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All at Sea
A murder at sea, a killer below deck?
BELOW DECK meets KNIVES OUT in this breathless voyage into murder and mayhem on the high seas…
Howie Temple is down on his luck and desperate for cash. Once an action movie star, he now lives off a crumbling reputation. On his way to film a new reality TV show, which casts a team of c-list celebrities as crew aboard a luxury yacht, he meets fellow contestant, influencer-of-the-moment Cassandra Troy. The duo take an immediate dislike to each other.
After a hectic first day of filming, the pair are shocked discover that the captain of the ship has been murdered – locked in his control room, slumped over the wheel, a knife in his back. Convinced by the show’s ever-opportunistic director to keep the cameras rolling, the pair team-up to hunt the murderer.
Will the show make Howie and Cassandra bigger stars than they could ever dream of? And can they crack the case before the killer strikes again, or will they go down with this sinking ship?
BELOW DECK meets KNIVES OUT in this breathless voyage into murder and mayhem on the high seas…
Howie Temple is down on his luck and desperate for cash. Once an action movie star, he now lives off a crumbling reputation. On his way to film a new reality TV show, which casts a team of c-list celebrities as crew aboard a luxury yacht, he meets fellow contestant, influencer-of-the-moment Cassandra Troy. The duo take an immediate dislike to each other.
After a hectic first day of filming, the pair are shocked discover that the captain of the ship has been murdered – locked in his control room, slumped over the wheel, a knife in his back. Convinced by the show’s ever-opportunistic director to keep the cameras rolling, the pair team-up to hunt the murderer.
Will the show make Howie and Cassandra bigger stars than they could ever dream of? And can they crack the case before the killer strikes again, or will they go down with this sinking ship?
416 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 12, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 29, 2025
***Advance review copy received from NetGalley in return for an honest review***
Washed-up action star Howie Temple signs on for a reality TV show aboard a luxury yacht, surrounded by C-list celebrities and influencers. But when the captain is found murdered, locked in the control room with a knife in his back, the cameras keep rolling and Howie is pushed into a reluctant sleuthing partnership with influencer Cassandra Troy. With secrets surfacing below deck and the producers desperate for drama, the pair have to work out who the killer is before they become the next victims.
I thought this was an okay read. The premise is fun, and the blend of reality TV antics with a murder mystery has plenty of potential. But for me the execution didn’t quite land. The humour sometimes fell flat, the pacing felt uneven, and I struggled to stay fully engaged with the characters.
If you enjoy locked-room style mysteries in glamorous settings, this might appeal. Readers who like the blend of camp and crime in Knives Out or the tongue-in-cheek approach of Whitelaw’s Bingo Hall Detectives may find this more satisfying.
Washed-up action star Howie Temple signs on for a reality TV show aboard a luxury yacht, surrounded by C-list celebrities and influencers. But when the captain is found murdered, locked in the control room with a knife in his back, the cameras keep rolling and Howie is pushed into a reluctant sleuthing partnership with influencer Cassandra Troy. With secrets surfacing below deck and the producers desperate for drama, the pair have to work out who the killer is before they become the next victims.
I thought this was an okay read. The premise is fun, and the blend of reality TV antics with a murder mystery has plenty of potential. But for me the execution didn’t quite land. The humour sometimes fell flat, the pacing felt uneven, and I struggled to stay fully engaged with the characters.
If you enjoy locked-room style mysteries in glamorous settings, this might appeal. Readers who like the blend of camp and crime in Knives Out or the tongue-in-cheek approach of Whitelaw’s Bingo Hall Detectives may find this more satisfying.
June 16, 2026
I wanted to like this more than I did. I've seen the author a couple of times on panels at mystery book festivals, and I've always found him funny, entertaining, and insightful.
So when I heard of this book, I thought this was a great chance to give his books a shot. ALL AT SEA features a locked room mystery (love!) on a boat (fun!) and starring a washed up Hollywood star (love actors in fiction!) and an influencer (meh, but okay).
Unfortunately, this didn't really work for me. The premise, IMHO, was shaky from the get-go - there are like 4 or 5 celebrities on the boat, there's nothing really about the two MCs that make them a natural fit for a reality show about solving a murder. Sure, they found the body, and if that had prompted them to investigate themselves, or if they both displayed some kind of major interest in crime-solving, then okay, I could buy it. But the way this was handled was just pure hand-waving for plot purposes, and so okay, I'll buy into it for plot, but it was a flimsy start.
The clues and the twists also didn't make much sense. It wasn't quite absurd enough to be funny, but it also wasn't quite tight enough to be a solid whodunit.
There was also an early reveal about the victim possibly being involved with shady people that had the potential to take the tone out of charming locked room and into large scale crime thriller, which isn't really my thing.
Finally, i figured out the big reveal really early on, not because I'm that good at solving mysteries, but because there were so many things that didn't add up that IMHO there was only one way to explain it all.
Ultimately, it was fine. It's a quick read and there were some fun bits. The main characters are also interesting.
But as a mystery, I'm afraid this book really didn't work for me. I'm still open to giving this author a chance, though, and I'm hoping I enjoy his BINGO HALL DETECTIVES series more.
So when I heard of this book, I thought this was a great chance to give his books a shot. ALL AT SEA features a locked room mystery (love!) on a boat (fun!) and starring a washed up Hollywood star (love actors in fiction!) and an influencer (meh, but okay).
Unfortunately, this didn't really work for me. The premise, IMHO, was shaky from the get-go - there are like 4 or 5 celebrities on the boat, there's nothing really about the two MCs that make them a natural fit for a reality show about solving a murder. Sure, they found the body, and if that had prompted them to investigate themselves, or if they both displayed some kind of major interest in crime-solving, then okay, I could buy it. But the way this was handled was just pure hand-waving for plot purposes, and so okay, I'll buy into it for plot, but it was a flimsy start.
The clues and the twists also didn't make much sense. It wasn't quite absurd enough to be funny, but it also wasn't quite tight enough to be a solid whodunit.
There was also an early reveal about the victim possibly being involved with shady people that had the potential to take the tone out of charming locked room and into large scale crime thriller, which isn't really my thing.
Finally, i figured out the big reveal really early on, not because I'm that good at solving mysteries, but because there were so many things that didn't add up that IMHO there was only one way to explain it all.
Ultimately, it was fine. It's a quick read and there were some fun bits. The main characters are also interesting.
But as a mystery, I'm afraid this book really didn't work for me. I'm still open to giving this author a chance, though, and I'm hoping I enjoy his BINGO HALL DETECTIVES series more.
June 5, 2026
I wanted to like this book more than I did. I’ve had the opportunity to see Jonathan Whitelaw at a book festival a number of times, and I really like him as a person, but there is definitely room for improvement in his writing.
The book had its good points. The characters, especially the leads, Howie Temple and Cassandra Troy, were well written and were the reason I managed to finish the story. The exotic locations on a yacht and in various Mediterranean cities were a fun departure from the usual small town cozy. There was also a lot more violence in this format. I would have found the book a lot more agreeable if the pacing was tightened, but most of the major characters were enjoyable to read, even if some of the running jokes were a bit overdone. Some of the minor characters should have been eliminated.
For me, everything dragged on a bit too long. I really had to skip over a lot of details, especially towards the end. In fact, the book could have used some better editing, both for pacing and for grammar (how do you use the word “her” as the subject of a sentence instead of “she”?!). It seemed like major portions of the plot were unplanned and the author was making it up as he went along. I wonder if the parts that dragged were him giving himself time to think? I have no idea if that was actually the case, but that’s what it felt like to me as a reader. I wish someone had taken the time to go back over it and tidy up those parts.
The book had its good points. The characters, especially the leads, Howie Temple and Cassandra Troy, were well written and were the reason I managed to finish the story. The exotic locations on a yacht and in various Mediterranean cities were a fun departure from the usual small town cozy. There was also a lot more violence in this format. I would have found the book a lot more agreeable if the pacing was tightened, but most of the major characters were enjoyable to read, even if some of the running jokes were a bit overdone. Some of the minor characters should have been eliminated.
For me, everything dragged on a bit too long. I really had to skip over a lot of details, especially towards the end. In fact, the book could have used some better editing, both for pacing and for grammar (how do you use the word “her” as the subject of a sentence instead of “she”?!). It seemed like major portions of the plot were unplanned and the author was making it up as he went along. I wonder if the parts that dragged were him giving himself time to think? I have no idea if that was actually the case, but that’s what it felt like to me as a reader. I wish someone had taken the time to go back over it and tidy up those parts.
May 2, 2026
📱📖 Read on Kobo
📃 416 pages
⏱ Duration: ~6 hours
🏷️ Publisher: HarperNorth
Jonathan Whitelaw's Bingo Hall Detective series is a comfort read gold for me. Those are clever mysteries, with charming characters, and that cozy mystery sweet spot where murder feels oddly wholesome. So when I checked out this one, I was ready to set sail. Unfortunately, what I got instead was a rocky voyage that never quite found its footing.
The central relationship between Howie Temple and Cassandra Troy is supposed to be the pillar here as sparring partners turned reluctant sleuths. But their dynamic felt forced, like two puzzle pieces jammed together because the box said they should fit. And the twists that kept coming till the end. By the last chapter, I was exhausted. A good mystery knows where to land the plane. This one kept circling the runway.
I wanted to love it. I really did. Whitelaw is someone I've chatted with at MOTIVE, someone whose energy and storytelling I genuinely admire. Having met him and loved his previous books, this one stings a little more for not being in my area. It's that rare heartbreak when an auto-buy author doesn't deliver the experience you were hoping for.
📃 416 pages
⏱ Duration: ~6 hours
🏷️ Publisher: HarperNorth
Jonathan Whitelaw's Bingo Hall Detective series is a comfort read gold for me. Those are clever mysteries, with charming characters, and that cozy mystery sweet spot where murder feels oddly wholesome. So when I checked out this one, I was ready to set sail. Unfortunately, what I got instead was a rocky voyage that never quite found its footing.
The central relationship between Howie Temple and Cassandra Troy is supposed to be the pillar here as sparring partners turned reluctant sleuths. But their dynamic felt forced, like two puzzle pieces jammed together because the box said they should fit. And the twists that kept coming till the end. By the last chapter, I was exhausted. A good mystery knows where to land the plane. This one kept circling the runway.
I wanted to love it. I really did. Whitelaw is someone I've chatted with at MOTIVE, someone whose energy and storytelling I genuinely admire. Having met him and loved his previous books, this one stings a little more for not being in my area. It's that rare heartbreak when an auto-buy author doesn't deliver the experience you were hoping for.
July 25, 2026
This was an overall cute, cozy read, with some likeable characters, and a mindless little summer read.
I enjoyed that Whitelaw didn't make the social media influencer a brainless, selfish, narcissist, but actually made her the most grounded character in the story. Similarly I expected the movie star to be vapid and insufferable, but he turned out to be introspective and quite selfless in the end.
I also liked the exploration of a male-female led book where the relationship that develops is friendship rather than romantic. It was sweet and endearing and a refreshing change.
My cons? Howie seems to sustain some fairly severe injuries (getting a tooth knocked out and cracking his ribs) but then they don't ever seem to bother him overly in the rest of the book. And the mystery was just okay in my books. It's not really a classic whodunnit in that the sleuths interview everyone and find out the answer, more they are thrown into a mess and just attempt to keep their heads above water. The reveal isn't that shocking either. But that might just be my taste shining through whereas others might really enjoy this type of setup.
That said, it is still an enjoyable ride and kept me entertained.
I enjoyed that Whitelaw didn't make the social media influencer a brainless, selfish, narcissist, but actually made her the most grounded character in the story. Similarly I expected the movie star to be vapid and insufferable, but he turned out to be introspective and quite selfless in the end.
I also liked the exploration of a male-female led book where the relationship that develops is friendship rather than romantic. It was sweet and endearing and a refreshing change.
My cons? Howie seems to sustain some fairly severe injuries (getting a tooth knocked out and cracking his ribs) but then they don't ever seem to bother him overly in the rest of the book. And the mystery was just okay in my books. It's not really a classic whodunnit in that the sleuths interview everyone and find out the answer, more they are thrown into a mess and just attempt to keep their heads above water. The reveal isn't that shocking either. But that might just be my taste shining through whereas others might really enjoy this type of setup.
That said, it is still an enjoyable ride and kept me entertained.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
A right camp ‘carry on’ featuring some ‘celebs’ on a Saudi owned luxury boat who think they are about to film a reality TV show where they do all the jobs and serve the guests, bit ‘Below Deck’ and Celeb Big Brother on a boat ( without the evictions! )
But then theres a ‘murderrrrrr’ and aging and forgotten movie star Howie Temple and ‘influencer’ Cassandra Troy find themselves being tasked with solving it
It’s a romp of a read even though a serious subject matter, had me laughing and smiling all through at the humour, hi jinx and sarky back biting dialogue ( thanks ‘celeb philosopher’ Marion )
It’s totally OTT and in most parts unbelievable but I carethed not as it was a good, relaxing and funny read that demanded little and gave much
I took it for what it was and had a great time onboard 😊
But then theres a ‘murderrrrrr’ and aging and forgotten movie star Howie Temple and ‘influencer’ Cassandra Troy find themselves being tasked with solving it
It’s a romp of a read even though a serious subject matter, had me laughing and smiling all through at the humour, hi jinx and sarky back biting dialogue ( thanks ‘celeb philosopher’ Marion )
It’s totally OTT and in most parts unbelievable but I carethed not as it was a good, relaxing and funny read that demanded little and gave much
I took it for what it was and had a great time onboard 😊
February 16, 2026
Written in a straightforward, humorous style, I found the story absorbing and totally unpredictable. It made the book difficult to put down as I kept turning the page to find out what the two would-be detectives would have to cope with next.
A fun romp for those looking for a cozy mystery perfect for curling up with on a cold winter’s day or as a summer beach read.
A fun romp for those looking for a cozy mystery perfect for curling up with on a cold winter’s day or as a summer beach read.
June 13, 2026
That many people can’t be that stupid
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews