Author Interview: Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet

In Beth Is Dead, debut author Katie Bernet takes one of literature’s most beloved tragedies and gives it a razor-sharp twist, reimagining Little Women as a contemporary murder mystery. What begins with the familiar heartbreak of Beth March’s death quickly spirals into a tense, twist-filled exploration of sisterhood, secrets, and suspicion. Drawing from her own close bond with her sisters, Katie infuses the March family dynamic with both tenderness and edge, crafting a story where love and loyalty collide with betrayal and vengeance. We caught up with Katie to talk about honoring Louisa May Alcott’s classic while daring to turn it upside down. Check it out below and pick up Beth is Dead on January 6th!

Beth Is Dead

by Katie Bernet
Published by: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
on January 6, 2026
Genres: Mystery, Retellings, Thriller, Young Adult
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Beth March’s sisters will stop at nothing to track down her killer—until they begin to suspect each other—in this debut thriller that’s also a bold, contemporary reimagining of the beloved classic Little Women.

When Beth March is found dead in the woods on New Year’s Day, her sisters vow to uncover her murderer.

Suspects abound. There’s the neighbor who has feelings for not one but two of the girls. Meg’s manipulative best friend. Amy’s flirtatious mentor. And Beth’s lionhearted first love. But it doesn’t take the surviving sisters much digging to uncover motives each one of the March girls had for doing the unthinkable.

Jo, an aspiring author with a huge following on social media, would do anything to hook readers. Would she kill her sister for the story? Amy dreams of studying art in Europe, but she’ll need money from her aunt—money that’s always been earmarked for Beth. And Meg wouldn’t dream of hurting her sister…but her boyfriend might have, and she’ll protect him at all costs.

Despite the growing suspicion within the family, it’s hard to know for sure if the crime was committed by someone close to home. After all, the March sisters were dragged into the spotlight months ago when their father published a controversial bestseller about his own daughters. Beth could have been killed by anyone.

Beth’s perspective told in flashback unfolds next to Meg, Jo, and Amy’s increasingly fraught investigation as the tragedy threatens to rip the Marches apart.

Interview with Katie Bernet

Beth Is Dead transforms a beloved classic into a modern murder mystery. What inspired you to reimagine Little Women through the lens of a thriller, and how did you approach balancing reverence for the source material with bold reinvention?

I first learned about Little Women at a sleepover in elementary school when my best friend’s sister was bawling in front of the TV, because Beth had just died. That was my first impression of the timeless classic. Death. Tragic and heartbreaking. Years later, it seemed only natural to reimagine the story as a thriller, a genre that I absolutely love to read. The concept gave me an opportunity to explore the tension in Beth March’s death and deepen my understanding of her character. When I started writing the book, I thought that creating a retelling would require pushing against the source material, finding a flaw and cracking it open, but it actually required sinking in. I finished Beth Is Dead with an even deeper love for Alcott’s original.

The novel dives into the complicated bonds between sisters, including love, rivalry, secrets. As one of three sisters yourself, how did your personal experience shape the dynamics among Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy?

Oh gosh, it was everything. My sisters are my very best friends, and all three of us lived together while I was writing Beth Is Dead, so our relationship helped me understand the March sisters and create modern versions of them. Thanks to my sisters, I’ve experienced the kind of unconditional love that allows the March sisters to quite literally accuse each other of murder one moment and support each other the next. 

Each sister has something to hide, and the tension between loyalty and suspicion drives the story. What was the biggest challenge in writing a mystery where the potential suspects are all family?

It was very challenging to balance the emotion of accusing a family member, especially when the victim is also family. I knew that the March sisters would have empathy for one another even in the most extreme circumstances, but they would also do anything to avenge Beth’s killer. That created a difficult—and I hope, thrilling—clash of feelings.