Publisher's Weekly Review
At the start of British journalist, playwright, and screenwriter Hallett's ingeniously plotted debut, two young lawyers face a Herculean challenge: blitzing through almost two years of emails, texts, and messages so they can assist with an appeal brief due within days. Initially, the communications among members of a London area amateur theater group seem unremarkable, even banal. But things get real when troupe leader Martin Hayward shares that his two-year-old granddaughter, Poppy, has been diagnosed with a rare brain tumor--for which the only hope is an astronomically expensive experimental drug. Though plans for the show proceed, an urgent appeal to raise funds for Poppy's treatment takes center stage. As contributions climb and someone ends up dead, Hallett skillfully lays an intricate and twisty trail of bread crumbs that leads to half a dozen suspects, which should delight those eager for the opportunity to sift through the evidence. For others, however, reading this murder mystery may feel more like attempting to solve a large jigsaw puzzle without a picture for guidance. Either way, Hallett remains a writer to watch. Agent: Markus Hoffmann, Regal Hoffmann & Assoc. (Jan.)
Kirkus Review
The members of a drama club come together in the face of tragedy, unaware they could be the victims of an ongoing fraud. The Fairway Players are a close-knit drama group in a small town outside London, socially centered around the club's founders, the Haywards and their children. Plans for their upcoming production of Arthur Miller's All My Sons are upended when Martin Hayward, the patriarch of the family and leader of the drama group, announces that his 2-year-old granddaughter, Poppy, has been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. An experimental treatment from the U.S. has shown promise but requires the family to raise $350,000. The Fairway Players immediately begin fundraising, but as the money comes in, it seems that the Haywards might be using it for costs unassociated with Poppy's care. At the same time, the Haywards' doctor, Tish Bhatoa, is applying more and more pressure on the family, demanding high payments into her own personal account, which she claims to be using to pay for the medicine from the U.S. A new member of the Fairway Players with a personal history with Tish starts asking questions--about Poppy's condition, the Haywards' past, and Tish's intentions--that could threaten the entire operation, be it real or fraudulent. None of this, however, is told in narrative form. Instead, Hallett introduces the story via Femi and Charlotte, two law students who are reviewing all the case documentation ahead of an appeal in what became a murder case. Emails, newspaper clippings, text exchanges, and handwritten notes are used to lay out the communications between the people in the case, and some characters are only seen through mentions in the emails and texts of others. Femi and Charlotte act as guides for the reader, checking in and sorting through what has taken place every so often. The result is a confusing mix of overlapping half conversations and unconvincing synthesis that attempts to tie together too many threads rather than an engaging mystery. A lack of clear and consistent narration means the story gets lost in this overstuffed mystery. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Two junior barristers are tasked with reviewing the evidence in a murder case, under appeal by their law firm in the British village of Lower Lockwood. The case involves the Fairway Players, an amateur theatrical group, whose founder is local businessman Martin Hayward. As the Players prepare to stage Arthur Miller's All My Sons, Hayward learns that his granddaughter, Poppy, has been diagnosed with brain cancer. A new drug is available in America that could provide a cure, and Hayward is determined to acquire it, despite its outrageous expense. He launches an appeal to raise the money, but just as All My Sons opens, shocking truths begin to emerge, and the characters' darkest secrets surface. Hallett is an expert at legerdemain, presenting what appears initially to be a straightforward story and then, bit by tantalizing bit, revealing one stunner after another until the reader, like the two junior barristers researching the case, finally sees the entire tragic picture. Clever writing, a truly original plot, and an explosive ending make this a must for mystery fans who like cozies with some bite.
![Cover image for The appeal: a novel. [book discussion kit]](/client/assets/5.1294/ctx//client/images/no_image.png "Cover image for The appeal: a novel. [book discussion kit]")