Book Review: Hickory, Dickory, Death

Genre: Mystery/Fantasy Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

I was so honored to have the opportunity to beta read three stories for N.D. Testa’s debut novel, Hickory Dickory Death! The book is an atmospheric compilation of 5 murder mystery stories with a touch of fantasy as well. It is a great book for any time of year, but I found it especially fun to read around Halloween this year! Each story in the novel follows different protagonists who are visited by Death, personified by Persephone in the novel. They have a chance to avenge a murder, but things aren’t always what they appear.

I loved so many aspects of this novel! First off, I really liked the format of 5 short stories. Each story was long enough to grab my attention, but not so long that I lost focus, as I sometimes do with traditional novels. There were many details throughout each story that were carried over into the next, which added to the overall feeling and cohesion of the book. I particularly enjoyed the details surrounding Persephone, as she is one of the main constants throughout all 5 stories.

Additionally, the historical element to the novel was really appealing to me. Testa did a wonderful job of truly making the reader feel like we were in the 1800s, and there is just something about historical mysteries that are very compelling to me. Likewise, Testa used some terms that maybe wouldn’t be familiar to many of us nowadays, but they fit with the times the stories took place, and she so helpfully added brief footnotes explaining them. It was details like this that made the novel feel true to its time period.

Furthermore, at multiple points throughout the book, there were lines that were written so poetically, it was moving. Scattered throughout the stories were words of wisdom that left an imprint on my mind, and made the novel that much more memorable. Specifically, Persephone shares quite a few of these impactful statements with the characters she visits.

There were a couple things that I didn’t love, but I felt like they were more of a personal preference than anything else. For one, parts of the stories felt a little too repetitive. However, I think this is kind of complicated because, at other points in the story, I appreciated some repetitiveness. Similarly, there were a few small details that seemed a little unrealistic to me. I would have loved to see a more concrete magic system, and some of the characters’ deaths felt a little rushed.

Overall though, Hickory Dickory Death was a fantastic debut novel! I can’t wait to read what N.D. Testa has in store next!