Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone Book Review

April 3, 2022 by Vikram Goyal

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson begins by listing the 10 Commandments of Detective Fiction by Robert Knox, and really sets the tone of the book within the first 3 pages. The book wastes no time and after just one page, lists every page in which someone was killed.

Despite the first page being the rules of writing a crime book, the book really laughs at the traditional third-person writing, with a first-person format that communicates with the reader (literally).

The book’s first chapter depicts Ernest Cunningham’s explosive involvement with the (almost) start of the entire chain of killings. The story then jumps to 2 years later, when the Cunningham family have a reunion at a remote ski resort, and on the second day of being there, a man is killed from supposed natural causes. The Cunningham family aren’t so sure. From there, the humour and bloodshed spread, with about 3-4 genuinely surprising plot twists.

The book was hilarious to read but spared no tension when needed. The book connects every single detail in the final reveal and really makes you think that the entire book is a recount, not fiction. It really competes with movies such as Knives Out, with a similar hilarious tone, but 14x the murders, and really 14x the humour. It would make an amazing movie/tv series, and HBO seem to have their eye on it, as they have already bought the rights to the book.

Benjamin Stevenson’s writing style is exceptional, with its strong balance of humour and tension, plot twists, murder, romance, and everything you want to see in a crime book. The book is comparable to some of the greatest crime novels ever written, and definitely is one of the greatest books of this decade. This is not Stevenson’s first book. He’s written two novels in the past – Greenlight, and Either Side of Midnight. Greenlight was shortlisted for the Ned Kelly Award for Best Debut of Crime Fiction, and Either Side of Midnight was shortlisted for the International Thrillers Writers award for Best Original Paperback. He is also (unsurprisingly) a comedian, not just in his books, but also in real life.

Written by Kayden Goyal

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson is published on 29 March in Australia (Penguin, $32.99) and 18 August in the UK (Michael Joseph).

Read These Next

Have you read?

Book Review: Las Mañanitas

The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.