A new quartet of mystery solving friends who prove that if you want something solved, you have to do it yourself or dye trying. Let’s Spilt up shows us that sometimes the most psychotic nightmare inducing and sister monsters are not supernatural but simply human.
Murder mysteries are more than just fictional showcases to demonstrate the good, bad and morally grey of our world. They can tell us how we can choose to be the brave passionate secretive who takes risks to make a difference and find justice for the past and future. We never know what will happen if we don’t try and in solving life’s mysteries, whether ones of nightmares or personal growth, we can find out who we are, feel all the emotions and discover the true meaning of love, hope, and fear. This is what troubles everyone’s new mystery solving gang – Cam, Jonesy, Amber and Buffy.
Being someone who loves a cosy chilly evening, reading a good mystery; Let’s Spilt Up has become one of my favourites. Bill Woods crafts an intriguing, heart pounding, and emotional mystery, with clever odes to 80s , 90s and early noughties inspired horror movies, murder mysteries and thrillers. The plot twists kept me sleuthing for clues as I got the chance to be the analytical innovative clue solving detective alongside Cam, Jonesy, Amber and Buffy, whisky still experiencing the incredible shock and suspense each new clue, unpredictable development and thrill of this small town mystery. The mystery of a killer embodying the towns tragically violent and ghostly urban legend. This is what our young detectives set out to solve, despite the risk to their hearts and their lives.
It all started when the towns high school it couple break into the notorious haunted manor to film a documentary. The spirit of the man who died by fire, who once lived in the manor, and was hated by the town, seemingly returns. As an act of supernatural revenge, the teen sweethearts appear to die but the sprits hands. Serena is distraught by this news, and hopes this will blow over quickly.
That is until the bodies start piling up and more teenagers are killed by the spirit of the manor.
Cam, Jonesy and Amber have always stuck by each other, through the good, the bad and the downright weird. When they slowly take in new girl Buffy, their lives start to turn into a horror movie, as they decide to solve the murders, which are baffling the police. As the delve deeper into the mystery, the limits of what they’re capable of grow and the risks they’re willing to take get more dangerous, will they solve the mystery or will it finish them?
Let’s Spilt Up is so much more than just a murder mystery, mixed horror and thriller. It shines an essential, eloquent and exciting light on love and friendship. Bill Woods effortlessly weaves a murder mystery horror that chills you to the bone whilst using amazing intelligence, love and incredible understanding and heart warming LGBTQA+ representation and awareness of family life.
Each member of our new mystery solving gang has different family situations and sexualities. Woods shows an upmost understanding and care in representing different themes such as single parents, strict families with old fashioned views, addiction and trauma. And where queer representation is amazingly written into and expressed through our mystery solving gang, it’s not made out to be their only character trait but simply a part of who they are, regardless of identities and labels. These characters never judge each other for anything which is beautiful to see and read.
Bill Woods makes a show stopping debut with Let’s Spilt Up as readers are introduced to our new favourite mystery solving gang – Cam, Jonesy, Amber and Buffy. He gives us the found family trope within a mystery horror filled town, who show us that when times get dark, it’s the people you love platonically, as family and romantically, that can tell us that’s just because things take a turn doesn’t mean the bad always win and the good moments can be found, even if you have to solve a few clues and break down some doors first.
Bill Wood also writes with heart warming sensitivity and profound awareness and heart, particularly to Cam and Jonesy’s blossoming relationship and Ambers journey to coming out to her parents as bisexual. LGBTQA+ representation is something that has been missing and would be amazing to see more visibility in the murder mysteries, horrors and thrillers. Wood executed this perfectly, adding a sweet tear inducing romantic sub plot to the mystery.
Let’s Spilt Up has now topped my list of murder mysteries and horror thrillers, and I can’t recommend it enough and will continue to do so! It’s everything I love about these genres, with the perfect amount of jaw dropping heart pounding horror, intelligently intertwined clues and twists and love and found family that conquers all.
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