Signed Sealed Dead

by Cynthia Murphy

True-Crime obsessed Paige, and her family, move across the Atlantic to her father's eerie hometown, and it's not long before she uncovers the town's dark history - a string of unsolved murders and disappearances in the 90s.

And then notes start appearing at their dilapidated old home, about the secrets the house is keeping. The clues lead Paige to a diary concealed in the walls that belonged to one of the missing girls. Could this be the key to solving a quarter-of-a-century mystery, or will this make Paige the next target?!

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Young Adult, Mystery Thriller, Horror, Crime, Audiobook

346 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 4, 2024

About the author

Cynthia Murphy is the bestselling author of a number of YA thrillers, including the BookTok sensation Win Lose Kill Die.

She has a long-standing love affair with all things scary, reading Point Horrors before graduating to Stephen King in her misguided teens. Studying for a degree in Art History and Archaeology meant that she developed a thirst for anything old, beautiful and very often dead. She tries to combine this with contemporary settings in her writing to make unique and chilling modern stories.

Cynthia lives in her hometown of Manchester with her husband and their rescue dog, Loli, who you will see a lot of on TikTok and Instagram @CynthiaMurphyYA

Reviews

[Horror Sickness · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Cynthia Murphy book, another Slay!

Paige has always been interested in True Crime and when her family relocates from the UK to the US, she will become part of one.

Moving to a new country and a new home is always hard but it is harder when you are a teenager. Paige starts making friends quite quickly and is excited about the new possibilities and traditions.

However she will soon discover that years ago, girls were murdered in this town and the killer was never caught. She will be forced to investigate and try to figure out who committed the murders before it is too late.

This is the type of book that I simply can't put down. There is something in Cynthia’s writing that is so engaging, fresh and immersive, like a drug you can not get enough of.

With help of some chapter cliffhangers you need to keep reading to discover the next piece of information.

Such a lovely depiction of family love and support as well as new found friendships that might be the ones to save you when it all comes tumbling down.

I can not recommend Cnythia’s books enough. They are the perfect YA murder mystery.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this was gripping from the get go. This kept me guessing, and guessing incorrectly mostly! Loads to get your teeth in here! I really enjoyed the twist at the ending too… I had my suspicions. The LAST LINE THOUGH… one of those ‘you can’t just leave it there!’ lines!

[MissBookwyrm · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the back it says "The chilling new novel that will make you question everything". Well, yeah, I'm questioning my judgement for picking this one up in the first place...
To be fair, I think it looks really pretty and the premise sounded so good. The idea reminded me of "The Watcher", that weird case they made a TV series about? But oh well... I can see how people would find this book entertaining, but it just fell flat in so many aspects I had high hopes for. Like, I was hoping it would be spooky and atmospheric. But nah. Then I really liked the idea of getting to know the old cases via Paige listening to a true crime podcast, but then she never really does? The whole book spans like a week and I don't get why'd you rush through like that, why not give Paige and the reader some time to experience the town and get to know different characters? This way I basically did not care about anyone and basically everything was super predictable, which is a shame, because the idea itself and the revelation of the killer could've been great if the author had focused on different characters and circumstances more...

[Chelsea | thrillerbookbabe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you so much to Penguin Audio and Cynthia Murphy for my ALC of this book. The audio was amazing! This book was about Paige, a girl who moves with her family from the UK to her fathers hometown with a dark history. In the 90s there were unsolved murders that resulted in girls being dismembered and branded. As Paige arrives at the house, notes also start appearing about the secrets the house is keeping. There are clues leading to a secret diary, a creepy basement where rituals took place, and possibly what really happened all those years ago.

Thoughts: This was a fun YA mystery with a great narration. Paige was a fun character and I liked learning about her family. It was a pretty simple story, but had a lot of dark history which I loved. It felt like a YA version of The Watcher, which is like the perfect story to read.

I love that this is going to be a series and thought the book ended perfectly. Though it was an obvious storyline with obvious twists, I still really enjoyed it and thought it was a lot of fun! 4-stars for this enjoyable book!

[Dee G · Rating 2 out of 5]

the high ratings for this book is very confusing to me.

[Rojda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rather enjoyed this! The ending could have been a bit longer tho so just 4.25 stars for this one 🤓

[Mary Books and Cookies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect for Halloween, perfect for spooky season, easy to read, fun, i had a blast reading this 🥰

[Han☕️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/2.5

For me, it was a nice easy read and I enjoyed reading it for that reason, but I found the constant comparisons of the UK and USA a bit annoying. I had a few shocks I wasn’t expecting but I finished feeling less shocked than expected and I wasn’t really super understanding of the reasoning behind some elements. It felt a bit under detailed in places I think but generally a nice easy read

[elena · Rating 5 out of 5]

A FREAKING MASTERPIECE. Cynthia’s books just keep getting better and better honestly. The plot twists? the characters? the cliffhangers? the ENDINGS??? HOLY. also Carter’s character🥹

[Monia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5
Nie sądziłam, że kryminały młodzieżowe okażą się dla mnie taką fajną zabawą, ale najpierw przeczytałam „Przewodnik po zbrodni według grzecznej dziewczynki” (btw. SZTOS), a teraz „Podpisz, nadaj, zabij” i zdecydowanie jestem na tak!

Konstrukcja tej książki, fabuła, bohaterowie i to, jak wciągająca jest ta historia sama w sobie to coś, co sprawiło, że jak już zaczynałam ją czytać, trudno było mi się od niej oderwać. To wszystko się tutaj jak najbardziej zgadzało. Trochę tylko zawiodłam się na tym, że kilku rzeczy zdążyłam domyślić się w trakcie i okazały się prawdą, a samo zakończenie było takie, nie wiem, za szybkie. Ale still: dobre to było.

[Izzie Knox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let’s give it up to Cynthia for another ground breaking novel!!

Spent two days in bed trying to finish this book, solve the mystery, uncover the secrets. I could NOT put it down!!
Thank you so much Cynthia, for both the amazing experience of reading this, and for the amount of recognition us in the cancer community got.
I would definitely recommend to the murder and mystery addicts of true crime and gore, and for those who feel they just don’t fit in.

CYNTHIA MURPHY. PLEASE tell me that there will be another addition to this book, PLEASE CYNTHIA!! I CANT AND WILL NOT BREATHE UNTIL I KNOW WHAT COMES NEXT!!!

Cynthia Murphy is the true queen of all things spooky, stabby and flooding over with cliffhangers, and I hope those who enjoy that genre have the pleasure of discovering her outstanding work. There’s something that just keeps me coming back, scanning the pages and NEVER PUTTING THE BOOK DOWN!!

All in all, a huge thank you to my biggest inspiration for yet another life changing pile of pages.

[Gracie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I

[Lou · Rating 2 out of 5]

All American Smiles and really badly written plot lines. yayyyy.
it's so bad it's actually really funny

[angelpompom · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot twist were obvious but I still enjoyed it. I like the characters a lot.

[Nadine Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really really good book! Gives vibes of the Watcher with the letter writing. Hints is suspense throughout, couldn’t put this book down
Would recommend reading

[Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️ 2.5 stars ⭐️

We had moved halfway across the world less than two days ago and already I was getting embroiled in my own true crime show, one that I wanted no part in.

{ To those who got mad ‘cause I read a YA thriller when I don’t like the genre… Oops! I did it again! }

This made me feel super nostalgic of my teen years and also made me feel super old.
Stylistically, it’s perfect for teenagers — simple structure, an easy plot with a couple twists, and a hint of young love.
Personally? It was really predictable and boring. The ending was rushed and inconclusive.
I really need to start checking tags and blurbs before buying books.

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the 90's nostalgia littered throughout as Paige soon discovers that her new town has a dark past as a series of murders happened in that decade.
Her love of true crime and the fact that those murders have never been solved certainly peaks her intrest.

The cryptic notes and the discovery of a secret diary really adds to the tension, of course I loved the inclusion of 'Song of the Day' with each entry.
It would make a great playlist - or mix tape!

Another aspect that I enjoyed is that Paige is British and from Manchester in England, the relocation back to her farthers small hometown of Shorehaven.
The different terminologies are well explained from the names of the high school years to the legal drinking age are well explored and helps cement Paige as a real fish out of water.

[Morgane Bras · Rating 2 out of 5]

*2,5
Leest heel vlot en is ook nog wel spannend. Maar ik vond het cliché dat het hoofdpersonage verhuist naar een huis waarin dingen zijn gebeurd en dat de eerste week dat ze er woont, er meteen moorden gebeuren en ze besties wordt met de buren. De liefdesrelatie met de buurjongen hoefde niet voor mij en bracht ook niet perse iets bij aan het verhaal. De ontknoping was ook teleurstellend.

[sadweeniehours · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book was delightful and i finished it in one sitting. fast paced, fun, ect.
it was also very confusing in some ways? carter and paige just seemed to go from 0 to 100 very fast and how did tiffany get into that basement unnoticed😭😭 paige was by the stairs!!!!!

[Izzie Benezra · Rating 3 out of 5]

such a fun easy read and super fast pace! I enjoyed the suspense and loved the characters. I wasn’t sure at first but once I actually got into it I loved it

[Michelle (myfavoritechapter) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️

I enjoyed this book and had fun reading it but sometimes the writing style was a bit cringey and the ending felt rushed and anticlimactic (I guess it pretty early on) soooo 3.75 for now

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Signed, Sealed, Dead was a terrific high-stakes thriller for the halloween season; a devillishly twisted game of cat and mouse that unearths a profoundly sinister web of lies and untruth, the ghosts of dead girls buried in the walls. Cynthia Murphy’s gripping prose and delightfully sinister atmosphere feels like it was plucked right out from the early ‘Black Hood’ Riverdale archive - a YA murder mystery with an especially dark edge, where cheerleaders are slaughtered in the woods and small towns gather to light memorial candles while their football players and bright-eyed school girls drink and dance in the shadows of the treeline. The mystery itself was crafted sensibly, with compelling red-herrings and an equally suspicious cast of characters, keeping readers guessing and guessing until the final act reveal. Murphy tosses readers into the rabbit hole and leaves them scrambling for purchase, whisked away by homecoming parades and the glitz and glamour of the american tenager, while girls are chopped up and mutilated in the same intake of breath. Our protagonist, Paige, was an incredibly likeable character; looking much like Holly Jackson’s Pip in a certain light, and served as a most intriguing and engaging detective. I also enjoyed her romance with the boy nextdoor and found Carter’s struggle with his health and autonomy to be an especially interesting plot point, drawing readers further into the dimensions of story. While it read incredibly fast-paced and enthralling, there were a few clumsy plot holes and questionable dialogue choices that felt far too close to an adult overrreaching for a teenage voice. Nevertheless, I was absolutely hooked to the mystery and the colourful characters almost right away and I was taken aback by the overall twisting and winding puzzle. 3.5 stars.

[Cozytimebooks_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aaa! Nie wierzę w to zakończenie! 😩



Była to moja pierwsza książka autorki i jestem naprawdę mile zaskoczona. Nie sądziłam, że pióro Cynthii jest takie lekkie i przyjemne w odbiorze. W dodatku „Podpisz, nadaj, zabij” to motyw nawiedzonego domu i powrót do m0rderstwa sprzed 23 lat.

Paige - nastolatka wielbiąca true crime więc kiedy przeprowadza się do domu owianego mgła m0rderstwa. Nie zastanawia się i od razu odkrywa skrytki czające się w starym domu. Tylko, co jeśli to wszystko doprowadzi ją do sprawy sprzed 23 lat? Lub sama stanie się obiektem sprawcy?

Tajemnicze listy, dom owiany mgłą starej sprawy policyjnej i dziewczyna z misją. Czyż to nie brzmi interesująco?
Sama dałam się złapać na haczyk kiedy odkrywałam, że motywem jest nawiedzony stary dom. Do tego sprawa z lat 90. Niewyjaśniona po dzień dzisiejszy. Jeśli interesują was takie książki i true crime to ta książka jest dla was stworzona.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a brilliant read! Totally recommend for lovers of mystery and horror!!🤩

[K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Content warnings: death, murder, death of a friend, cancer, stalking, torture, child abuse, pregnancy, kidnapping

This had a very I Know What You Did Last Summer feel to it and I was very very here for it. Is it revolutionary reading? Absolutely not. But there's something extremely compelling about Cynthia Murphy's books that my students always love, and I've always had a good time with her stories.

[Wenjohnlys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Need More❤️

[Leonie · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMGGG this book was so good I finished tonight and thought it was going to be Monday but I couldn’t put this one down I loved Paige a lot she was such a sweet character that I wanted more and Carter was adorable him going through Cancer made this story relatable and different I also related to Paige being an only child because I feel it within myself Murphy never fails to amaze me and this is another five stars from me I can’t wait for more from her if we get a sequel I want to see Carter and Paige again because I truly loved them and Madison too I need more of the twins especially

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I thought would be a book about a haunted real estate listing turned out to be a ya serial killer mystery. I very much enjoyed . There were things taken from pop culture like the letter in the mail box was very similar to the ones from the true crime "The watcher" story, and the twins reminded me of of the twins from Ginny and Georgia. You have to let go of reality a bit, that a murderer is about but everyone is still going to school and the parents are never around, but was a quick fun YA thriller read.

[Nifemi Alabede · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was awful I need my hours back. First of all I knew who the killer was , it was that obvious. Of course it was the weird boy and his father like lets be so for real. The only good thing was the twist that the last victim didn't actually die. I didn't figure that out .But I'd figure out that she was pregnant with the main characters dad's baby because it was clear. The writing was atrocious felt like it was written by millennial trying to be Gen Z. Unnecessary romance through the book like stick to the murder. Arresting ppl that wouldn't be able to commit the crime like yh his a man , a man with cancer and going through chemotherapy his not gonna be able to over power a girl that is conscious and aware that there is a killer on the loose and they also thought it was connected to the crimes in 1995 but nigga wasn't even born so how does that make sense then . Blurb is a lie where it says a novel that makes you question everything the only thing I'm questioning is how this book was published but hey that's just my opinion.

[Imre (serieuzeboekenverslaving) · Rating 4 out of 5]

☆ 4/ 4,5 ☆

Cynthia Murphy begint toch zomaar stiekempjes op mijn “favoriete thriller auteurs” lijstje te sluipen.
Eerder las ik al “The midnight game” van dezelfde auteur, die was zo ontzettend gaaf en origineel.
Ook dit boek was weer ZO spannend!
De mysteries, het creepy huis, de spanning.. het liet me echt niet los.
Heb het boek daarom ook in één ruk uitgelezen, de schrijfstijl van de auteur leest gewoon zo prettig, je vliegt er doorheen.
Één van de plottwists zag ik wel aankomen, maar toen nam het verhaal me toch eens een wending!
Dat zag ik absoluut niet aankomen, ik wist ook niet hoe snel ik moest lezen want ik wou het mysterie zo graag opgelost zien.
Hier en daar zaten nog wat gaatjes waar ik nog wel wat meer info over had gewild, maar dit haalde zeker de lol van het lezen niet weg.
EN HET EINDE?! Excuse me, wat was dat?
Ik heb echt te veel vragen nu.
Ik wil meeeer lezen van Cynthia Murphy!