Murder at Mistletoe Manor - F. L. Everett ***
By Brian Clegg
There’s a classic feel to Murder at Mistletoe Manor: a group of disparate strangers, trapped in a small hotel by heavy snow, face a murder. But here there’s no Hercule Poirot to sort things out – the closest we have to a detective is a journalist who tries (rather poorly) to work out what’s going on.
There are good things about Everett’s book. She neatly presents us with the feel of being unable to get away, knowing that someone in the hotel with you is a murderer. In a connected world, the idea of being stuck somewhere with no phone, mobile signal or internet, unable to contact the authorities is impressively scary. Although they are sometimes signalled quite heavily in advance, there are some nice twists as different characters and their hidden relationships emerge.
Strangely, it’s the strength of the idea that makes it not the most engaging read. Once the characters have realised their situation, and a second death occurs, there isn’t really anywhere for the characters go – they just cycle through the same reactions and very limited options for action. This isn’t a short book, and it did start to drag a little between murders – it’s hard for the reader not to think ‘please, let someone achieve a phone call, or get through the snow and raise the alarm’.
Mixed feelings, then. It’s well-written and interesting. The central concept is great, and there are couple of nice twists. But if it was page-turning it was to deal with the ‘I wish things would move on’ feeling, rather than a huge enthusiasm to read more.
You can buy Murder at Mistletoe Manor from Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com and Bookshop.org
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Now Appearing is the blog of science writer Brian Clegg (www.brianclegg.net), author of Inflight Science, Before the Big Bang and The God Effect.
Source: http://brianclegg.blogspot.com/2025/12/murder-at-mistletoe-manor-f-l-everett.html
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