I am a massive Janice Hallett fan – I think her work is revolutionising the modern mystery with such an inventive use of the epistolary format. So it should come as no surprise that I was eagerly anticipating her latest, The Examiner. How did it live up to my expectations?
This review originally appeared on The Nerd Daily.
The students of Royal Hastings University’s new Multimedia Art course have been trouble from day one. Acclaimed artist Alyson wants the department to revolve around her. Ludya struggles to balance her family and the workload. Jonathan has management experience but zero talent for art. Lovely Patrick can barely operate his mobile phone, let alone professional design software. Meanwhile blustering Cameron tries to juggle the course with his job in the City and does neither very well. Then there’s Jem. A gifted young sculptor, she’s a promising student… but cross her at your peril.
The year-long course is blighted by accusations of theft, students setting fire to one another’s artwork, a rumoured extra-marital affair and a disastrous road trip. But finally they are given their last assignment: to build an interactive art installation for a local manufacturer. With six students who have nothing in common except their clashing personal agendas, what could possibly go wrong?
The answer is: murder. When the external examiner arrives to assess the students’ essays and coursework, he becomes convinced that a student was killed on the course and that the others covered it up. But is he right? And if so, who is dead, why were they killed, and who is the murderer? Only a close examination of the evidence will reveal the truth. Your time starts now.
Publication Date: 29th August
TW: murder, death, violence, ableism, infidelity, disappearance
My Thoughts:
The Examiner is another barnstormer of a mystery from a modern queen of mysteries. Hallett delivers her distinctive style with a fiendish and tricksy story that has plenty of secrets up its sleeves.
For me, Janice Hallett is a modern day Christie for her inventive take on the mystery genre, intriguing characterisation and consistently brilliant plot twists. You become used to her unique stylings and the way they completely pull you into the story. This latest offering from Hallett’s nefarious brain continues her distinctive style, a modern twist on the epistolary novel – often combining emails, texts and investigatory transcripts. Here she turns her glare on a twisted Arts degree course that goes very wrong. This masterful mimicry is so true to life and that authenticity is what totally entrances you. Hallett’s work appeals to the gossip lover hidden within all of us – it is eavesdropping taken to the extreme. As usual, you are invited to play detective yourself, if you can sift between the catty messages to find the hidden secrets within, The reader can piece together scraps from discussion boards, WhatsApp groups, essays and exam transcripts.In particular, I loved the inclusion of the mark sheets for the various assignments on the course. They exposed allegiances and favouritism at play, which takes a turn when further information is revealed. I love how this always places the onus on the reader, you are invited to become an armchair detective and try to solve it for yourself.
However, nothing is ever as simple as it first seems. Hallett has a knack for delivering excellent twists that truly reframe everything you may have thought you knew before. There are several here that completely gobsmacked me. I always think the best types of twists are ones that almost seem obvious in hindsight but completely shock you in the moment. The ones that make you instantly want to go back and re-examine everything to see the clues you missed. Hallett’s brand is delivering these types of twists perfectly. They’re buried in the mass of the little details of life, meaning you miss them to begin with and then they jump out on a reread. It helps that her writing style is so conversational and natural. The pacing is always exquisite, giving you enough titbits through the examiners’ future investigation to keep you lured into the story as a whole. The use of the dual timelines allows for some jaw-dropping reveals and smaller pieces of the overall picture.
We have a fairly insular cast of characters here and you start getting a sense of them quickly through their different messaging styles. You can build up a picture of exactly who they are and the different ‘types’ Hallett is observantly satirising. It adds a bit of humour – that kind of ultimate eavesdropping that allows you to see some of the backstabbing, corruption and collusion here. That balance of humour and tension is always masterfully delivered in Hallett’s work, often with a wry smile and a meta gloss. It is amplified here by the specific choices of media used within the narrative. Often, you can see exactly what someone is saying behind someone else’s back and what they’re saying to their face. The duplicity is incredibly juicy and adds layers to these characters, but the motivations are sometimes left deliberately vague or misleading. You get so invested in these somewhat unlikeable people and Hallett takes you by the hand down the many rabbit holes woven into this narrative.
The Examiner easily secures its spot as one of the top five mysteries I’ve read so far this year. It certainly delivers top marks for murder.
A Short Book Lover 
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