The Couple at the Table - Sophie Hannah

Sophie Hannah's latest book, The Couple at the Table, is a 'locked room' mystery - one of my absolute favorite premises.

Five couples are enjoying their their getaway at a small, luxury resort. It's all wonderful - right up to the moment when of the guests turns up dead. Ten guests and limited staff are on site. Only eight of those guest are suspect though. It turns out that one couple - Simon and Charlie - are police officers. The investigation begins immediately. You'd think it would be easy to suss out the culprit with such a limited pool of suspects - but you'd be wrong.

Hannah is a master at this style of tale. Things start to unfold and the  listener might feel they've got a handle on the whodunit....only to be proven wrong, over and over again. Hannah is a clever, clever writer. If you love a twisty, turny narrative, this one's for you. Although all is explained by the final pages, if you like to try and solve the case before the end, you'll have to pay close attention. You can't trust any of players!

Simon and Charlie are part of a series, but this could absolutely be listened to as a standalone. The two play off each other well, with two differing mindsets and skill sets. 

I chose to listen to The Couple at the Table. The reader was Julie Maisey and she did a terrific job. Her voice is pleasing, her accent lovely and the speed of reading is just right. She speaks clearly.  Maisey has movement to her voice, easily capturing the emotions of the characters and the actions of Hannah's plot. It was easy to know who was speaking. I often find I become more in a book when I listen and that was definitely the case with The Couple at the Table. Hear for yourself - listen to an excerpt of The Couple at the Table.

A Murder at Balmoral - Chris McGeorge

A Murder at Balmoral is Chris McGeorge's new 'locked room' mystery. I absolutely adore this format!

The setting is of course, the Royal Castle at Balmoral. McGeorge's Royal Family is fiction, based on Edward VIII not abdicating the throne. One of his progeny - Eric - is the current King. Although, there are a few sly similarities to some current Royals. (But no disrespect in regards to the recent passing of the Queen)

It's Christmas and the King has directed that his immediate family come to Balmoral for the holidays. The staff are sent home - excepting the head of security and Jon, the chef. And what else is needed for that locked room mystery? A blizzard of course, which completely cuts off anyone coming in or going out. 

From the publisher's description: "The king is dead. The killer is in the family. Solving this murder will be a royal pain."

The book is told through Jon's eyes, ears and actions. He is to act as the de facto investigator as directed by the other family members. Here's where the Agatha Christie and Hercule Poirot feel kicks in. He begins with individual interviews. But he really doesn't know what to ask. Jon has his work cut out, trying to still wear his chef's hat, remember his station - oft reminded by some of the Royals - and enduring some blatant racism. Where things go next is influenced by many unexpected twists and turns. Some of them are a bit unbelievable, but just go with it - those somewhat over the top moments make the book a lot of fun to read.

The culprit is indeed known by the end chapters. But the whodunit and epilogue surprised me with a situation that there's no way to predict. And the prologue now made sense to me. 

I enjoyed A Murder at Balmoral. McGeorge is a new to me author and I'll happily pick up his next title. See for yourself - read an excerpt of A Murder at Balmoral.

Last One Alive - Amber Cowie

The premise of Amber Cowie's new book, Last One Alive,  hooked me right away. 

What's it about? From the publisher: "A team of researchers exploring the myth of a witch find their numbers mysteriously dwindling in this irresistible psychological thriller for fans of Ruth Ware, Shari Lapena, and Lucy Foley."

I love 'locked room' mysteries. In this case, it's ten people on the site of an historic crime. And yes, one by one they die. But here's the thing that kept me guessing 'til the final pages. Is it the curse of the witch? Is there really something to the legends? Or is one of the ten turning on their fellow researchers?

Penelope is the organizer of the trip. While she has a good reason for the trip and says and does all the right things, I didn't like her. Or any of the ten for that matter. There's something 'off' with each and every one of them. Which only serves to have more suspects!

The setting descriptions easily conjured up a detailed picture in my mind. The isolation, the forest, the rocky beach, the old outbuildings and more all add to the unsettled feeling of the endeavor.

But what I enjoyed the most was trying to solve the whodunit - keeping track of who was where at a certain time, who was together, what was overheard, what was found. (I always wanted to be Nancy Drew.)

I did find some chapters ended quite abruptly and I would have to flip back to make sure I hadn't missed something. 

Cowie's book is well written, not easy to suss out and kept me interested right through to the final pages. See for yourself - read an excerpt of Last One Alive.  

The Retreat - Elisabeth De Mariaffi

The Retreat is Elisabeth De Mariaffi's newest novel. The locked room premise is a favourite of mine, so I was eager to check out The Retreat. 

Maeve has taken herself to an arts retreat high up in the Rockies. She was a prima ballerina, but with a failed marriage, two children and an aging body, she has now has her sights on having her own ballet company. The two week retreat will give her inspiration and help her plan. 

The choice of profession for the protagonist was quite different. As Shakespeare said..."Though she be but little, she is fierce." The six other staff and visitors in residence are quite the varied cast. There's something off about each and every one of them. And Maeve feels the tension right away. Personally, I would have turned and ran. But she stays...and an avalanche ensures that no one is going anywhere in the near future. The dead body is definitely going anywhere.

With the avalanche cutting the group off, the murderer has to be one of them. The first bit of the book was a bit slow for me. But the action picked up after the murder and kept racing forward from there on to the final pages. This is the bit I enjoyed the most. De Mariaffi has ensured that the reader will suspect everyone right down the final pages. I did find the murderer's 'why' to be a bit of a stretch. And as much as I thought I should, I never really bonded with Maeve as a lead character.

The Retreat was a good read, but not a standout for me. See for yourself - read an excerpt of The Retreat.