The Midnight Hour

When theatrical impressario Bert Billington is poisoned in his own home, his youngest son has the idea that his mother, former theatrical star Verity Malone, killed him. To protect herself, Verity hires Emma Stephens, going by her maiden name of Emma Holmes, and Sam Collins, who have just set up a private detective agency; Verity worries that the police, including Emma’s husband Edgar, will be quick to take her son’s suggestion, even though she is innocent. Emma and Sam start to investigate, as do DI Bob Willis and newly minted WDC Meg Connolly, but the question is, who will solve the crime before more murders occur?.... Here we have the Brighton magic men a bit sidelined - Edgar has more of a supervisory role now, and Max Mephisto, show more although intimately connected to all parties involved, including the deceased, has his own worries, particularly about his marriage and his purpose in life. I enjoy this series, but there’s a big blunder here that bugged me every time I saw it on the page: the story takes place in the autumn of 1965, but the characters on several occasions reference the lyrics to The Beatles’ song “All You Need Is Love,” which was released in July of 1967. Surely Ms. Griffiths, an editor or someone somewhere along the line should have caught that anachronism; I’m sorry to say that it took me out of the story each time it occurred. Really giving it a 2 ½ rating versus a 3, just because of that glaring (to me, anyway) mistake. show less

Elly Griffiths is hands down one of my favorite authors. Now, while her Ruth Galloway series is near and dear to me, The Brighton Mysteries run a very close second. The sixth entry - The Midnight Hour - has just released.

What makes these series so delightful? For me, it's the characters. They're warm and funny, wry and witty and eminently likable. In this latest, former Brighton DS Emma Holmes has joined forces with reporter Sam Collins and opened a Private Eye business. They've been hired by a high profile widow to look into her husband's death. It's a big case for the two, but the Brighton police are also on the job. It's more than a bit awkward as Emma is also married to Police Superintendent Edgar Stephens. "She was honest enough show more to know she also wanted to get ahead of the police, to present them with the solution to the case with all the loose ends tied up in a bow."

There's continuity to this series as Griffiths moves the lives of her characters along. I'm always curious to see what's next for this cast of players. And it is indeed a large cast. Faithful readers will recognize and welcome back recurring characters. New readers, you can absolutely read this latest without having read previous titles, but it might take you a beat or two to sort out who's who. I have to say that Emma and young Constable Meg Connolly are my favorites. Emma's young son Jonathan also makes many appearances that are endearing.

So, great characters...and great plotting. There are many choices for the whodunit. Griffiths gives the reader a lovely winding road, littered with red herrings on the way to the final whodunit. I truly had no idea who the murderer was going to be in the end.

I like the time frame being the 1960's. Cases are solved with lots of footwork, interviews, intuition and deductions rather than CSI-like methods. It's a more satisfying and intimate read somehow. Women's roles are changing and that too is woven into the story.

Griffiths just has an easy way with words. I'm always drawn into the story. show less

There was so much going on in this book and so many characters I admit to having difficulty staying on point The situation is all very cozy until it becomes deadly and yet I never got the sense that anyone cared about the murdered man as much as the intricacies of the relationships and situations. Well, he wasn’t a very likable person. Actually, he was a despicable, lecherous user of young women and you know what we gals say about that - Good Riddance. Part of the intrigue is the cast of characters and who knew whom, when and where. Lots of characters, lots of relationships, lots of confusion. The interrelationships made my head spin and I had to keep muttering; “Now who was is that did it to that one?”

Elly Griffiths is a Master show more of this genre. I find her Ruth Galloway Series to have a darker, more threatening tone while this series felt lighter with more of a tongue-in-cheek bit of sarcasm and dialogue. While the Galloway series usually focuses on the relationship of Ruth and Nelson the Brighton Mystery series opens up numerous relationships and flows in many directions. Looking back to the 1960’s was a fist clenching, teeth grinding reminder of a women’s second class status told with a velvet touch and dry wit. Griffiths brings that realty back home and grounds it in her female characters as they speak about the inequities freely.

I enjoyed the book but what I absolutely adored was Max Mephisto’s rumination and summation of the whole story while revisiting the Palace Pier. It was cogent, cohesive - just perfect.

Thank you NetGalley and Mariner Books for a copy. show less

#6 in the Brighton Mysteries series.

I don't often dive into a mystery series midway through, and I think this one was particularly ill suited to mid-series entry. It's a sprawling series, ranging from 1950 in the first volume to 1965 in this one, with a large and growing cast of characters. The two protagonists from the first books are supporting players here, and a dense history of relationships has built up among the characters. While I could follow the basic mystery plot easily enough, I was missing a lot of character details and backstory that would have made the background part of the novel more interesting.

The series is set in Brighton, England, where Emma Holmes and Samantha Collins have recently opened a private detective show more agency. Emma is a former police officer, now married to Brighton police superintendent (and her former boss) Edgar Stephens. Edgar consults occasionally with his friend, Max, an actor and former magician; the two of them served during WWII as part of a team using magic and stagecraft to conduct special operations.

And at the Brighton police department, we also follow the investigation of WDC Meg Connolly. That's "Woman Detective Constable," female officers being such a novelty in 1965 that it needed to be called out in their job title.

The case they're all investigating is the murder of Bert Billington, a faded actor from the 30s/40s "variety circuit" -- roughly equivalent to American vaudeville shows -- who has become a moderately successful producer/impresario. He's been poisoned, and the principal suspect is his wife, Verity Malone, who was once a popular singer.

There are plenty of other suspects. Bert and Verity have three sons, one of whom is a heartthrob movie idol currently filming a Dracula picture with Max; there's a former housekeeper to be questioned; and Bert has a long list of disappointed showbiz rivals, jilted mistresses, and illegitimate children who might have motive.

The parallel investigations into the murder by the team of Holmes and Collins and by the Brighton police get rather muddy. It's hard to keep track of who knows what and which information has been shared with whom. With the exception of Verity, the suspects and supporting characters feel unusually flat and lifeless. And when the culprit is finally nabbed, the reveal feels entirely out of left field, mostly because a crucial piece of evidence that leads to their identification hadn't been shared with the reader.

I'm sure I'd have enjoyed this book more if I'd read previous volumes and was more at home with the characters and their history. But even that would not have made up for the blandness of the characters and the drab, mechanical way that Griffiths moves them through the story. show less

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

This series is always fun, and Griffiths has managed to retain Emma as a central character (as a married woman she can no longer be a police officer, but her detective agency is engaged on the same case as the police - cunning!) The plot was well constructed and I enjoyed the humour and period detail: Meg, the WDC, is not allowed to drive the panda car because she is a woman; the smoking; the fact that Meg's family don't have a telephone.

There was less of Max and Ruby in this one, which is fine by me. I think my main criticism would be that with the prominence of Meg, Sam's character became completely redundant. She was not well characterized here, and had so little page show more time that whenever she popped up I had forgotten about her. Maybe Emma should just become a police consultant, with Meg as her liaison/side kick! show less

Elly Griffiths continues her detective series based in Brighton in the post war years and moves gracefully into the 1960’s with this compelling foray into the world of Music Hall and Dracula movies. Astutely observed characters provide a multitude of personal flaws and sins but which of them is driven to murder? I love all Elly’s books but this series really resonates with me since I used to live near Brighton. I also adore to read about the old magical and theatrical artistes who used to work and tour throughout the UK.

In this sixth instalment of The Brighton Mysteries (previously the Magic Men series), The Midnight Hour, former showgirl Verity Malone engages former WDS Emma Stephens and journalist Sam Collins, whom have launched a private investigation firm, when she is implicated in the poisoning death of her husband, theater impresario, Bert Billington.

As it happens, Verity isn’t the only one who had reason to dislike Bert. A notorious narcissist and philanderer, he had a number of enemies, and Emma is excited by the opportunity to investigate, even though the situation may make things awkward for her husband, Superintendent Edgar Stephens.

Griffiths offers several red herrings as suspicion swirls around Verity, her long term housekeeper, Alma, show more the women’s adult children, a nosy neighbour and a mystery woman (or man) in a long brown coat. Max Mephisto, coincidently filming a movie co-starring Verity’s middle son, also becomes entangled in the case when it’s revealed he once had an affair with Verity.

WPC Meg Connolly, introduced in Now You See Them, plays a large role this novel, proving to be an eager, intuitive police officer, just as Emma was before being forced to retire upon her marriage. Griffiths continues to explore the lot of women in society during the era through the fates of Billingham’s carnal victims, the limits placed on Meg’s career, and Emma’s desire to be more than just a mother.

With its satisfying resolution to an interesting mystery, and engaging characters I enjoyed The Midnight Hour as much as previous instalments, and I look forward to the next. show less