Murder at the National Gallery is a delightful and whimsical romp through the world of art and crime. Set against the backdrop of London’s prestigious gallery, the novel follows amateur sleuths as they navigate a murder mystery that’s as intriguing as it is entertaining. Eldridge infuses the story with humor and a playful tone, making it clear that the book doesn’t take itself too seriously.

The characters are charming and the plot is filled with clever twists and amusing moments that keep the reader grinning. Eldridge’s light-hearted approach ensures that the mystery is enjoyable without being overly intense or grim. If you’re in the mood for a fun and engaging read that combines art, mystery, and a touch of humor, Murder at the National Gallery is just the ticket.

I was excited for this book even though it's my first in the series. I absolutely love a story that pulls at the Jack the Ripper thread without being a retelling, and this one does just that. We follow a murder mystery of a person killed in a style similar to the famous killer, and various people tied to the original murders are called in to act as experts, sort of. It's an interesting concept. That being said, the pacing of the book definitely had some issues, and the beginning was quite slow. It took me a very long time to get a sense of where we were headed, which made it tough to start thinking about the characters and the mystery itself. This was a decent read, but not one that I'm jumping to recommend.

This is the first Museum Detectives book I’ve read, but I didn’t feel as if I’d missed anything jumping into this one. The mystery was well done. The premise of Ripper victims’ loved ones getting revenge on a prime suspect was very intriguing. I liked Daniel and Abigail, and found the other characters to be good additions as well.

Unfortunately, I was a little underwhelmed with the writing. For such an interesting story, the writing was very bland and read like a textbook in some places, instead of a gripping novel. I still read the whole book regardless, although sometimes skipping some of the more monotonous information thrown in, as I was interested enough in the solution.

Overall, a solid read and intriguing premise with the Museum Detectives.

The publisher approved me for this title, but it was archived before I could download it. I wanted to read this book on my own so it would not affect my rating

I have not read any other books in this series so for me this book was read as a stand-alone. I was immediately drawn into the time period and mention of Jack the Ripper in the synopsis. I love all the historical elements in this book especially the setting of White Chapel during this era. The characters were endearing and only added to the overall plot. This was a great whodunit book with twists to the plot along the way. Overall I enjoyed this book and would read more books by Jim Eldridge in the future.

Murder at the National Gallery by Jim Eldridge
This is another case for the Museum detectives. The locus this time is the National Gallery where an eviscerated body is found by the museum cleaners. The body turns out to be that of one of Walter Sickert’s artistic models. Walter Sickert had been linked to the murders carried out by The Ripper years before and Fred Abberline and Daniel Wilson had interviewed him at the time.
The discovery of the body reignites the interest of the police and when Sickert is arrested Daniel and Abigail are called in by Sickert’s wife to investigate and prove his innocence. The author has created an entertaining murder mystery set in a well-constructed Victorian background. There are twists and turns aplenty to keep you engaged from start to finish. The dialogue is entertaining and there are some engaging characters.
Jim Eldridge has written an entertaining new addition to this series. Many thanks to the author, the publishers and to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Jim Eldridge’s Murder at the National Gallery marks the seventh outing for private detectives and covertly cohabiting couple Daniel Wilson and Abigail Fenton. This time around, the dynamic duo are called upon to free the police’s prime suspect when a woman is found murdered in the National Gallery in a way that is reminiscent of the murders by Jack the Ripper.

It’s a difficult task to be sure, but it’s made even more difficult by the fact that the arrested man is the artist Walter Sickert, who was also a strong suspect in the Ripper case. However, while the police have identified Sickert as the likely killer, doing so doesn’t stop the killings and, as more women are found dead, Wilson and Fenton have to figure out who the real murderer is and why Sickert is being framed.

Although Murder at the National Gallery is the seventh book in a series, it can certainly be read as a stand-alone novel. Some references are made to previous issues and people from earlier in the series, but everything important is clearly explained. As a work of historical fiction, the atmosphere is certainly right, but some of the dialogue and situations in the story don’t quite ring true. The plot is exciting and nicely convoluted though, and it’s interesting to witness Eldridge’s take on a Jack the Ripper copycat.

First of all, the cover is really good! Who doesn’t love pretty covers?! So this story is a little bit historical, and a murder mystery set to London. This is a fast paced story, the connections and the details felt like it’s real. The mystery itself was well done. This book is good for new mystery readers.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ -- The cover on this one is fabulous!

This is my second foray into this series and I really wish I had time to go back and read all the previous books. I am enjoying them so much. This was another solid read. Well written and well paced. I loved the historical tie ins with Walter Sickert and Jack The Ripper. The plot was engaging and kept me guessing until the end. Daniel Wilson and Abigail Fenton remain solid and likable lead characters with great on page chemistry. Honestly, not much more to say about this one. This series is shaping up to definitely be one of my favorites, and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book "Murder at the Victoria and Albert Museum."

**ARC Via NetGalley**

Murder at the National Gallery is the 7th Museum Mystery by Jim Eldridge. Released 20th Jan 2022 by Alison & Busby, it's 311 pages (ebook version) and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats (paperback due out in summer 2022). It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is a competently plotted slightly gritty murder mystery. The characters are well developed and have a solid background and chemistry together. The pacing was variable, at points it dragged a bit for me, but overall it moved along at a good pace. It's 90% dialogue driven and the dialogue tends to be overly simplistic and not very nuanced. I admit the dialogue threw me. The book is set in the 19th century and is often quite jarring because the vernacular is completely modern (it reads very much like a modern mystery and the historical setting is only made clear by contextual clues such as when the author throws Bram Stoker, Conan Doyle, and Van Gogh in as contemporary). My other small quibble is that it seemed the author included almost every famous contemporary person, actor, current event, landmark, and news headline in the narrative. It interfered with my suspension of disbelief in several places.

All in all it's a readable and mostly engaging mystery with lots of skullduggery and shenanigans, a soupcon of danger, and a reasonable denouement and resolution. Sensitive readers will want to be aware that there are graphic descriptions of Jack-the-Ripper-esque murders including disembowelment, as well as fairly graphic on-page sexual content and descriptions. The two main protagonists are cohabiting in a stable long-term relationship and apparently suffering no social censure (another anachronism, although the author does partly address the paradox in the text).

Three and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

I haven't read any of the previous books so read this as a stand alone. While I thoroughly enjoyed the mystery itself and the victorian atmosphere I did feel the main character's were a little flat. I'm not sure if this was because I hadn't read the other books and had missed the details of their meeting and the build up of their romance.

Thanks to netgallery for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review as given above.

Plot

1897, London. The capital is shocked to learn that the body of a woman has been found at the National Gallery, eviscerated in a manner that recalls all too strongly the exploits of the infamous Jack the Ripper.



Daniel Wilson and Abigail Fenton are contacted by a curator of the National Gallery for their assistance. The dead woman, an artist's model and lady of the night, had links to artist Walter Sickert who was a suspect during the Ripper's spree of killings. Scotland Yard have arrested Sickert on suspicion of this fresh murder but it is not the last ...

Copycat murders of the Ripper's crimes implicate the artist who loves to shock but Sickert insists that he is innocent. Who would want to frame him? Wilson and Fenton have their work cut out catching an elusive and determined killer.

Review

So this book is one of the middle in a series but you get a quick recap at the beginning so you’re pretty much up to speed beforehand. That being said, I just didn’t get on with this at all.

One of the major things is that the pace was extremely slow for the first two thirds of the book then suddenly picked up at the end. New characters were introduced as the book was reaching its close which didn’t add anything in my opinion.

I couldn’t warm to the characters because they just weren’t likeable. And they were stereotypical of the era.

I did like the connection to Jack the Ripper which I thought was clever but honestly I just wanted to find out who did it so I could move on.

I really didn’t like this one.

Rating

2/5


Recommend

Not really sorry

Thank you to and Allison and Busby and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 stars. I love a murder mystery. But, when its based during the Victorian era and connected to museums - I Instantly wanted to read it. I didn't realise this was part of a series until I had been sent the ARC by Netgally. But thankfully, it can be read as a stand alone, yes, there are parts I would like to know more about, such as how the main characters met etc, but all in all I could follow the story fairly easily.
At the beginning I found this a little slow, perhaps if I had read the rest of the series I would have been more invested. But about 20 percent in it began to grab my attention. I really enjoyed the links to the Ripper case and the use of real life people from the infamous murders- that was a nice touch. I also liked the main characters and their relationship. I will definitely be picking up the first book from this Museum Murder series!

This was a solid read for me. Nothing stood out to me in particular,but I don’t regret reading this.

Very intriguing mystery! The book is long and it felt that way at times but generally I flew right through it. It was a nice read on a rainy afternoon, highly recommend!

Standard fayre from Jim Eldridge, this latest of his Museum Mysteries featured dull and lacklustre characters and a gossamer-thin plot. The writing is on the wall from the outset and before too long the reader is well aware that this book is more akin to a work of fantasy rather than historical mystery. Being fiction, one is prepared for a modicum of suspension of disbelief, but not quite as much as is required while reading this book!

At the start of the story, the reasons for Daniel Wilson and Abigail Fenton, our intrepid detectives' services being called for is paper-thin. A well-known artist is being held on remand on a charge of murder, and the detectives are called in to obtain his release. As if two civilians could march into Scotland Yard and say 'Would you please let Mr Sickert go - thank you very much.' At another time a police inspector hands Daniel Wilson a 'letter of authority' permitting Scotland Yard to assign a constable to him to work at Wilson's direction. In what fantasy world would such a thing happen? A civilian detective ordering a Metropolitan police inspector around? As aforementioned, one can suspend disbelief only so far. In another incident Abigail Fenton is punched heavily in the face by a desperate man who means business, crushing her nose and jaw, and almost knocking her unconscious. Her nose at least cannot fail to be streaming with blood and would most likely be broken, but another character sees her and calmly asks 'is everything alright?' One hardly knows whether to laugh or weep!

Amongst the smattering of unnecessary and unaccountable (since Eldridge is an Englishman) Americanisms and the author's desperate attempts to come across as modern and 'with it' by the anachronistically open discussion of sex, which might be quite normal nowadays but certainly was not in Victorian England, Eldridge tends to send his characters off on a pedagogic diatribe, where subjects such as artistic movements, past criminal cases, the history of the underground railway are delivered in a tone suggestive of a schoolmaster or tour guide, rather than a discussion between friends. The relationship between Daniel and Abigail is also handled a little heavily by Eldridge, and at times they seem more like virtual strangers tiptoeing shyly around each other rather than a couple who have been cohabiting for years.

While most of the characters, with the exception of Daniel Wilson, who could be quite an interesting character but is borne down by the lack of opportunity, are rather dull and ordinary, Abigail Fenton is definitely unlikeable. It is unclear whether Eldridge is deliberately attempting to portray her as flawed, or whether this is his idea of a strong female character, but she is definitely a sanctimonious, self-righteous prig.

She shows us just how petty she can be when, at the beginning of the book, she takes offence at the fact that the letter requesting their services is addressed to Daniel alone, rather that to the pair of them. She then allows her personal feelings about Walter Sickert to sway her judgement regarding his guilt or innocence with her 'I don't like him, therefore he must be guilty' attitude. Fenton insists on being taken seriously as a detective and being treated by all (including Wilson) as Wilson's equal as a detective despite being a woman, yet, in a completely unaccountable move, Eldridge has her run off home to cook a dish for dinner rather than accompanying Wilson on a visit to interview an important witness. It is difficult to see what Eldridge was hoping to convey with this completely contradictory action on Fenton's part.

Fenton's worst excesses were evinced when, while living openly in sin with a man, an action which would clearly brand her as a Jezebel who is not better than she should be, she takes the moral high-ground when she encounters a police constable that she believes is using the services of the prostitutes on his beat in return for freedom from prosecution. I don't suppose considerations of glass houses and throwing stones ever occurs to our judgemental Ms Fenton.

In conclusion, this is a perfectly good read if one is looking for a cozy-ish mystery story with an ostensibly historical setting, and for fans of Eldridge who are keen to read his entire oeuvre. However, if one is looking for a taught, well-plotted, historically accurate mystery story, look elsewhere.

I love murder mysteries and the stories of serial killers. Yes, that makes me a nut, I get it.

Murder at the National Gallery didn't blow me away, but it was a nice read. It was a light read, as light as a book with a dead woman can be.

It was simple to pick up, even not having read the other Museum Mystery books.

What a setting to have had a murder take place than at the National Gallery, ad to have had the murder show similarities to the style of Jack The Ripper, was a very good plot. Truly could not put this down. Such a brilliant opening chapter and then so many twists and turns.

Murder at the National Gallery is book #7 in the Museum Detective series about archeologist Abigail Fenton and ex-policeman turned detective Daniel Wilson set in Victorian London. Author Jim Eldridge created a very dynamic, colourful, mutually complimenting duo that defies social canons, proprieties (they live together but are not-married) and conventions.

I have met this pair early on in the series in Just Out Book Review – Murder at the Natural History Museum by Jim Eldridge and enjoyed their adventure, repartee and dynamics.

Their 7th Adventure did not disappoint. Set in Victorian Londong, stepping on the hills of ‘Jack the Ripper’ case, mixing real historical figures with ficitional character, Murder at the National Gallery is a present fo crime lovers like myself.

This book has it all: a murder, two, three… a pair of detectives who are as brave as they are smart and rational, famous British landmarks and famous figures (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, for instance).

Abigail and Daniel are called to investigate when a body of a prostitute is found next to a painting at the National Gallery. a) a prositute b) body mutilated c) body is found at the painting by an artist who was one of the suspects in Jack the Ripper case.. A Copycat? A return of Jack the Ripper?

Well, Museum Detectives will have to figure it out navigating London establishment, police politics, personal danger and volatile temperaments of artists, their wives and lovers.

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All in all, a very enjoyable read. Even though it is #7 book in the series, the suspence, interest, mystery, characters do not disappoint.

A charming young couple solve mysteries. He's a former detective sergeant with Scotland Yard. She is a noted archaeologist. The time is Victorian England. For some strange reason, all of their murders occur at museums in London. So, they receive the moniker of the Museum Detectives.

In this book, young prostitutes begin showing up on the steps of the National Gallery with shocking similarity to the murders of Jack the Ripper. The main suspect is the same painter who was one of the leading suspects from the original serial murders.

But it quickly becomes clear to the detectives that he is being set up. But who is doing it? And why? With lots of allusions to the original Jack the Ripper case, including bringing in the original distinguished investigator, the result is a great whodunit.

You'll enjoy following the exploits of these charming sleuths, while enjoying a romp through Victorian London.

I liked this last instalment in this series as it was a compelling and entertaining read.
I liked the link to the Ripper investigation and how it made me discover some facts about Walter Sickert and the world of art at the time of the investigation.
The plot is well developed, Abigail and Daniel are two fleshed out characters, and the solid mystery kept me guessing.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine