Advertisement
Books

I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai review: A superbly paced mystery

Rebecca Makkai’s engrossing literary mystery is one of the most satisfying reading experiences you’ll have all year

Rebecca Makkai’s latest novel, I Have Some Questions For You, is a literary mystery set against the backdrop of a New Hampshire boarding school. Our protagonist, Bodie Kane, is a successful podcaster who is invited back to her alma mater to help some current students create podcasts of their own. One student, however, is determined to make a podcast about the 1995 murder of Thalia Keith, a case that has had a second life on the internet and which numerous online sleuths are determined was a botched case, leading to the wrong person being imprisoned.  

The thing is, Bodie knew Thalia, and the murder took place in the very school that the students are now working on their podcasts. As her student delves deeper into the case, it causes Bodie to relive it all over again. She begins questioning if the wrong person was actually convicted and, if so, who did kill Thalia? 

Your support changes lives. Find out how you can help us help more people by signing up for a subscription

Despite I Have Some Questions For You being over 400 pages long, I dare any reader to not find themselves utterly engrossed in Makkai’s superbly paced mystery. Watching the case slowly unravel is one of the most satisfying reading experiences I’ve had in a long time. And I think what makes this novel work so well is the fact that Rebecca Makkai treats her readers like adults. There is no rush to explain things or a worry that perhaps the reader will get bored, there are no sudden twists or hooks to grab our attention, it is a robust literary mystery and something (and I don’t make this comparison lightly) that could’ve been penned by Donna Tartt. With novels this sturdy, this wholly enjoyable and brilliantly plotted, you have to wonder why anyone bothers with the Richard Osmans of the world. 

Barry Pierce is a journalist and cultural commentator

I Have Some Questions For You book cover

I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai is out on February 23 (Little, Brown, £16.99).You can buy it from The Big Issue shop on Bookshop.org, which helps to support The Big Issue and independent bookshops.

Advertisement
Advertisement

This article is taken from The Big Issue magazine, which exists to give homeless, long-term unemployed and marginalised people the opportunity to earn an income.To support our work buy a copy! If you cannot reach your local vendor, you can still click HERE to subscribe to The Big Issue today or give a gift subscription to a friend or family member. You can also purchase one-off issues from The Big Issue Shop or The Big Issue app, available now from the App Store or Google Play.

Advertisement

Change a vendor's life this Christmas

This Christmas, 3.8 million people across the UK will be facing extreme poverty. Thousands of those struggling will turn to selling the Big Issue as a vital source of income - they need your support to earn and lift themselves out of poverty.

Recommended for you

Read All
Ground by Jadelin Gangbo review – hope for healing amid the wreckage
Books

Ground by Jadelin Gangbo review – hope for healing amid the wreckage

Gliff by Ali Smith review – ingenious and warm anti-establishment storytelling
Books

Gliff by Ali Smith review – ingenious and warm anti-establishment storytelling

Horrible Histories author Terry Deary: 'The most important day in history is tomorrow'
Books

Horrible Histories author Terry Deary: 'The most important day in history is tomorrow'

Top 5 books in rhyme, chosen by children's author Vicky Cowie
Books

Top 5 books in rhyme, chosen by children's author Vicky Cowie

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue
4.

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue