Everyone in This Bank is a Thief - Benjamin Stevenson // Book Review

 

Everyone In This Bank Is a Thief
Benjamin Stevenson || Publication Date - 30.09.2025

Trying to get a bank loan for a detective agency has never been so difficult...

Fiction | Crime | Mystery

Ernest is coming fresh off his Christmas Special, where he has travelled to the middle of nowhere for the possibility to begin a new life. The man who's nearly been killed multiple times, degloved, shot and hails from a family of killers - wants a bank loan. One to kick start his detective agency and hopefully, leave behind all the death that surrounds him.

Unfortunately for Ernest, this loan is begrudgingly more difficult to acquire than he had hoped. He's thrown into a hostage situation with a robber who wants a single dollar, and with every hostage in the room as suspicious as the next. So what does Ernest do? He assumes the position of the original bank robber and proceeds to solve not only the murder of the bank owners brother, but also his own. 

The Review (may contain spoilers)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me early access to this eARC for an honest review!

I will start this review out exactly as I had for the last. It's written from the perspective of Ernest recounting events from his past. A formula we are already well established with for this series of novels. This time, we listen to Ernest narrate the final letter he is writing to his Fiancé as he is locked inside of a safe that only he knows the code for, and no one knows he is inside of.

We are welcomed to the scene a little differently this time around, there is a missing persons mystery to be solved. To be awarded the bank loan he's been chasing to start his detective agency, Ernest is required to find the bank owners brother who went missing after changing the code to the banks vault. Ernest reluctantly agrees and is then charged with solving 2 murders, a bank robbery and how each person within the hostage party could be connected to something greater.

While these events have already taken place, rather than finding out through a post event memoir, we learn what happens through the lens of a decreasingly more oxygen deprived Ernest. As his life is being slowly taken away, he is writing a letter to his Fiancé breaking down all the events and ultimately to give her all the clues to assist in solving his own murder.

I did find the circumstances for this novel and some of the mysteries to be quite outlandish if I am honest. There was definitely some heightened absurdity for this book compared to the previous instalments, and I am still undecided whether it was a little too much. That being said, I did enjoy the novel none the less. There is definitely an element of creativity needed to pull these stunts off and I believe Benjamin did a fair job in keeping the reader engaged while also having fun with the story.

Overall Thoughts

Once again, as a fan of Benjamin Stevenson, I happily devoured this novel. With that being said, this being the third novel in the series, not much has changed in the formula of the writing. It will not be the case for myself, but I do believe that this novel will be where a lot of readers will likely drop the series if they were to stop reading it.

Unfortunately unless something fresh comes into the story from a narrative perspective, I don't believe it's a series which will continue to wow and impress people. I'm not too sure where Benjamin can go from here, but I will continue to keep looking forward to his releases and see if he has any new tricks up his sleeve!

Spider to the Fly - J.H. Markert // Book Review

  

Spider to the Fly

J.H. Markert || Publication Date - 02.09.2025

You're a fly trapped in a web, not knowing the Spider is closer than you think...

Fiction | Crime | Thriller

You're at home, cooking dinner for yourself and your young daughter when she comes into the kitchen begging you to look at the TV. She's pointing at a murder victim, the latest victim of the I-64 serial killer dubbed 'The Spider'. This instance wouldn't normally cause too much alarm, except the person on the TV looks identical to you, in every single way.

This was Ellie's reality, and as a result of wanting to know more about this woman look alike, she became one of the most researched minds on the I-64 killer and a best selling novelist collating her research. 

When Ellie's therapist is arrested and charged for the murders of the I-64 killer, she is more determined than ever to find out exactly who this person is to save an innocent man from spending the rest of his life behind bars.

The Review (may contain spoilers)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me early access to this eARC for an honest review!

As far as Thrillers go... Unfortunately the suspense and atmosphere this book was trying to convey did not land for me. The plot was an interesting concept, but I feel the pacing was too slow for the punch of the book to really impact my reading experience. I'm also sad to say that I was not invested in any of the characters at all in this story. They all appeared very bland, which I'm sad to say exacerbated the dull reading experience.

All of the above is not to say this wasn't a well written book. I enjoyed the authors writing, and I definitely feel they have the ability to pull in feedback from this release and really step it up for their next novel.

I wished there was more elaboration for the events being held in this story. Too much of it, I felt, was being kept from the reader in the attempt to keep the mystery. However, to me this was detrimental. The mystery behind a lot of the plot never really made sense, and this lead me to thinking, 'why is this even happening in the first place?'. A little more writing from behind closed doors from other characters involved in the novel could have really added to the Thriller. Especially from the point of view of those who had married into the Brock family.

I also did not understand the inclusion of the main character having a fear of men. It had some relevance to the beginning of the book, and obviously was supported by her experienced trauma. However, approaching the middle, it's lost in the narrative and ultimately feels irrelevant. I would have appreciated this characteristic of the main character if it was conveyed and supported through the entire book. Relating to my above point, adding to the Thriller and exposing traumatic events from a present tense point of view would have helped solidify her fears. It would also have helped if her fear didn't just suddenly fall off the face of the Earth half way through the book.

Overall Thoughts

Generally speaking, this was a fine novel. It was written well and has things which would add to the narrative to elevate it up a notch. The story premise was interesting to a point and it had potential. Unfortunately for me, this wasn't a stand out novel.

A lot of the mystery felt too closed off from the reader. And despite knowing I don't need my hand held, additional characters experiences from behind those closed doors could really have added a lot to the story being told.

I wouldn't recommend this book to a seasoned Thriller reader. However, inherently it's not a bad book, and if you're new to the genre it would be a good entry point to see if you enjoy the type of writing and tropes which feature within thriller/crime novels.