A Beginner’s Guide to Breaking and Entering
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Cornerstone
Published:22nd May '25
Should be back in stock very soon
This paperback is available in another edition too:
- Hardback£18.99(9781529152807)

Property might be theft. But the housing market is murder . . . A Beginner's Guide to Breaking and Entering is a gripping thriller about what it's like to be young, skilled, unemployed - and on the run.
'A comic delight'Financial Times
'A thoroughly entertaining mix of whodunnit, social satire and a cunningly smuggled-in love story' Mail on Sunday
'Laugh out loud funny, surprising, shocking, thought provoking ... Loved it'The Times
__________
Property might be theft. But the housing market is murder.
My name is Al. I live in wealthy people's second homes while their real owners are away.
I don’t rob them, I don’t damage anything… I’m more an unofficial house-sitter than an actual criminal.
Life is good.
Or it was - until last night, when my friends and I broke into the wrong place, on the wrong day, and someone wound up dead.
And now … now we’re in a great deal of trouble.
__________
Praise for A Beginner's Guide to Breaking and Entering . . .
'A propulsive plot, an ingenious narrator and lashings of intrigue' Guardian
'It’s laugh-out-loud funny, proceeding at a pace that makes it almost impossible to put down.' Sunday Times
'Fantastic' Zoe Ball
'Madly fun and exciting' Lisa Jewell
‘Who knew murder could be so funny. A joyous read from start to finish. I loved it!’ Clare Mackintosh
'Legit brilliant, FUN and FUNNY and I couldn’t recommend it more' Stevie Martin
‘Dark, funny, and deeply twisted' Val McDermid
'Witty, dazzling and incredibly addictive' Jenny Colgan
‘A bloody brilliant, fantastic book . . . I’m bereft now I’ve finished it’ Philippa Perry
‘[Andrew Hunter Murray] has written something so funny and clever, you will want to give him a badge.’ Cariad Lloyd
'Tremendous fun: a quirky, gripping and insightful novel that kept me reading late into the night.' Elizabeth Macneal
‘This is a giddy, addictive thrill ride of a book - who knew accidental espionage was so much fun?!' Daisy Buchanan
'An excellent pacy caper’ Professor Sophie Ratcliffe
'Tremendous fun: a quirky, gripping and insightful novel that kept me reading...
Hilarious * Daily Mail *
Smart, satirical, knowledgable, accurate, punchy, laugh out loud funny, surprising, shocking, thought provoking. Lovely short chapters. Loved it * Matt Chorley, The Times *
Hugely entertaining…the novel is politically astute, gradually revealing a scam involving property and international money laundering. It’s laugh-out-loud funny, proceeding at a pace that makes it almost impossible to put down. * Sunday Times *
A propulsive plot, an ingenious narrator and lashings of intrigue make this a genuine and thoroughly enjoyable page-turner * Guardian *
The plot is corset-tight and lavish with its surprises. An amusing crime caper…a delight * Strong Words Magazine *
What drives Hunter Murray’s chunky crime thriller along is Al’s idiosyncratic, comic narrative voice. As a result, it’s fun to spend time with him, even when it’s clear he’s not necessarily a great human being * Herald Scotland *
Filled with humour, shocks, love and hate – and a few handy tips on how to beat the housing crisis… Funny, thoughtful and all-round entertaining * Press Association *
In the delicious A Beginner’s Guide to Breaking and Entering, a hapless housebreaker and his fellow miscreants must solve a murder before the police arrest them; it’s a comic delight. * Financial Times *
ISBN: 9781804941232
Dimensions: 199mm x 131mm x 29mm
Weight: 328g
464 pages