Review: The Murder at Redmire Hall

The Murder at Redmire Hall by J.R. Ellis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

40 years ago Lord Vivian Redmire, a man who loved taking up new hobbies, developed an interest in magical tricks and, at enormous expense, had a locked room built at Redmire Hall where he mystified guests at a dinner party with his ability to disappear and reappear in an apparently locked room. However, after that night he never repeated the trick and the room, like so many of his other hobbies was abandoned.

Now, his son Lord Freddie Redmire, notorious for his gambling (badly) and womanising, has gathered his family together at Redmire Hall to recreate his father's trick, this time in front of television cameras and, to give an even greater air of probity, he has invited DCI Jim Oldroyd to attend. The DCI is a sucker for magic tricks and has lured DS Stephanie Johnson along with the promise of a smack-up meal.

The scene is set for disaster, his younger brother Dominic resents Freddie was wasting the family fortune, Dominic's wife Mary has been having an affair with Freddie. Freddie's daughter Poppy and her boyfriend Tristan are short of money, ironically because of Tristam's gambling debts, and are hoping Freddie will give them some money. Freddie's former long-term lover Alex is now married to Freddie's former business partner James who blames Freddie for their luxury car business failing. Freddie's ex-wife Antonia, who divorced him over his affair with Alex, has now remarried Douglas, a wealthy furniture salesman, albeit not in the same league as Lord Redmire. Freddie's mother the Dowager Lady Redmire actively despises her son who is wasting the family's inheritance and lacks his father's charisma. Finally, the remaining family members are Freddie's son Alistair and his wife Katherine, who live close to the Hall but are given no say in its running. In addition there are numerous staff who fear for their jobs if Freddie's reckless gambling isn't halted.

After the usual rigmarole of the guests checking the room for secret doors, the room is locked, when it is reopened a few moments later Freddie has vanished and again the guests can see no obvious means of escape. When the room is locked again and reopened Freddie has reappeared as expected, but with a dagger thrust in his back ... Duh, Duh, Duh!

There seem to be multiple people who could have a motive for killing Freddie, unfortunately they were all in the audience watching the trick and in full view of the TV cameras. Then, later that night a retired handyman is found brutally strangled in his own home, presumably because he knew the secret behind the locked room trick and the murderer(s) wanted to tie up loose ends.

The press are having a field day, and when Freddie's will is read the bequests give some of the family even greater reason to have wanted him dead. Can DCI Oldroyd identify the killer(s)?

This felt very old school Poirot (or even Colombo), especially when DCI Oldroyd indulges in his love of the dramatic by gathering the family together to explain each of their motives which was fun, but not very realistic TBH. I was a bit disappointed to find that this was another locked room mystery, albeit this was literally a locked room rather than a chapel converted into a concert hall.

Still DCI Oldroyd's personal life is moving at a glacial pace and he seems a bit pathetic, can't really cook, doesn't do anything or go anywhere (at least I can cook LOL).

Read on my Kindle Unlimited subscription.


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