Book five in the Langham and Dupre mysteries and an excellent addition to the series. A country house weekend, cryptic correspondence, literary types, grudges and secrets, mayhem and murder - this has it all in spades. Murder mystery in the traditional vein. A first class, thoroughly enjoyable read.

Another Agatha Christie rip-off was my first impression of Eric Brown’s “Murder Takes a Turn”. How frustrating! Random people throughout London and the vicinity receive an invitation to a run-down old house for a weekend where their hosts wishes to “apologize” for some long-ago wrong. Each with their own personalized enticement accepts the invitation. But that is where the similarity ends, thank heavens!

Some extra, uninvited guests arrive as well and the host does make several appearances, albeit not pleasant ones. Anger ensues amongst most of the guests, one becomes suicidal.

Brown’s story turns out to be far better than a Christie knock-off. In fact it is well told, unique and a very enjoyable read. Well written and intelligent. The main characters – Donald and Marie – are a great couple and team. Well done, Mr. Brown!

3.5 / 5 Stars

Murder Takes a Turn is the fifth book in the Langham and Dupre mystery series and while I enjoyed the characters, I did think the mystery was a bit slow and very easy to figure out, although I have to say I did miss out on the method even if it was staring me in the face. And although Denbigh Connaught was meant to be a real jerk, it was so obvious who was going to be killed that that kind of expectation you get when reading such a novel was just lacking. All I did was wait until it actually happened, and it took such a long time to get there.

The premise was definitely something that would catch my eye though, even if it has been done before: gather together a bunch of people that you have wronged in the past with the intention of apologizing and watch the sparks fly. Throw in a mansion, some friction, some secrets, and money, and you've now set yourself up for a dandy murder mystery. All stuff I love. The characters were interesting in their own way and I definitely loved the quirkiness of their personalities and how they were presented. I was kind of hoping the murderer would be someone else than I thought it was as it would have been so much more interesting, but unfortunately, the author went with the usual formula and it was quite easy to figure out who it was. What I couldn't figure out was how the person did it. And when I did find out, I had to wonder what kind of sick person that was who would do such a thing. I mean, Denbigh was a bit of a jerk, even if I didn't really get to see that firsthand as it was mostly through the characters' accounts, so it would have been nice to have seen more of him in order to get of him for myself. And there was plenty of time as the action, or lack thereof, dragged on for half the book before the murder actually happened.

The book is rather short and the chapters are quite short as well so I actually finished this book in just one sitting, which was kind of nice as it would have dragged if there was any more to it. I did have to question Langham's presence during the interrogations though, as he was one of the guests and really shouldn't have been present, it didn't really make sense to me and was the reason was quite shallow. I gather it was a technique for the reader to discover more about the characters, but it was a rather weak one and left a negative feeling inside me that just wouldn't go away. I know he was a private detective, but he was also a guest and could have been a murderer. If anyone has read Agatha Christie, you know anything is possible. Now wouldn't that have been fun!! And far more interesting.

Murder Takes a Turn was a fun, easy read, but it was also quite predictable. It was very slow in its pace, but you couldn't help but like the characters as they were quite diverse and rather interesting. There were a couple I would have liked to have spent more time with too. You don't have to have read the previous entries to understand this book so I do recommend it to anyone who likes easy to read cozy mysteries. You can always go back and read the others later.

And if the cover and tone of the blurb remind you of an Agatha Christie novel, you’re absolutely right. The way the book unfolds is clearly a nod in the direction of the Grand Dame of Crime. I liked the main protagonists – it’s a refreshing change to have a dear old chap like Charles Elder right in the middle of things and his business partner Maria and her husband Donald are the couple who doing the sleuthing on this case. The location – a country house in an isolated part of Cornwall – is classically cosy mystery and the method in which the unfortunate victim dies is suitably macabre.

This is an ideal summer holiday read, which plenty of twists and turns and an entertaining variety of possible suspects. I did guess the identity of the murderer before the final big reveal – but only because I read all Agatha Christie’s novels longer ago than I care to think. That said, it didn’t put a huge dent in my enjoyment, because this was more about being bathed in the experience of revisiting an imagined past that I’m sure never existed – although I wished it had. Recommended for fans of well written historical cosy mysteries.
8/10

It's now 1956 and Charles Elder, business partner of Maria Langham, receives an invitation to a weekend party, with offers of an apology, for something that happened in 1917. Donald Langham, writer and private detective, and his wife Maria offer their moral support and travel to Cornwall with him. Information discovered in London and Cornwall unsurprisingly lead to a murder.
An enjoyable easily read mystery. Somewhat slow and gentle in its pace but with well-rounded and likeable characters.

What a lovely book. A nice historical mystery that made me think of the Golden Age books with a dash of hard boiled.
The plot is character driven and enthralling, keeping you guessing till the end.
I loved how the different characters were written and their quirks and stories.
It's the first one I read in this series and will surely get the previous instalments and look forward to reading the next one.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to Severn House and Netgalley for this ARC

There is nothing quite like a well written, originally plotted manor house mystery.  Murder Takes a Turn is an exemplary manor house mystery complete with a wide cast of characters, each with a motive and potentially the opportunity to murder the victim.  Denbigh Connaught has long been a terror, with a long list of wronged acquaintances, including Charles Elder. When Charles receives a letter from Denbigh stating he wants Charles to act as agent for his new novel and invites him to stay for the weekend, he is greatly disturbed.  Long ago Charles suffered greatly at Denbigh’s hand and is reluctant to consider accepting the invitation. Meanwhile Donald and his partner are hired by Denbigh’s daughter to investigate his secretary, who she believes is somehow defrauding her father. At Charles’ behest, Maria (his business partner) and Donald accompany him to Denbigh’s estate where they find an assortment of characters- an impoverished lady, a noted artist, a drunken colonel and Denbigh’s brother, a travel writer of some repute, and Denbigh’s secretary, a man clearly on the go.  Each were wronged in some way by Denbigh and each has been summoned so that he can right that wrong in some way. But even the best intentions cannot prevent the noted scoundrel from being murdered. The question is who could have done it. While Ralph investigates the ne’er do well secretary, Donald and Inspector Mallory tackle Denbigh’s murder. What they find is a legacy of wrong doings and hate and more than a few motives for murder.


Murder Takes a Turn is a classic manor house mystery, but it is far from formulaic.  The central characters are well developed, their actions and motivations understandable.  The interplay between Donald and his wife Maria is sweet and believable, reminiscent of the comedy mysteries popular between the 1930s and the 1950s.  The historical setting is richly drawn, immersing the reader in 1950s Britain. I’ve read several of Eric Brown’s novels, and have been impressed by each and every one.  Murder Takes a Turn will easily appeal to fans of classic mysteries.


5 / 5


I received a copy of Murder Takes a Turn from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


— Crittermom

4 stars

I read the Kindle edition.

Novelist Denbigh Connaught sends a number of invitations to visit his estate to those he knew in the past. To a person, they are not glad to hear from him. All of the letters told the readers that Denbigh wanted to apologize for something that happened in the past. Among the invitees is publisher Charles Elder. His letter told Charles that he had dumped his publishers and wanted to have Charles’ firm represent him.

Wilson Royce is the business manager for Denbigh. Coincidentally, while Charles Elder is receiving an invitation from Denbigh, his daughter Annabella visits Donald Langham asking his help in investigating Wilson Royce.

Private Investigator and mystery novelist Donald Langham and his wife Maria are asked to join Charles to Connaught House so that Charles Elder, a publicist, will feel more secure. When they arrive at Connaught House, they learn that several other people have also been invited.

However, before the apologies get underway, a murder is committed. What really happened all those years ago that prompted Denbigh to feel obligated to apologize? None of the guests liked him, not even his daughter.

This is a delightful story. It is more about the various personalities involved, rather than an action-type story. It is a nice read for any lazy day, as it lulls the reader along without bad language, or other unpleasantness. It is well written and plotted and I truly enjoyed it. This is my first Eric Brown novel, but it won’t be my last. I immediately went to Amazon to look for other novels of his.

I want to thank NetGalley and Severn House for forwarding to me a copy of this great book to read and enjoy.

This is the fifth in the series featuring literary agent, Maria Dupree, and her husband, Donald Langham – author and part time private detective. Previous books in the series are: “Murder by the Book,” “Murder at the Chase,” “Murder at the Lock,” and “Murder Take Three.”

When Maria’s business partner, Charles Elder, receives a letter from an old school friend, he is disturbed. Denbigh Connaught is now a major author and informs Elder that he would like him to come to stay, so he can give him his new novel and apologise for something that happened long in their past. Almost at the same time, Connaught’s daughter, Annabelle, visits the Ryland and Langham Detective Agency, wanting her father’s business manager, Wilson Royce, investigated.

Before long, Langham, Maria and Elder are on their way to stay at Connaught House in Cornwall. Elder plans to face the tragedy in his past, with the help of Donald and Maria. When they arrive, they discover that Connaught has also invited a whole host of other people from his past, with the promise of apologising for various misdeeds. There is the impoverished Lady Albrighton, alcoholic Colonel Haxby, artist, Pandora Jade and Denbigh’s brother, Monty.

With emotions running high, murder is the result, and it is up to Donald and Maria to discover who is responsible. This is, I think, the best of what is becoming an assured and enjoyable mystery series. I like the main characters very much and think that anyone who enjoys mysteries, with a more gentle and old fashioned feel, will enjoy this series very much. I received a copy from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.