3.5, rounded down.

Nothing ground breaking but an entertaining quick read! Pretty cosy with some typical dry British humour. I enjoyed the random letters to The Times but could have done without alllll the transcripts of the play.

Very similar to Rob Rinder, Janice Hallett or Anthony Horowitz.

"A Trial in Three Acts" by Guy Morpuss is a theatrical/quirky/who-dunnit/courtroom drama. An actress is murdered on stage and we are walked through the play along with the jurors, trying to work out who did it. There are some odd but fun elements, a sort of sideplot of the SoulGene business. I'll continue to read Guy Morpuss as his books are ever so slightly quirky.

Up on Goodreads now, live on the blog on 24 February:

I’ve been a fan of Guy Morpuss’s books since day one and so A Trial in Three Acts was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025. While I must admit it wasn’t my favourite of his novels, I still had a great time with it.

I’m not the biggest fan of legal thrillers or courtroom dramas, it’s certainly a subgenre I can enjoy but in moderation, it’s not one I seek out. Having said this, I really did enjoy the courtroom scenes in A Trial in Three Acts, and I loved the denouement, and I’m sure that if legal thrillers and courtroom dramas are your bag, you will gobble this one up! While reading, it’s clear that the author knows what he’s talking about, and from the afterword, it would appear that multiple real-life anecdotes made it into the book.

Based on that aspect of A Trial in Three Acts, as well as the murder mystery and the main characters and their interaction, I’d give it a solid five stars. However, two other aspects worked less for me personally. Firstly, the letters to The Times, which apparently is something the author does himself. While entertaining enough, those short intermezzos didn’t further the plot, and they took me out of the story a little bit. For me, incorporating those texts in another way, like having Charles weave them into a conversation, would have been more effective. But maybe I’m missing something? Is this a typically British custom I didn’t know about?

Secondly, and I really don’t know what happened there, I’m surprised at myself, and not in a good way, the historical facts behind the play just didn’t appeal to me all that much. While reading, I did appreciate why the historical bits and the play elements mattered, and in hindsight it’s even more clear just how much they matter. It’s just that, for some reason unbeknownst to even myself, I wasn’t as fascinated by them as I should have been.

All in all, I did have a really good time with A Trial in Three Acts. Despite the things that didn’t entirely work for me, I found it an engrossing read that kept me guessing for a long time.

A Trial in Three Acts is out in hardcover, digital formats and audio on 6 March.

Massive thanks to Viper Books and NetGalley for the DRC. All opinions are my own.

Excellent legal / crime / theatrical mystery that brings together a KC, an American lawyer and a Hollywood star accused of murdering his ex-wife on stage in a site-specific production in the middle of a cemetery. Enjoyably twisty, loved the letters to the times throughout, in many ways this couldn’t be more English, including amusing culture clash with the American lawyer. Not at all what I expected having only read Black Lake Manor, but Morpuss is a KC himself and captures the legal bickering to a tee.

What an interesting and captivating read! My first Guy Morpuss novel but most definitely not my last.

Thank you to Viper for allowing me to read this ARC and over the past week I have immersed myself into the world of KC Silks, the art of the cross-examination and a murder mystery revolving around a play and a historical secret spanning centuries, continents and in a pre-revolution world.

It was also lovely to read a mystery from a different perspective i.e. a trial rather than the detective. I thoroughly enjoyed the "present day" narrative of the case, with the author using his own personal knowledge of his KC career, plus the chapters in the "past narrative" to give us readers a more deeper understanding.

The prose between the two main characters (KC Charles Konig & NY Lawyer Yara Ortiz) was brilliant with their different styles, attitudes and ways of dealing with problems. I saw the hilarity, the interesting ways Yara always wants to be in his company and albeit Charles resists he loves it also, and I really felt the growth of a great partnership brewing between them.

On saying all of this, the reason why I gave this 3.75/5 (rounded up to 4 on here) is because there are a few plot holes concerning the lives of the Dunmore family, their deaths and burials and how it all came to be. I appreciate there is a mixture of fact and fiction within this novel but the author in his acknowledgements confirms himself that most of the documents were factual concerning dates and yet this is isn't translated in the novel as to why Lady Virginia Murray was buried 20 years after Prince Augustus died (at this point int the novel everyone is to believe other things). I also disliked at the end that the explanation of what happened was all opinion and conjecture, it was not actually solved. It reminded me of the big speech at the end of an Agatha Christie novel by Poirot (who I love btw), but without the satisfaction of someone going "how did you figure it all out" etc.

As you can see this was not enough for me to reject the book entirely. I will still recommend, I will be purchasing a trophy novel for my bookcase as it is a great novel (I especially love the factual historical elements of an almost unheard era of history) and I do hope there is a sequel with these characters.

Happy reading peoples :)

A twisty turning courtroom whodunnit. Morpuss has a knack for writing whodunnits, and I was keen to read this after reading Black Lake Manor. However, while this book was good, it didn’t quite live up to BLM for me. The initial scene setting wherein the plot of the play and the history, were convoluted and hard to follow. I like history, and yet for a long while I wasn’t entirely sure what was being described. However, I persevered and overall enjoyed the book, and Konig/Yara - perhaps we might read another story featuring them in the future?

This starts off slow, dry slow even. There is a mix of characters, and extracts from the play that is the scene for the murder as well as flashbacks into the past to the family relationships. The basis for the book is a courtroom and most of the action happens either in front of the judge and jury or as part of the evidence for the crime. There are some excellent interruptions to the book in the form of letters to the times by the hero barrister. A nice bit of sarcastic and funny relief to murder and parental abuse. The book all comes together in the last chapter or so as pennies drop and knows get untangled - suddenly the book and the quirks all make sense and I felt bright for having come on the journey and just about worked it all out!

A sort of mix of cozy mystery and legal thriller, plenty of humour, and a cast of intriguing characters.
A story featuring a victim that could be a perfect villain, twists and surprises, a solution that i liked
I would be happy to read other stories featuring Charles Konig and Yara Ortiz as they're an entertaining couple.
I had fun, enjoyed it, and read it quite fast.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

***advance review copy received from NetGalley in return for an honest review***
A really enjoyable murder mystery come legal drama, with a large dash of history thrown into the mix. If you enjoyed Rob Rinder’s similar legal mysteries (though I dare to say that this surpasses the second of the two) then you’ll find much to enjoy here. It could certainly be a series, and I for one hope it turns out to be.

Charles Konig, KC, is looking forward to his holiday trekking the remote areas around the base camp of K2. Very much more of a mountains man than a people’s person, the thought of a distinct lack of human contact for two whole weeks is very appealing, especially as he has been much in demand of late. Unfortunately his clerk has other ideas. Keen to get his boss further up the Cicero rankings, Geoffrey is angling for the holiday to be put on hold so that Charles can lead the defence in a high profile murder case. Not interested, Charles has no intention whatsoever until the carrot of representing a US President is dangled!

What a brilliant book this is. Amusing and clever, very theatrical with well developed characters. Not only a good plot but an insight into the workings of the legal system, every day a school day!

More from Charles please, he’s too good to be a one off.

Thank you NetGalley and Serpent’s Tail/Viper.

This was a really nice, cosy, quirky legal/whodunnit. It was the first book I have read from this author but I will defintiely be looking for more and this was right up my alley.

When leading lady Alexandra Dyce is beheaded live on stage in the third act, there are many people who are suspected. most wanted her dead but ger husband becomes the main suspect.

What a joy this book was to read. It is a fun read and I really enjoyed trying to work out the case. Of course I didn;t until nearer the end. It has an air of Agatha Christie, but much more clever and the mystery deepens before the thrilling climax

It is brilliantly told, I loved the theatric and Charles is a wonderful character. I am wondering if we will see him again in another book...