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Murder at the Boardinghouse
Winner of the 2022 Basque Writing Contest, this murder-mystery set in a 1940s Basque boardinghouse chronicles the quirky teenager, Anna Elissetche, as she investigates a murder that happens right under her very curious nose. A witty tale with relatable characters, Murder at the Boardinghouse will entertain readers and leave them asking, “WHODUNIT?”
220 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2023
3 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
About the author
Elizabette Guéçamburu
1 book8 followersElizabette Guéçamburu is a writer and disability activist with an addiction to books, cats, and all things that smell like pumpkin spice. Based in central California, she graduated from Santa Clara University.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 5, 2024
Loved this book!! It was a very engaging mystery, but what I liked about it the most were the Basque references sprinkled in along the way. I learned some new words and even asked my Amatxi to make mozkorsalda with me :) Overall a fun and quick read!
January 7, 2024
Entertaining read, full of suspense. Did not see the ending coming. Of course, being Basque, I loved all the Basque references and commons sayings.
March 30, 2024
I hesitate to call a bloody murder tale “delightful”, but this one is. This first novel from budding author Elizabette Guéçamburu is a charmingly-written, Basque-American whodunit set in a small Nevada town in the 1940s. Anna, the bookish and precocious fourteen-year-old protagonist sets out to solve the murder of a Basque sheepherder who has his throat slit in the boardinghouse run by her widowed mother, Maite.
For those unfamiliar with the rich history of Basque-Americans, this book—particularly the first six chapters—is a great entry into the tightly-knit culture of the Basque sheepherder communities that have thrived in the western United States since the late 1800s. It is precisely this backdrop that makes everyone a suspect in the murder mystery, confounding the local sheriff, who must grudgingly rely on Anna to translate for him as he interrogates suspects.
Written in the first person from Anna’s perspective in her “Secret Murder Journal”, the mystery unfolds largely in the boardinghouse. As we are introduced to the colorful cast of characters, we are also exposed to words and phrases in Basque, and introduced to the dry—and sometimes dark—Basque humor.
Anna imagines herself in one of her favorite Agatha Christie novels as she struggles (unsuccessfully) to keep her investigation hidden from the adults around her, especially her mother who want her to keep out of it.
Clues are lightly sprinkled throughout the chapters, implicating almost everyone, as Anna stumbles upon boardinghouse secrets that may or may not help solve the murder. I was not prepared for the ending!
The writing in this book is fresh and lively, and while teenage readers will easily identify with Anna, the story will appeal to mature readers as well (I’m old enough to be Anna’s grandfather...).
Chapeau eta zorionak to Elizabette Guéçamburu, winner of the, Basque Writing Contest, and to the University of Nevada’s Basque Studies Program, who published the book. May we see more!
For those unfamiliar with the rich history of Basque-Americans, this book—particularly the first six chapters—is a great entry into the tightly-knit culture of the Basque sheepherder communities that have thrived in the western United States since the late 1800s. It is precisely this backdrop that makes everyone a suspect in the murder mystery, confounding the local sheriff, who must grudgingly rely on Anna to translate for him as he interrogates suspects.
Written in the first person from Anna’s perspective in her “Secret Murder Journal”, the mystery unfolds largely in the boardinghouse. As we are introduced to the colorful cast of characters, we are also exposed to words and phrases in Basque, and introduced to the dry—and sometimes dark—Basque humor.
Anna imagines herself in one of her favorite Agatha Christie novels as she struggles (unsuccessfully) to keep her investigation hidden from the adults around her, especially her mother who want her to keep out of it.
Clues are lightly sprinkled throughout the chapters, implicating almost everyone, as Anna stumbles upon boardinghouse secrets that may or may not help solve the murder. I was not prepared for the ending!
The writing in this book is fresh and lively, and while teenage readers will easily identify with Anna, the story will appeal to mature readers as well (I’m old enough to be Anna’s grandfather...).
Chapeau eta zorionak to Elizabette Guéçamburu, winner of the, Basque Writing Contest, and to the University of Nevada’s Basque Studies Program, who published the book. May we see more!
November 9, 2024
Murder at the Boardinghouse won the 2022 Basque Writing Contest, and it is easy to see why. The novel plays with forms and structure and reader's expectations. As with any classic whodunnit, you don't see the twist coming. Part of what distracts the reader's eye from the web being weaved is our bright and precocious teenage protagonist Anna Elissetche. While a dazzling murder mystery, the novel is also a bildungsroman. Anna is coming into a greater sense of herself and the world around her as we thumb quickly through the pages, trying to figure out who it was that held the knife. Add to all of this, the novel brings to life a lost world, the Basque boardinghouses that people like my great-grandmother used to operate and that were so foundational for so many Basque immigrants. I know of only a few of my great-grandmother's stories, but they came to life for me while reading this fun and fast-paced whodunnit.
September 3, 2023
This book was a joy to write... thrilled to be sharing it with the world!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews