July 1, 2016
Donald Langham and Maria Dupre are looking forward to their wedding in May. But Langham is called away to the Highlands, along with his friend Ralph Ryland to investigate the alleged murder attempt on their former commanding officer Major Gordon. The major has refurbished an old castle, turning it into a hotel and is attempting to raise a German aircraft from the bottom of the loch, where it crashed in February 1945. The list of people who would want to sabotage the major's efforts includes Gordon's Byronesque layabout son, an aloof Hungarian countess, a German aircraft enthusiast, a retired academic investigating the castle's ghosts, and three staff members, including a young woman who is more than a family friend. The sleuths arrive at the estate in a snowstorm and are soon stranded. As the bodies begin to pile up, Langham and Ryland are running out of time to find the culprit. VERDICT This charming book, which follows Murder at the Chase, brings to the page well-defined characters and a classic locked-room structure. Recommend for anyone who loves English country house murders.
Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
December 15, 2014
Here's the second in a new series (following 2013's Murder by the Book) featuring British mystery writer Donald Langham and his rather attractive sidekick, his literary agent, Maria Dupre. Alastair Endicott's father has gone missing; Endicott asks Donald to help him find out how the man could have vanished from his locked study. Could the missing man's latest work in progress, a biography of a notorious satanist, be connected to his disappearance? A ripping-good period piece (it's set in the mid-1950s), the novel offers a pair of engaging protagonists, a compelling story (a good locked-room mystery is always a treat), and some seriously good plot twists. Brown has said online that his intent here was to debunk mysticism and the occult; and he definitely does that, but not in a mean-spirited way. It's a very well put together novel, with a solid rational core, but the author also does a fine job of exploring why people might believe so strongly in the occult, and why a charismatic occultist (modeled to some degree after Aleister Crowley), could attract such a large following.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)
June 15, 2017
An English country-house murder gets a Hollywood twist.Donald Langham, a mystery novelist with a sideline in detective work (Murder at the Loch, 2016, etc.), is about to marry beautiful, talented Maria Dupre, who's just been offered a promotion at the literary agency of Charles Elder, when he's approached by rising Hollywood star Suzie Reynard, who worries about the safety of her lover, Douglas Dennison, the director of the movie currently in production at Marling Hall. Dennison, who served with Edward Marling in World War II, is doing him a financial favor by renting the place for his film. Posing as friends of Suzie's, Donald and Maria go to Marling, where they discover that the arrogant, womanizing Dennison is far from universally popular. So everyone is shocked when it's Suzie who's found shot dead in Dennison's caravan. It turns out that Dennison had an affair with Edward's future wife, Cynthia, before the war and left her pregnant. He also had an affair with Varla Cartier, another cast member, who seems to have no love for Suzie. The male lead, handsome young newcomer Chuck Banning, acts unusually interested in Cynthia. Langham, suspecting that Suzie was shot because she saw the killer, continues to ponder the lengthening list of Dennison's enemies. The movie's screenplay is based on an old crime that took place nearby. Even after Langham solves that case, he seems no closer to solving Suzie's death until further murders suggest that the sins of the past may hold the answer. Cozy fans will enjoy the charming, curmudgeonly characters but have no trouble spotting the killer.
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June 12, 2017
Set in 1956, Brown’s jaunty fourth series mystery (after 2016’s Murder at the Loch) finds thriller writer and private detective Donald Langham in good spirits: spring has come to London, his new novel is about to be published, and he’s looking forward to his upcoming wedding to literary agent Maria Dupré. Then Suzie Reynard, an American actress set to star in a murder-mystery film being shot at Marling Hall in Norfolk, drops into his office. She fears that “something screwy” is going on and that the life of director Douglas Dennison might be in danger. Langham and Dupré are soon ensconced at Marling Hall and doing a little incognito sleuthing. Brown depicts a world where the class system is still firmly in place; every country house has a full complement of (usually nameless) butlers, cooks, and ladies’ maids; and gentlemen use words like chappie and jolly. Readers will enjoy spending time in the company of Brown’s charming, well-mannered detectives as they try to solve a total of three murders. Agent: John Jarrold, John Jarrold Literary Agency (U.K.).
July 1, 2017
When a film actress asks private detective Donald Langham to come to her Norfolk film set to investigate threats against her director--and lover--he sees it as a chance to spend time with his fiancee Maria Dupre. But the toxic atmosphere on the set leads to off-screen murder. Brown's fourth "Langham and Dupre" title, following Murder at the Loch, is a British country house mystery with a surprise ending. Suggest for Agatha Christie fans.--LH
Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.