A Murder Is Going Down

CBCA OLDER READERS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2026 NOTABLES

By: Kate Emery

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Paperback | 4 November 2025

At a Glance

Paperback
400 Pages

Age
12 - 16

Dimensions(cm)
19.8 x 12.8

Paperback

RRP $19.99

$18.75

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A brilliant and hilarious cosy YA crime from the author of My Family and Other Suspects, with a mystery that will keep readers guessing to the very last page. For fans of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson.

This is what happens when you put a pair of unemployed teenagers in charge of a murder investigation. What we lack in investigative skills we make up for in free time.

Heidi's meant to be having the time of her life on exchange in Switzerland, but instead she's cold, alone and on an involuntary dairy-free diet. So when she hears the news of her brother Felix's death, she's quick to jump on the first plane home to Perth.

To be completely honest, Felix wasn't that much of a brother, so Heidi's not crying buckets - but she's not exactly happy either. Thanks to an epic betrayal by her (ex) best friend and (ex) boyfriend, Heidi has absolutely nothing to do and no one to talk to. No one, that is, except Patrick, the wisecracking younger brother of Felix's widow, who convinces her that they need to investigate her brother's mysterious demise.

Can Heidi and Patrick get to the bottom of Felix's death - and do they really want to?

Kate Emery is the queen of cosy crime and the bestselling author of My Family and Other Suspects, which won the John Marsden Book of the Year for Older Children at the 2025 ABIAs and the 2025 Indie Book Award for Young Adult Fiction.

About the Author

Kate Emery lives in Perth and works as a senior reporter for the West Australian. She is the author of The Not So Chosen One, which was shortlisted for the Text Prize and the Aurealis Awards, and My Family and Other Suspects, which won the 2025 Indie Book Award for YA and and the John Marsden Book of the Year for Older Children at the 2025 ABIA awards.

Industry Reviews

'Kate Emery combines teen drama, mystery and all sorts of moral dilemmas masterfully, without ever crossing into entirely unrealistic premises. By the time I did learn the answers to my questions I had suspected everyone twice but was still left grappling with the truth.
A Murder is Going Down is a truly hooking book. I couldn't put it down once I began, with plot twists I never saw coming. I highly recommend this book.' Good Reading

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