelines for this here, so please be sure you read and follow them when interacting in the comment section.

At the end of the month, we will all have finished the book and you’ll get to move a mystery novel from the Want To Read to the Read shelf in your Goodreads account.

NOTE: Before the next round of reading begins (see schedule below) the chat of the previous book will be deleted to make way for the chat of the new book.

Do you give me a copy of the book to read?

No. You will need to purchase/borrow/source your own copy of the book. No books will be supplied by me.

In what months will we be reading?

• December

• February

• April

• June

• August

• October

That’s six opportunities to add to your “books read” list. Six opportunities to break down a story with fellow book lovers. Six opportunities to connect with other bookworms.

Does this cost anything?

RMWM is included with a paid subscription to MysteryPlease. The paid subscription price to join MysteryPlease! is $5/month or $50/annual. The free tier receives the monthly mystery links list and occasional public posts. The paid tier, regardless of if you choose to pay monthly or annually, includes access to RMWM and in-depth posts not available to the public.

Will my email be cluttered with RMWM emails?

No. Discussion of the book will happen entirely in the private chat. You will need to go to the chat to participate.

You will still receive posts via email from the MysteryPlease! main site.

How do I sign up?

If you’re a new subscriber, you will automatically be signed up for RMWM when you subscribe to MysteryPlease! If you would prefer to not receive the reading club notifications, it’s simple to opt out. Go to your account section, click settings, scroll down to your subscriptions, click MysteryPlease!, and uncheck Read Mystery With Me.

If you’re an existing subscriber as of 11/20/25, you will need to subscribe to RMWM by going through the same process above, but checking Read Mystery With Me instead of unchecking it.

That’s all for now. If you’ve got any other questions about the reading club, let me know below. I’m truly excited to start reading Murder At The Mill with everyone!

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If you plan on commenting on any RMWM posts, please read these guidelines below to ensure everyone has a safe and fun time!

• Post responses in the appropriate chapter chat bubble. Each chapter has its own after the initial welcome chat message.

• No hate. Period. Everyone is welcome here.

• No graphic or violent talk.

• Do not share personal information in your comments.

• Respect other members’ privacy.

• No spam or excessive posting that drowns out other readers’ opinions.

• No controversial talk unless it pertains to the novel and please try to keep comments family friendly.

• Keep the discussion book focused.

• No spoilers from future scheduled chapters. Keep the discussion to the chapters we’ve read. Some folks may read more chapters than scheduled (or even devour the entire book in one sitting). That’s fine but, in our daily conversations, keep the talk to the chapter being discussed and don’t give away any crucial secrets hiding in future chapters.

• No spoilers from other mystery novels when comparing them to the book we are reading.

• Keep chapter specific topics in their designated threads to avoid confusion.

• Feel free to share your thoughts in a respectful manner.

• Feel free to ask questions in the comments.

• Feel free to lurk in the comments if open participation isn’t your thing.

• Please read the book if you want to participate in the comments.

• No personal attacks on fellow RMWM members. Honest opinions and thoughts are encouraged, but only if they add value to the conversation.

• Stay on topic and use passages from the book text to support your comments.

This list may be updated at anytime by A. Kate Willett as needed to ensure everyone is respected.

Additionally, please click here to view Substack’s privacy policy and see how your personal information is used.