The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels

by Janice Hallett

Publisher: VIPER, part of Serpent’s Tail, an imprint of Profile Books Ltd.
Ginasbookreport Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Mystery
Read This If You Love: other Janice Hallett books / unusual ways to tell a story

“First rule of journalism: don’t become the story. It never ends well.”

The Alperton Angels cult has held the fascination of the public for almost two decades. Now the newborn baby involved in the case is turning 18 and the media is chomping at the bit to be the first to find the child at the center of the case. What new insights would this angle provide? Amanda, a successful true crime author, is just the person to write this novel and re-investigate the events of the evening that left a brutal crime scene with the Alperton Angels at the center. Just one rule to survive, don’t become part of the story. It’s dangerous.

I ADORE this author and her unusual way of writing a story. If you have never picked up one of her novels before, you are in for a treat. Each one is told via various modern ways of communication (i.e., texts, WhatsApp messages, press releases, interview transcripts, emails, etc.) instead of traditional narrative text. While I have given The Appeal and The Twyford Code both 5 stars, The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels is my new favorite of the three. Not everyone will enjoy this approach to storytelling, but it hits the spot for me because I like being able to piece even more of the mystery together myself. (If  you prefer a more straightforward story, The Twyford Code is the most direct of her three books.)

This book has it all! Multiple layered mysteries, cults, true crime culture, a book-within-a-book, and complex work colleague relationships. I can’t remember the last time I saw a book with this many praise quotes from SO many big name authors. This book is in my running for best book of the year…highly entertaining and engrossing.

“People who draw others into a fantasy world are plausible people. There is no one more convincing than the convinced.”