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Yorkshire Murder Mysteries #6
The Whitby Murders
A murder with three witnesses. But one of them doesn’t believe what she saw…
Halloween, Whitby. DCI Jim Oldroyd’s daughter Louise is in town with friends for a goth festival. But their visit to an escape room ends in bloody murder when one of the group stabs his girlfriend and flees the scene. It’s a crime with three witnesses—but Louise refuses to take what she saw at face value.
Oldroyd and DS Carter are called in to solve the case, assisted from the sidelines by Louise. But the closer they investigate, the more complex the web of deceit appears. This is no straightforward crime of passion.
With a violent murderer on the loose, it’s only a matter of time before they strike again. And this time it’s personal. Oldroyd must expose the truth, protect his daughter and stop the horror before it’s too late.
Halloween, Whitby. DCI Jim Oldroyd’s daughter Louise is in town with friends for a goth festival. But their visit to an escape room ends in bloody murder when one of the group stabs his girlfriend and flees the scene. It’s a crime with three witnesses—but Louise refuses to take what she saw at face value.
Oldroyd and DS Carter are called in to solve the case, assisted from the sidelines by Louise. But the closer they investigate, the more complex the web of deceit appears. This is no straightforward crime of passion.
With a violent murderer on the loose, it’s only a matter of time before they strike again. And this time it’s personal. Oldroyd must expose the truth, protect his daughter and stop the horror before it’s too late.
283 pages, Paperback
First published May 27, 2021
2327 people are currently reading
2867 people want to read
About the author
J.R. Ellis
31 books704 followersDuring a long career teaching English, I wrote plays for children and occasional ghost stories. I have always been fascinated by the paranormal and by mysteries, conspiracy theories and unexplained crimes.
My love of my native county is deep and the settings of my Yorkshire Murder Mysteries within Yorkshire's varied landscapes are important. I have made a study of the sub-genre of the Locked Room Mystery during the height of its popularity between 1930 - 1960 in the stories of writers such as John Dickson Carr, Clayton Rawson and Ellery Queen. I was an avid watcher of BBC's "Jonathan Creek" in its heyday. I believe the element of puzzle is essential to crime fiction and my novels contain a double mystery: the standard "who dunnit?" but also "how dunnit?!"
I avoid the dark and gruesome in my writing and I strive to include some humour and elegance in style, a vivid sense of place and a compelling mystery! My characters both innocent and guilty are mostly ordinary people.
I am a member of a writers' group in Otley which has inspired me to write poetry and various forms of short fiction.
My love of my native county is deep and the settings of my Yorkshire Murder Mysteries within Yorkshire's varied landscapes are important. I have made a study of the sub-genre of the Locked Room Mystery during the height of its popularity between 1930 - 1960 in the stories of writers such as John Dickson Carr, Clayton Rawson and Ellery Queen. I was an avid watcher of BBC's "Jonathan Creek" in its heyday. I believe the element of puzzle is essential to crime fiction and my novels contain a double mystery: the standard "who dunnit?" but also "how dunnit?!"
I avoid the dark and gruesome in my writing and I strive to include some humour and elegance in style, a vivid sense of place and a compelling mystery! My characters both innocent and guilty are mostly ordinary people.
I am a member of a writers' group in Otley which has inspired me to write poetry and various forms of short fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 363 reviews
May 19, 2021
2.5 stars, rounded down
This latest in the Yorkshire Murder Mystery series is a bit of an odd duck. It takes place in Whitby, where Oldroyd’s daughter had gone for a Goth Weekend with her friends. One of her friends supposedly stabs another in full view of everyone. She calls her father to help. So, we are meant to believe that DCI Oldroyd is able to head over there, along with his DS to help in the investigation. We are also meant to believe that despite several eyewitnesses, the police would continue to investigate the murder (and a subsequent suicide) because of some gut feelings and no contrary evidence. Maybe police departments have fuller budgets in the UK…
While I like the characters in this series, this story seemed disjointed and in need of a better editing job. The omniscient POV seemed to muddy the waters. I felt the story might have worked better if we had heard from fewer characters. Ellis threw out lots of possible suspects and red herrings. But each red herring would be resolved within a page of being presented. There wasn’t any tension to the story. The key to the resolution was obvious to me within minutes of the first murder. This story just seemed amateurish. In truth, I liked the first two books in this series more than the last two I’ve read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advance copy of this book.
This latest in the Yorkshire Murder Mystery series is a bit of an odd duck. It takes place in Whitby, where Oldroyd’s daughter had gone for a Goth Weekend with her friends. One of her friends supposedly stabs another in full view of everyone. She calls her father to help. So, we are meant to believe that DCI Oldroyd is able to head over there, along with his DS to help in the investigation. We are also meant to believe that despite several eyewitnesses, the police would continue to investigate the murder (and a subsequent suicide) because of some gut feelings and no contrary evidence. Maybe police departments have fuller budgets in the UK…
While I like the characters in this series, this story seemed disjointed and in need of a better editing job. The omniscient POV seemed to muddy the waters. I felt the story might have worked better if we had heard from fewer characters. Ellis threw out lots of possible suspects and red herrings. But each red herring would be resolved within a page of being presented. There wasn’t any tension to the story. The key to the resolution was obvious to me within minutes of the first murder. This story just seemed amateurish. In truth, I liked the first two books in this series more than the last two I’ve read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advance copy of this book.
May 25, 2021
I am new to this author and really should not have started with book 6, but The Whitby Murders turned out to be an entertaining and easy to read cosy mystery, even without knowing what has happened before.
I was predisposed to like it of course because it was set in Whitby with mentions of Harrogate and Leeds - all places I remember well from my University days. DCI Jim Oldroyd makes short work of solving a murder which is not at all how it first seems. I spotted how it was done pretty quickly and guessed who did it, but I had to read the end to understand why.
I enjoyed all of the main characters and very much liked the friendly way they all related to each other. Maybe it was a little fanciful with everyone being so supportive of each other and never a cross word spoken but it was also very relaxing. I liked it enough to have acquired books 1-5 anyway!
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.
I was predisposed to like it of course because it was set in Whitby with mentions of Harrogate and Leeds - all places I remember well from my University days. DCI Jim Oldroyd makes short work of solving a murder which is not at all how it first seems. I spotted how it was done pretty quickly and guessed who did it, but I had to read the end to understand why.
I enjoyed all of the main characters and very much liked the friendly way they all related to each other. Maybe it was a little fanciful with everyone being so supportive of each other and never a cross word spoken but it was also very relaxing. I liked it enough to have acquired books 1-5 anyway!
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.
June 24, 2021
The Whitby Murders is the sixth in J.R. Ellis's Yorkshire Murder Mysteries series featuring D.C.I. Jim Oldroyd. This instalment takes place during the (real life) Whitby Goth Weekend, a goth-themed festival based in the picturesque coastal town of Whitby, and timed to coincide with Hallowe'en. As many readers will know, the town of Whitby is closely associated with the legend of Dracula, both as the setting for part of the story and because author Bram Stoker's inspiration for the novel is attributed partly to a holiday he spent in the town during the 1880s.
This case has a deeply personal element for D.C.I. Oldroyd. His daughter Louise calls him to request that he come to Whitby from his base in Harrogate, after a close friend of hers is murdered, a horrifying event to which she was a witness. Louise and five of her friends have travelled from their working lives in London to Whitby for the Goth Weekend, sharing an airbnb and looking forward to a weekend of "partying, dressing up and general fun" (loc.58). The six friends attend a Dracula-themed escape room activity, and it is there that the fun weekend turns to tragedy.
Fortunately for Oldroyd, his superior officer, D.C.S. Walker, is happy to authorise him to take time away from his Harrogate workload to hotfoot it to Whitby at a moment's notice, taking D.S. Stephanie Johnson with him. Not only that, but the officer in charge of the murder investigation, D.I. Alice Granger, is a former colleague and acolyte of Oldroyd's, and is more than happy to accept his unofficial assistance with her investigation, in which his daughter is one of the suspects. It's all a little too cosy to be believable, to be honest...
Balancing her work with her maternal obligations, Granger carries out her official investigation, hampered somewhat by the large goth-visitor population in town. Comparing notes with her as they go, Oldroyd and Johnson meanwhile undertake their own deeper dive into several leads, including searching for the missing prime suspect, interviewing the escape room's rather curious employees while trying to track down its mysterious owner and uncovering a counterfeit jewellery racket in which the victim may or may not have been involved. After Johnson returns to active duty in Harrogate, her colleague and partner, D.S. Andy Carter, heads south to London to probe further into the lives of the victim, her partner and the other members of Louise's circle of friends. All the lines of enquiry eventually converge on the thrilling unmasking of the villain.
I've enjoyed reading each of the instalments in J.R. Ellis's series, and The Whitby Murders was no exception. However, I felt that there was just a little too much going on in terms of intertwined plotlines. I found several of the clues rather heavy-handed and the character behaviour at times completely unbelievable. That said, I felt the core plot of the mystery was well-conceived and the conclusion satisfying. For readers who are willing to suspend disbelief a little, and persevere through the myriad of distractions in terms of alternate suspects and motives, The Whitby Murders is a good, solid detective story in the traditional mould. I look forward to further instalments in the series.
My thanks to the author, J.R. Ellis, publisher Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.
This case has a deeply personal element for D.C.I. Oldroyd. His daughter Louise calls him to request that he come to Whitby from his base in Harrogate, after a close friend of hers is murdered, a horrifying event to which she was a witness. Louise and five of her friends have travelled from their working lives in London to Whitby for the Goth Weekend, sharing an airbnb and looking forward to a weekend of "partying, dressing up and general fun" (loc.58). The six friends attend a Dracula-themed escape room activity, and it is there that the fun weekend turns to tragedy.
Fortunately for Oldroyd, his superior officer, D.C.S. Walker, is happy to authorise him to take time away from his Harrogate workload to hotfoot it to Whitby at a moment's notice, taking D.S. Stephanie Johnson with him. Not only that, but the officer in charge of the murder investigation, D.I. Alice Granger, is a former colleague and acolyte of Oldroyd's, and is more than happy to accept his unofficial assistance with her investigation, in which his daughter is one of the suspects. It's all a little too cosy to be believable, to be honest...
Balancing her work with her maternal obligations, Granger carries out her official investigation, hampered somewhat by the large goth-visitor population in town. Comparing notes with her as they go, Oldroyd and Johnson meanwhile undertake their own deeper dive into several leads, including searching for the missing prime suspect, interviewing the escape room's rather curious employees while trying to track down its mysterious owner and uncovering a counterfeit jewellery racket in which the victim may or may not have been involved. After Johnson returns to active duty in Harrogate, her colleague and partner, D.S. Andy Carter, heads south to London to probe further into the lives of the victim, her partner and the other members of Louise's circle of friends. All the lines of enquiry eventually converge on the thrilling unmasking of the villain.
I've enjoyed reading each of the instalments in J.R. Ellis's series, and The Whitby Murders was no exception. However, I felt that there was just a little too much going on in terms of intertwined plotlines. I found several of the clues rather heavy-handed and the character behaviour at times completely unbelievable. That said, I felt the core plot of the mystery was well-conceived and the conclusion satisfying. For readers who are willing to suspend disbelief a little, and persevere through the myriad of distractions in terms of alternate suspects and motives, The Whitby Murders is a good, solid detective story in the traditional mould. I look forward to further instalments in the series.
My thanks to the author, J.R. Ellis, publisher Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.
May 20, 2021
2.5 stars rounded up (and I'm afraid I'm being generous here)
The town of Whitby, England, makes the most of its connection to the Dracula legend and holds a Goth Weekend each year just before Halloween. Five young friends arrive from London and have reservations to take part in an escape room with a Dracula theme. They are all dressed in goth costumes and are eager to have a good time. But one couple, Andrea and Dominic, seem to be continually arguing and to their friends' horror, Dom pulls out a knife and stabs Andrea, escaping out an emergency exit from the escape room. Police are called and the other three friends give their statements. It seems pretty cut and dried what happened here.
But is it? One of the friends, Louise Oldroyd, has niggling doubts and contacts her father, Detective Chief Inspector Jim Oldroyd. He gets permission to work with the local police who are investigating the case. The rest of the novel is a plodding police procedural.
Unfortunately, it was all too obvious to this reader right from the start what has happened here. The only reason to continue reading is to learn the why. I jumped into this series with book 5 and was eager to read this latest edition. Sadly, it was a disappointment.
I received an arc of this new mystery from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The town of Whitby, England, makes the most of its connection to the Dracula legend and holds a Goth Weekend each year just before Halloween. Five young friends arrive from London and have reservations to take part in an escape room with a Dracula theme. They are all dressed in goth costumes and are eager to have a good time. But one couple, Andrea and Dominic, seem to be continually arguing and to their friends' horror, Dom pulls out a knife and stabs Andrea, escaping out an emergency exit from the escape room. Police are called and the other three friends give their statements. It seems pretty cut and dried what happened here.
But is it? One of the friends, Louise Oldroyd, has niggling doubts and contacts her father, Detective Chief Inspector Jim Oldroyd. He gets permission to work with the local police who are investigating the case. The rest of the novel is a plodding police procedural.
Unfortunately, it was all too obvious to this reader right from the start what has happened here. The only reason to continue reading is to learn the why. I jumped into this series with book 5 and was eager to read this latest edition. Sadly, it was a disappointment.
I received an arc of this new mystery from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
May 27, 2021
The Whitby Murders is the sixth instalment in the Yorkshire Murder Mystery series featuring DCI Jim Oldroyd of Harrogate Police. Set against the backdrop of the seaside town of Whitby, Yorkshire, where the ruined Gothic Whitby Abbey was Bram Stoker’s inspiration for “Dracula” after he took regular holidays in the area in the 1890s; it was even where he started writing the classic masterpiece. Summer has turned to autumn and Oldroyd's daughter Louise and a group of four friends travel from London to spend Halloween at the annual Whitby Goth Weekend, an alternative music festival that transforms the quaint town into a gothic paradise every October. This biannual festival comes to life in both the spring and fall of each year, attracting a plethora of excited goths, steampunks, emos, metallers, bikers and other unique revellers from all over the world. It's a celebration of all sorts of weird and wonderful characters, goth culture and arts. The festival is about drinking, shopping, dancing, and listening to music. Representatives of all subcultures are welcome—goths, punks, bikers, Victorian vampires and steampunk folks. They soon decide to try their luck at a Dracula themed escape room they had made reservations for, but dressed in costumes and ready for a night of fun, the group is concerned and irked when couple Andrea and Dominic spend the night arguing continually culminating in the shocking murder of one of the group. It's then that Oldroyd receives a call from Louise who is both panicked and in shock but it's clear there is also some confusion too.
To their horror, Dom had pulled out a knife and stabbed his girlfriend before making a quick escape through the emergency exit. It's a crime with three eyewitnesses and an abundance of CCTV so it is assumed to be an open and shut case but this is more complex as Louise approaches her father and insists that there was something very wrong with the whole tragic incident. She doesn't believe what she saw. It is out of DCI Oldroyd's jurisdiction but the local police allow him to assist them in their intensive investigation to locate Dom and apprehend him. When the witnesses keep changing their stories, it becomes obvious Louise was on to something. What exactly happened inside that escape room that fateful evening? This is an enthralling and compulsively readable procedural with a multilayered and intricate plot with some clever twists and turns and good use of misdirection. Ellis can be relied upon for his complex and intriguing mysteries - his plotting is cleverly executed and the fact that here we seemingly have witnesses to the brutal murder makes this a little different but no less riveting. As the mystery unravels about the circumstances surrounding Andrea's killing I was utterly gripped and absorbed, and I enjoyed the extra development of the characters. And last but by no means least the setting is a character in itself with the vivid descriptions of the coastal scenery making you long to be there. This is an atmospheric, quick-paced and immersive read from start to finish. Highly recommended.
To their horror, Dom had pulled out a knife and stabbed his girlfriend before making a quick escape through the emergency exit. It's a crime with three eyewitnesses and an abundance of CCTV so it is assumed to be an open and shut case but this is more complex as Louise approaches her father and insists that there was something very wrong with the whole tragic incident. She doesn't believe what she saw. It is out of DCI Oldroyd's jurisdiction but the local police allow him to assist them in their intensive investigation to locate Dom and apprehend him. When the witnesses keep changing their stories, it becomes obvious Louise was on to something. What exactly happened inside that escape room that fateful evening? This is an enthralling and compulsively readable procedural with a multilayered and intricate plot with some clever twists and turns and good use of misdirection. Ellis can be relied upon for his complex and intriguing mysteries - his plotting is cleverly executed and the fact that here we seemingly have witnesses to the brutal murder makes this a little different but no less riveting. As the mystery unravels about the circumstances surrounding Andrea's killing I was utterly gripped and absorbed, and I enjoyed the extra development of the characters. And last but by no means least the setting is a character in itself with the vivid descriptions of the coastal scenery making you long to be there. This is an atmospheric, quick-paced and immersive read from start to finish. Highly recommended.
May 25, 2021
The Whitby Murders is the sixth book in the DCI Oldroyd series set in Yorkshire, and unfortunately the one I’ve enjoyed the least. These all work as stand-alone mysteries although you do gradually learn more about the detectives and their families as the series goes on. While I did like the premise of a murder committed during a “goth weekend” in Whitby (these are real events - have a look at Google images!) and the Dracula history, the plot and the police investigation were literally unbelievable and the writing, exposition and dialogue were all clunky, tiresome and repetitive.
Oldroyd is alarmed and upset to receive a call from his young adult daughter Louise, who has witnessed one of her good friends stab his girlfriend during a Dracula themed Escape Room game, then run off. She can’t understand or believe it so asks him to investigate, and fortunately the detective in charge is a former colleague so happily agrees to his involvement. Looking into the group of friends, Oldroyd and his team discover their secrets and past resentments, but what could motivate such an elaborate murder?
These books are all old-fashioned locked room-type mysteries set in modern times (although with no mention of covid), with complicated and often convoluted criminal plots unravelled Poirot-style, with all revealed at the end by a Scooby-Doo-like villain - complete with a “if it weren’t for those ***** kids” rant! Elements that I have indulged previously annoyed me more this time: if you’re going to use an omniscient narrator who knows everyone’s thought processes, we should learn the detectives’ deductions as he goes along, rather than have them all painstakingly explained at the end. I found it preposterous that a prolonged criminal investigation to a multiply witnessed murder would be pursued in various jurisdictions because of a mere hunch, especially once the perpetrator is found. Also that the police would allow civilians - some witnesses - to take part in the investigation, and not use modern technology like tracing a cellphone!
The procedural parts dragged as characters are interviewed then the findings gone over again in conversations amongst the team, there’s an awful lot of repetition. Many of the characters’ names are too similar - Granger & Garner, Morton, Hampton & Hinton, Walker & Watkins - I was grateful for my kindle search button as I had to keep checking who was who. Also there are too many scenes of Oldroyd’s personal life - we don’t need to hear about every walk on the beach with his girlfriend - and what’s the obsession with his weight and the women in his life controlling what he’s allowed to eat?! On the plus side, I didn’t guess the who, why or how and the plot was explained satisfactorily with most loose ends wrapped up. I liked the descriptions of Whitby and the way Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel was woven in - I have read it but had forgotten much of the plot. I like the ongoing series characters and the way they are allowed to have mostly normal happy relationships without too much drama - I just don’t need as much detail!
Overall this was Okay but not great - if you like this type of Golden Age-inspired crime, I do recommend the earlier books in the series rather than starting with this one - also for fans of Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks series which this also resembles (in a good way.) I probably will continue the series in the hope that some of these issues are eminently fixable.
Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon UK for the ARC which allowed me to give an honest review.
The Whitby Murders is published on May 27th.
Oldroyd is alarmed and upset to receive a call from his young adult daughter Louise, who has witnessed one of her good friends stab his girlfriend during a Dracula themed Escape Room game, then run off. She can’t understand or believe it so asks him to investigate, and fortunately the detective in charge is a former colleague so happily agrees to his involvement. Looking into the group of friends, Oldroyd and his team discover their secrets and past resentments, but what could motivate such an elaborate murder?
These books are all old-fashioned locked room-type mysteries set in modern times (although with no mention of covid), with complicated and often convoluted criminal plots unravelled Poirot-style, with all revealed at the end by a Scooby-Doo-like villain - complete with a “if it weren’t for those ***** kids” rant! Elements that I have indulged previously annoyed me more this time: if you’re going to use an omniscient narrator who knows everyone’s thought processes, we should learn the detectives’ deductions as he goes along, rather than have them all painstakingly explained at the end. I found it preposterous that a prolonged criminal investigation to a multiply witnessed murder would be pursued in various jurisdictions because of a mere hunch, especially once the perpetrator is found. Also that the police would allow civilians - some witnesses - to take part in the investigation, and not use modern technology like tracing a cellphone!
The procedural parts dragged as characters are interviewed then the findings gone over again in conversations amongst the team, there’s an awful lot of repetition. Many of the characters’ names are too similar - Granger & Garner, Morton, Hampton & Hinton, Walker & Watkins - I was grateful for my kindle search button as I had to keep checking who was who. Also there are too many scenes of Oldroyd’s personal life - we don’t need to hear about every walk on the beach with his girlfriend - and what’s the obsession with his weight and the women in his life controlling what he’s allowed to eat?! On the plus side, I didn’t guess the who, why or how and the plot was explained satisfactorily with most loose ends wrapped up. I liked the descriptions of Whitby and the way Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel was woven in - I have read it but had forgotten much of the plot. I like the ongoing series characters and the way they are allowed to have mostly normal happy relationships without too much drama - I just don’t need as much detail!
Overall this was Okay but not great - if you like this type of Golden Age-inspired crime, I do recommend the earlier books in the series rather than starting with this one - also for fans of Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks series which this also resembles (in a good way.) I probably will continue the series in the hope that some of these issues are eminently fixable.
Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon UK for the ARC which allowed me to give an honest review.
The Whitby Murders is published on May 27th.
November 2, 2021
Genre: Gothic Murder Mystery
Publishers: Amazon Publishing
Pub. May 27, 2021
Mini-Review
My 2021 Halloween read was a colossal blunder. I have never been a fan of murder mystery series books, I usually find them predictable. But, I still had not read this year's spooky story. As a result, I started this book on October 31st because the setting revolves around a Dracula escape room at a Goth festival near Halloween. I have enjoyed the suspense in other escape room novels. This isn't one of them. The plot was fine, but the characters were one-dimensional, and the writing was flaccid and clumsy. Plus, it irritated me that the detective had to explain his thoughts throughout the novel as the murder did in the ending.
I received this Advance Review Copy (ARC) novel from the publisher at no cost in exchange for an honest review.
Find all my book reviews at:
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https://www.facebook.com/martie.neesr…
https://twitter.com/NeesRecord\
https://www.instagram.com/martie6947/
https://www.amazon.com/
Publishers: Amazon Publishing
Pub. May 27, 2021
Mini-Review
My 2021 Halloween read was a colossal blunder. I have never been a fan of murder mystery series books, I usually find them predictable. But, I still had not read this year's spooky story. As a result, I started this book on October 31st because the setting revolves around a Dracula escape room at a Goth festival near Halloween. I have enjoyed the suspense in other escape room novels. This isn't one of them. The plot was fine, but the characters were one-dimensional, and the writing was flaccid and clumsy. Plus, it irritated me that the detective had to explain his thoughts throughout the novel as the murder did in the ending.
I received this Advance Review Copy (ARC) novel from the publisher at no cost in exchange for an honest review.
Find all my book reviews at:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list…
https://books6259.wordpress.com/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/review…
https://www.facebook.com/martie.neesr…
https://twitter.com/NeesRecord\
https://www.instagram.com/martie6947/
https://www.amazon.com/
December 30, 2021
This was an excellent police procedural which touches the soul.
What a charming and refreshing mystery this was. I was captivated by the Whitby setting, famous for its Bram Stoker, "Dracula" connection. The story is set in mid October during a Goth-themed weekend. There's a group of friends which engage in a goth-themed escape room event. Unfortunately, not everyone makes it out of the room alive. The murder looks rather cut and dry at first blush but is it? One of the group members thinks there's something a bit odd about the goings on and contacts her dad, DCI James Oldroyd, requesting that he review the case for himself. Oldroyd is highly respected and admired by his colleagues for his amazing ability to resolve the most difficult of cases. He is thoroughly committed to his job and can never seem to turn off his analytic brain when it comes to solving a mystery. That's great for the police department but a bit rough on his loved ones. There's a tremendous depth to his character. On one side, he's incredibly good at his police work without any display of arrogance. He is a leader by example. Yet, there is also a touch of humility and introspection to his character.
The writing is solid and well based in historical facts related to the region in which the story takes place. There are touches of poetry throughout the book and at times the dialogue is a touch philosophic. The cast of characters is tremendous and well developed. The pace is steady up until the last quarter of the book at which point the urgency accelerates and one's heartbeat rises, with the story resolving into a satisfactory conclusion when all is said and done.
This is the sixth book of the Yorkshire Murder Mystery series, It can, however, stand well enough on its own and not leave the reader lost in missing details fleshed out in previous installments. I have read three of the series' books and will eventually get caught up on the others as the series is quite good.
I am grateful to publisher Thomas & Mercer for having provided a complimentary electronic copy of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication date: May 27, 2021
No. of pages: 283
ISBN: 9781542017466
What a charming and refreshing mystery this was. I was captivated by the Whitby setting, famous for its Bram Stoker, "Dracula" connection. The story is set in mid October during a Goth-themed weekend. There's a group of friends which engage in a goth-themed escape room event. Unfortunately, not everyone makes it out of the room alive. The murder looks rather cut and dry at first blush but is it? One of the group members thinks there's something a bit odd about the goings on and contacts her dad, DCI James Oldroyd, requesting that he review the case for himself. Oldroyd is highly respected and admired by his colleagues for his amazing ability to resolve the most difficult of cases. He is thoroughly committed to his job and can never seem to turn off his analytic brain when it comes to solving a mystery. That's great for the police department but a bit rough on his loved ones. There's a tremendous depth to his character. On one side, he's incredibly good at his police work without any display of arrogance. He is a leader by example. Yet, there is also a touch of humility and introspection to his character.
The writing is solid and well based in historical facts related to the region in which the story takes place. There are touches of poetry throughout the book and at times the dialogue is a touch philosophic. The cast of characters is tremendous and well developed. The pace is steady up until the last quarter of the book at which point the urgency accelerates and one's heartbeat rises, with the story resolving into a satisfactory conclusion when all is said and done.
This is the sixth book of the Yorkshire Murder Mystery series, It can, however, stand well enough on its own and not leave the reader lost in missing details fleshed out in previous installments. I have read three of the series' books and will eventually get caught up on the others as the series is quite good.
I am grateful to publisher Thomas & Mercer for having provided a complimentary electronic copy of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication date: May 27, 2021
No. of pages: 283
ISBN: 9781542017466
May 9, 2021
I had read the first two of Ellis’s “Yorkshire Murder Mystery” series, and they were pretty good, especially for a first-time novelist. But this is the sixth one installment, which came as an ARE, so I’ve skipped three books -- and I honestly don’t quite know what to make of it. By the time an author gets this far into a continuing series, one expects a smoother style, the result of experience, right? But he had that already with his first book. And in certain ways, this one reads like it might have been his debut work.
The story this time is set in Whitby, the small, ancient port town in north Yorkshire, which is famous both for its 7th Century abbey and as the location of much of the action in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. In fact, a number of British literary figures spent time in Whitby, and the town has capitalized on his fame in that regard by hosting the Whitby Goth Weekend twice every year, where aficionados of Goth and steampunk culture come to dress up and do their thing. And that’s the background for the murder witnessed by Louise, daughter of DCI Jim Oldroyd, head of CID at Harrogate, as one of her best friends stabs another of her best friends in a local “escape room.”
It all seems very straightforward to the rest of the shocked group of young people, all of whom have come up from London for the festivities, and also to Defective Inspector Granger of Whitby. But something it all feels wrong to Louise, so she calls Dad and begs him to come over to Whitby and look into things, even though it’s decidedly not his patch. Granger, however, had be trained by Oldroyd and is delighted to be able to work with him again, so Dad is there like a shot. And the plot thickens, and thickens, and thickens again, with more than a few herrings strewn redly about.
It’s not the plot that’s the problem, though. It’s the way DCI Oldroyd, who has vast experience and a sterling reputation, seems to nearly lose it at numerous pints in the investigation. He’s practically in tears every time he thinks about his (grown) daughter involved in a murder case. That sort of reaction is simply not credible for a senior copper. He would have developed a much tougher shell than that, even when family is involved, or he would never have risen so high.
There are also assorted problems with the author’s narrative choices, as when, during the “knocking on doors and talking to people” phase of the investigation, he describes what each of Oldroyd’s team is doing -- and then has them repeat, in detail, to their boss what they’ve found out (and which the reader has just read a few pages earlier) -- and then has them repeat it all again as they compare notes among themselves. That’s a classic novice’s error, and one Ellis avoided in his first two books. So why does he commit it now? It’s a puzzle. This is a pretty good story with a nicely constructed plot, but the author is in need of a sit-down with his editor.
The story this time is set in Whitby, the small, ancient port town in north Yorkshire, which is famous both for its 7th Century abbey and as the location of much of the action in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. In fact, a number of British literary figures spent time in Whitby, and the town has capitalized on his fame in that regard by hosting the Whitby Goth Weekend twice every year, where aficionados of Goth and steampunk culture come to dress up and do their thing. And that’s the background for the murder witnessed by Louise, daughter of DCI Jim Oldroyd, head of CID at Harrogate, as one of her best friends stabs another of her best friends in a local “escape room.”
It all seems very straightforward to the rest of the shocked group of young people, all of whom have come up from London for the festivities, and also to Defective Inspector Granger of Whitby. But something it all feels wrong to Louise, so she calls Dad and begs him to come over to Whitby and look into things, even though it’s decidedly not his patch. Granger, however, had be trained by Oldroyd and is delighted to be able to work with him again, so Dad is there like a shot. And the plot thickens, and thickens, and thickens again, with more than a few herrings strewn redly about.
It’s not the plot that’s the problem, though. It’s the way DCI Oldroyd, who has vast experience and a sterling reputation, seems to nearly lose it at numerous pints in the investigation. He’s practically in tears every time he thinks about his (grown) daughter involved in a murder case. That sort of reaction is simply not credible for a senior copper. He would have developed a much tougher shell than that, even when family is involved, or he would never have risen so high.
There are also assorted problems with the author’s narrative choices, as when, during the “knocking on doors and talking to people” phase of the investigation, he describes what each of Oldroyd’s team is doing -- and then has them repeat, in detail, to their boss what they’ve found out (and which the reader has just read a few pages earlier) -- and then has them repeat it all again as they compare notes among themselves. That’s a classic novice’s error, and one Ellis avoided in his first two books. So why does he commit it now? It’s a puzzle. This is a pretty good story with a nicely constructed plot, but the author is in need of a sit-down with his editor.
June 21, 2021
The only thing I liked about this book was the location. I adore Whitby. I could picture the settings very clearly in my mind. Sadly, I disliked just about everything else.
My mother is prone to watching third-rate TV police dramas in the afternoons. This book reads like one of those. I suspected it was a first novel or something in the 'fan fiction' genre because the writing was so plodding, clunky and 'tell-don't-show'. I'm astonished to discover that this author has been writing for many years.
I love this genre (normally) but I lean towards the more literary end of crime fiction - Val McDermid, Kate Atkinson, et al - and this was just too simplistic, too obvious and irritating. At the end, the killer comes clean in a big "I'd have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for those pesky kids" which seemed to have been taken straight out of an episode of Scooby Doo. Why would any murderer explain their actions in such detail? Don't they know that juries still make mistakes and he might have 'gotten away with it' if he didn't tell this bumbling policeman every little trick in the book?
Very poor. Sorry but I just can't recommend it.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers.
My mother is prone to watching third-rate TV police dramas in the afternoons. This book reads like one of those. I suspected it was a first novel or something in the 'fan fiction' genre because the writing was so plodding, clunky and 'tell-don't-show'. I'm astonished to discover that this author has been writing for many years.
I love this genre (normally) but I lean towards the more literary end of crime fiction - Val McDermid, Kate Atkinson, et al - and this was just too simplistic, too obvious and irritating. At the end, the killer comes clean in a big "I'd have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for those pesky kids" which seemed to have been taken straight out of an episode of Scooby Doo. Why would any murderer explain their actions in such detail? Don't they know that juries still make mistakes and he might have 'gotten away with it' if he didn't tell this bumbling policeman every little trick in the book?
Very poor. Sorry but I just can't recommend it.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers.
May 22, 2021
It’s Halloween in Whitby & DCI Jim Oldroyd’s daughter Louise is in town with friends for the goth festival. Their visit takes an unexpected turn when an escape room ends in murder when one of the group stabs his girlfriend and flees the scene. It’s a crime with three witnesses but Louise refuses to take what she saw at face value. She calls her father & he gets permission, along with DS Carter, to help solve the case, assisted from the sidelines by Louise. This is no straightforward crime of passion.
This is the sixth book in the series & another well written book but I had to suspend belief that Oldroyd & his sergeant would be able to go & investigate. However I did enjoy the twists & turns plus the red herrings & I was kept guessing as to the motive. I would prefer more character development but the books are all about the plot & they certainly deliver on this. I loved the setting of Whitby & brought back many fond memories of time spent there
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
This is the sixth book in the series & another well written book but I had to suspend belief that Oldroyd & his sergeant would be able to go & investigate. However I did enjoy the twists & turns plus the red herrings & I was kept guessing as to the motive. I would prefer more character development but the books are all about the plot & they certainly deliver on this. I loved the setting of Whitby & brought back many fond memories of time spent there
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
November 4, 2021
A group of friends meet up for a fun weekend at a Goth Festival, but things turn dark when on friend kills his girlfriend and then flees.
It's a crime with three witnesses ... and one of them refuses to believe in what she actually saw.
It's a locked room mystery with a murky atmosphere surrounding all. The plot is complex and the pace is very slow. The characters are well developed. I always look for a bit of credibility when crimes are committed. I found a few things that had me stretching my imagination. The 'who' seems to have been revealed early .. the 'why' took a little longer. Although 6th in the series, this can easily be read as a stand alone.
Many thanks to the author / Amazon Publishing UK / Netgalley for the digital copy of this murder mystery. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
It's a crime with three witnesses ... and one of them refuses to believe in what she actually saw.
It's a locked room mystery with a murky atmosphere surrounding all. The plot is complex and the pace is very slow. The characters are well developed. I always look for a bit of credibility when crimes are committed. I found a few things that had me stretching my imagination. The 'who' seems to have been revealed early .. the 'why' took a little longer. Although 6th in the series, this can easily be read as a stand alone.
Many thanks to the author / Amazon Publishing UK / Netgalley for the digital copy of this murder mystery. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
October 17, 2022
I think this is maybe the fourth or fifth book I have read from this series and I liked this one more than the previous reads. It is getting close to Halloween, and the location, Yorkshire's town of Whitby, is known for Stokes/Dracula, etc.
DCI Jim Oldroyd's daughter Louise and friends are partying in the Goth tradition in airbnb accommodations whilst he is enjoying a break with his second wife in the same town. Thus the tale begins with good cheer and everyone in a celebratory mood until a violent death interrupts the festivities.
A detailed account of police investigations follows.
Kindle Unlimited
DCI Jim Oldroyd's daughter Louise and friends are partying in the Goth tradition in airbnb accommodations whilst he is enjoying a break with his second wife in the same town. Thus the tale begins with good cheer and everyone in a celebratory mood until a violent death interrupts the festivities.
A detailed account of police investigations follows.
Kindle Unlimited
June 10, 2021
The plot was way to easy if you read a lot of mysteries as I do. Not a challenging who done it. I might try one more book by this author to see if it's any better.
September 1, 2023
This book is shit.
No but seriously, I only read this because 1) I was going to be in Whitby this weekend, and 2) because it was 99p, but the story is one of the most one-dimensional books I’ve ever read.
The characters are completely devoid of emotion and speak like robots (it’s honestly laughable how bad some of the interactions and dialogue are - on one occasion they are talking like colleagues at lunch after their friend is murdered, which is completely backwards), and the plot hasn’t really got anything to it either.
It all feels a bit like a crap advertisement for Whitby, which does it no favours other than highlight that it is indeed a place in Yorkshire. In my mind, this is what terrible daytime detective shows are like if translated purely into book form - I shall be avoiding these with extreme prejudice in the future.
No but seriously, I only read this because 1) I was going to be in Whitby this weekend, and 2) because it was 99p, but the story is one of the most one-dimensional books I’ve ever read.
The characters are completely devoid of emotion and speak like robots (it’s honestly laughable how bad some of the interactions and dialogue are - on one occasion they are talking like colleagues at lunch after their friend is murdered, which is completely backwards), and the plot hasn’t really got anything to it either.
It all feels a bit like a crap advertisement for Whitby, which does it no favours other than highlight that it is indeed a place in Yorkshire. In my mind, this is what terrible daytime detective shows are like if translated purely into book form - I shall be avoiding these with extreme prejudice in the future.
April 27, 2021
I would like to thank Netgalley and Amazon Publishing UK for an advance copy of The Whitby Murders, the sixth novel to feature DCI Jim Oldroyd of the Harrogate Police.
Oldroyd’s daughter, Louise, and her friends are in Whitby for the Goth Weekend and to kick things off they visit the local escape room. Once there things don’t as planned when their friend, Dominic, stabs his girlfriend, Andrea, and runs off. With three witnesses and CCTV the case seems cut and dried, but Louise has doubts and asks her dad to investigate.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Whitby Murders, which has an intricate plot with plenty of misdirection. I must admit that I guessed some of how it was done, probably a first for me in this series, but I had no idea about the perpetrator or the motive.
I like this series for the plots as they are real brain teasers, offering ingenious and sometimes convoluted solutions to seemingly impossible crimes. This novel is slightly different with its immediate suspect and eye witness accounts, although as any true crime aficionado knows eye witnesses are notoriously unreliable, and is more a question of unravelling what exactly happened and why. It is fun trying to outwit a devious killer and I found the mystery gripping and compulsive.
It must be said that the plot is the only thing in this novel worth raving about. The characters are rather one dimensional and the dialogue rather saccharine with all the praise and mutual support going on. I lie, this novel has given me a strong urge to visit Whitby, although maybe not on Goth Weekend (I left that kind of thing behind in the 80s and feel too old to revisit). It sounds like a lovely part of the country with an interesting history.
The Whitby Murders is a good read that I can recommend.
Oldroyd’s daughter, Louise, and her friends are in Whitby for the Goth Weekend and to kick things off they visit the local escape room. Once there things don’t as planned when their friend, Dominic, stabs his girlfriend, Andrea, and runs off. With three witnesses and CCTV the case seems cut and dried, but Louise has doubts and asks her dad to investigate.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Whitby Murders, which has an intricate plot with plenty of misdirection. I must admit that I guessed some of how it was done, probably a first for me in this series, but I had no idea about the perpetrator or the motive.
I like this series for the plots as they are real brain teasers, offering ingenious and sometimes convoluted solutions to seemingly impossible crimes. This novel is slightly different with its immediate suspect and eye witness accounts, although as any true crime aficionado knows eye witnesses are notoriously unreliable, and is more a question of unravelling what exactly happened and why. It is fun trying to outwit a devious killer and I found the mystery gripping and compulsive.
It must be said that the plot is the only thing in this novel worth raving about. The characters are rather one dimensional and the dialogue rather saccharine with all the praise and mutual support going on. I lie, this novel has given me a strong urge to visit Whitby, although maybe not on Goth Weekend (I left that kind of thing behind in the 80s and feel too old to revisit). It sounds like a lovely part of the country with an interesting history.
The Whitby Murders is a good read that I can recommend.
July 14, 2021
I suppose at times, this is just the way things go: I've had two DNFs in a row. This time, it's The Whitby Murders.
Unlike the last one on my DNF list, this one didn't have a huge number of characters flung at the reader in the first few chapters, so it wasn't that. No, it was the writing, which I didn't like. At all; Why?
First, it's just meh.It's easy enough to read, don't get me wrong, but there's just no pizazz to it. It's a very dry recitation of what's going on and what the characters are saying and feeling. It feels to me to be a bit amateurishly written, and the head hopping within the same chapter, in my opinion, should have been edited to at least contain each head in its own chapter. There is also a great deal of repetition of things. The ream investigating the crime lays out some information they've found. Then they have to lay it out for everyone. Then they go over it again. That sort of thing made me skim here and there, and I stopped at 60% on my Fire.
Second, in dialogue, people are often doing something while they speak ("Blah blah blah," she said, smiling at him.) or there are far too many descriptors after the dialogue that are entirely unnecessary if the character's mood can be discerned from what they're actually doing. Example: a woman and a man, who are a couple, are having some kind of argument. ("Suit yourself then!" Dominic shouted aggressively, and hung at the back of he group, apparently in a sulk..) Do we really need to know that he shouted "aggressively? Aren't most people aggressive when they shout? This was the last in a round of dialogue involving two people.. There are only four exchanges, and we have "shrieked", "said", "replied", and aforementioned aggressive shouting.
Three, there are a huge number of filter words in this. The latter example above is a good one. "Apparently" in a sulk? "So and so looked bewildered" - how? Raised eyebrows? Furrrowed brow? "No, Dad, no!" Louise was getting increasingly agitated and her voice was getting louder." We got the louder part - she is, after all, shouting. And if she's getting agitated, how do we know this? There is a bit of back and forth with her father, and at a time when dialogue tags could be helpful, along with some kind of descriptor. But there is nothing that indicates she's getting wound up. Is she pacing? Fidgeting in her seat? Don't know!
Four, there is a large amount of telling versus showing. This also involves filter words, but applies as well to the author telling how someone feels versus showing us, or just giving us an infodump about a character. For example, the "apparently in a sulk" business. Who is making this determination? How could they tell he was "apparently in a sulk"? What exactly was he doing when he was hanging at the back of the group? When we get an infodump, we really do not need to know virtually everything about them right at that moment in a narration. Show us what they're doing to assign them the characteristics you want them to have. That will let the reader draw a fuller picture of the characters, and even if those conclusions are not what you planned, they will at least not be cardboard cutouts.
Five, there are certain things that have to be taken with a giant grain of salt. Senior DI able to just walk out of his office after getting his daughters call, and head to the town she's staying, and taking a DS with him? Red herrings presented (good) but being cleared up in a page or two (bad)? The police continue to investigate a murder with not just eyewitnesses but video as well that backs them up, because of a gut feeling the daughter has? That all seems unlikely, as does the DCI father seemingly on the verge of tears whenever he thinks about his daughter close to the murder. He's a veteran police officer. Why is he on the verge of tears about this all the time? We also get a great deal of narration about his personal life that adds nothing to the overall story.
Again, sorry for the DNF on this.
Two stars out of five (rounded down from 2.5 stars).
Thanks to Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the reading copy.
Unlike the last one on my DNF list, this one didn't have a huge number of characters flung at the reader in the first few chapters, so it wasn't that. No, it was the writing, which I didn't like. At all; Why?
First, it's just meh.It's easy enough to read, don't get me wrong, but there's just no pizazz to it. It's a very dry recitation of what's going on and what the characters are saying and feeling. It feels to me to be a bit amateurishly written, and the head hopping within the same chapter, in my opinion, should have been edited to at least contain each head in its own chapter. There is also a great deal of repetition of things. The ream investigating the crime lays out some information they've found. Then they have to lay it out for everyone. Then they go over it again. That sort of thing made me skim here and there, and I stopped at 60% on my Fire.
Second, in dialogue, people are often doing something while they speak ("Blah blah blah," she said, smiling at him.) or there are far too many descriptors after the dialogue that are entirely unnecessary if the character's mood can be discerned from what they're actually doing. Example: a woman and a man, who are a couple, are having some kind of argument. ("Suit yourself then!" Dominic shouted aggressively, and hung at the back of he group, apparently in a sulk..) Do we really need to know that he shouted "aggressively? Aren't most people aggressive when they shout? This was the last in a round of dialogue involving two people.. There are only four exchanges, and we have "shrieked", "said", "replied", and aforementioned aggressive shouting.
Three, there are a huge number of filter words in this. The latter example above is a good one. "Apparently" in a sulk? "So and so looked bewildered" - how? Raised eyebrows? Furrrowed brow? "No, Dad, no!" Louise was getting increasingly agitated and her voice was getting louder." We got the louder part - she is, after all, shouting. And if she's getting agitated, how do we know this? There is a bit of back and forth with her father, and at a time when dialogue tags could be helpful, along with some kind of descriptor. But there is nothing that indicates she's getting wound up. Is she pacing? Fidgeting in her seat? Don't know!
Four, there is a large amount of telling versus showing. This also involves filter words, but applies as well to the author telling how someone feels versus showing us, or just giving us an infodump about a character. For example, the "apparently in a sulk" business. Who is making this determination? How could they tell he was "apparently in a sulk"? What exactly was he doing when he was hanging at the back of the group? When we get an infodump, we really do not need to know virtually everything about them right at that moment in a narration. Show us what they're doing to assign them the characteristics you want them to have. That will let the reader draw a fuller picture of the characters, and even if those conclusions are not what you planned, they will at least not be cardboard cutouts.
Five, there are certain things that have to be taken with a giant grain of salt. Senior DI able to just walk out of his office after getting his daughters call, and head to the town she's staying, and taking a DS with him? Red herrings presented (good) but being cleared up in a page or two (bad)? The police continue to investigate a murder with not just eyewitnesses but video as well that backs them up, because of a gut feeling the daughter has? That all seems unlikely, as does the DCI father seemingly on the verge of tears whenever he thinks about his daughter close to the murder. He's a veteran police officer. Why is he on the verge of tears about this all the time? We also get a great deal of narration about his personal life that adds nothing to the overall story.
Again, sorry for the DNF on this.
Two stars out of five (rounded down from 2.5 stars).
Thanks to Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the reading copy.
July 4, 2021
I picked up the first of the Yorkshire Mystery series on a recommendation from Amazon, and I’ve been enjoying the series since. I don’t think that The Whitby Murders is the strongest volume in the series, but it’s still worth a read. So, If you’re new to the series, I might start with the earlier books, in order to be more familiar with the characters, and also because they’re a little bit better than this one. That’s not to say that this is terrible, though. I did enjoy the characters and setting -- Dracula and Goth Weekend are right up my alley, and I love “locked room” type mysteries. I just enjoyed the earlier books in the series more.
March 28, 2023
3.5 stars
The book started out with a Dracula reference and I had a mental record-scratch moment.
I honestly did a double take of the start just to make sure I wasn't imagining or something.
I mean. Come. OOOOON. You throw Dracula references and goth culture at an actual goth who is also a vampire nerd - in a normal mystery book? I almost squealed with delight.
This initial joy got a bit tarnished as the book progressed without the goth aspect becoming anything else than an exotic backdrop of weirdness and dress-up though.
I rolled my eyes at the "normies" trash talking the whole thing more than once, but... Ahh. Whatever. It is what it is - and the book was still mostly fun.
However - and this is a big one.
There was this one thing - one character - that just didn't fit in from the start.
Everything with this one character was off and wrong from the start. AND this person was also the only one with constant opportunity.
Thus ... I mean ... It was so obvious I at first couldn't believe it.
The previous Yorkshire Murder Mysteries have all pretty much felt like Oldroyd pulls the murderer out of a hat, based upon zero evidence or nothing else than Oldroyd's sudden insight, exclusive to him alone.
But in this book, I was miles ahead of Oldroyd and kept waiting for him to catch up enough to tell me why it was done.
Turned out, the motive isn't a solid one. (Unless you count madness into the mix.)
That one is never a favourite of mine, but ... Yeah. I guess it'll do.
I would have rated the book 4 stars if it weren't for the fact that I saw who the murderer was way, way too soon.
It was very elementary, dear Watson, to say the least - and a bit of a disappointment.
But I will probably check back in for book 7 eventually.
The book started out with a Dracula reference and I had a mental record-scratch moment.
I honestly did a double take of the start just to make sure I wasn't imagining or something.
I mean. Come. OOOOON. You throw Dracula references and goth culture at an actual goth who is also a vampire nerd - in a normal mystery book? I almost squealed with delight.
This initial joy got a bit tarnished as the book progressed without the goth aspect becoming anything else than an exotic backdrop of weirdness and dress-up though.
I rolled my eyes at the "normies" trash talking the whole thing more than once, but... Ahh. Whatever. It is what it is - and the book was still mostly fun.
However - and this is a big one.
There was this one thing - one character - that just didn't fit in from the start.
Everything with this one character was off and wrong from the start. AND this person was also the only one with constant opportunity.
Thus ... I mean ... It was so obvious I at first couldn't believe it.
The previous Yorkshire Murder Mysteries have all pretty much felt like Oldroyd pulls the murderer out of a hat, based upon zero evidence or nothing else than Oldroyd's sudden insight, exclusive to him alone.
But in this book, I was miles ahead of Oldroyd and kept waiting for him to catch up enough to tell me why it was done.
Turned out, the motive isn't a solid one. (Unless you count madness into the mix.)
That one is never a favourite of mine, but ... Yeah. I guess it'll do.
I would have rated the book 4 stars if it weren't for the fact that I saw who the murderer was way, way too soon.
It was very elementary, dear Watson, to say the least - and a bit of a disappointment.
But I will probably check back in for book 7 eventually.
July 11, 2025
The Yorkshire Murder Mysteries continue to be a real treat for me.
The setting is one of the strongest points of the sixth instalment: The Whitby Murders . Whitby during Goth Week and Halloween offers the perfect atmosphere for a slightly spooky mystery. I especially enjoyed the allusions and references to Dracula, from the arrival of the Demeter to the eerie presence of the abbey overlooking the town.
The protagonist remains one of the highlights of the series. DCI Jim Oldroyd is calm, intelligent, and remarkably dry-witted. I like his fondness for English classics, which frequently provide him with the spark for a key deduction.
Although I found it fairly easy to fathom out who the culprit behind the Whitby case was, the mystery is still well paced. The red herrings and twists kept things interesting and made me question the motivations driving the murders.
All in all, an enjoyable read. My only reservation is that this book, like the previous ones, is a bit too cosy for my taste. Nevertheless, I’ll be happy to continue with the series.
The setting is one of the strongest points of the sixth instalment: The Whitby Murders . Whitby during Goth Week and Halloween offers the perfect atmosphere for a slightly spooky mystery. I especially enjoyed the allusions and references to Dracula, from the arrival of the Demeter to the eerie presence of the abbey overlooking the town.
The protagonist remains one of the highlights of the series. DCI Jim Oldroyd is calm, intelligent, and remarkably dry-witted. I like his fondness for English classics, which frequently provide him with the spark for a key deduction.
Although I found it fairly easy to fathom out who the culprit behind the Whitby case was, the mystery is still well paced. The red herrings and twists kept things interesting and made me question the motivations driving the murders.
All in all, an enjoyable read. My only reservation is that this book, like the previous ones, is a bit too cosy for my taste. Nevertheless, I’ll be happy to continue with the series.
November 6, 2025
3,5 stars
I'd started this a while back, but it just too perfect not to finish around this time of year.
While I can't say I was always a fan of the writing still I still found it well worth my time.
I'd started this a while back, but it just too perfect not to finish around this time of year.
While I can't say I was always a fan of the writing still I still found it well worth my time.
June 15, 2023
The most interesting part of this book is the location of the crime. It happens in an escape room during goth week in the seaside town of Whitby in Yorkshire. Whitby is the location of the majority of the book Dracula by Bram Stoker.
Opposite to the other books in this series, the murder is not a mystery, it seems cut and dry. But of course, things are not quite as they seem.
Opposite to the other books in this series, the murder is not a mystery, it seems cut and dry. But of course, things are not quite as they seem.
October 17, 2025
Great read enhanced by details of the wonderful Whitby. A fabulous series so far.
November 19, 2022
A good book that kept me guessing to the end.
October 12, 2022
Although its quite a while since I read the previous book of this series, I soon started remembering the background stories of the chief characters.
I don't really know why DCI Oldroyd reminded me of Jack Warner as PC Dixon, as their police roles were very different and what would Dixon of Dock Green make of today's Police Force? Perhaps its the elderly, comfortable, reliable policeman that they both portrayed.
Whitby, on the North Yorkshire coast is a small fishing town noted for two other things. The first is Dracula (being a name that Bram Stoker saw in the local library and gave it to his famous vampire and he set most of the story here). The second is the black gem stone called Whitby Jet that is found around here.
Both feature in this tale as Oldroyd is drawn away from his base in Harrogate by a call from his daughter whose reunion with a few college friends is interrupted by a death. I suppose that this could be classed as a locked room mystery and it has only a small cast of characters.
I think that I worked out the how but not the who or the why.
A nice steady comfortable read which brought back memories of several trips to the town and also of the large portions of fish and chips at The Seagull Cafe.
I don't really know why DCI Oldroyd reminded me of Jack Warner as PC Dixon, as their police roles were very different and what would Dixon of Dock Green make of today's Police Force? Perhaps its the elderly, comfortable, reliable policeman that they both portrayed.
Whitby, on the North Yorkshire coast is a small fishing town noted for two other things. The first is Dracula (being a name that Bram Stoker saw in the local library and gave it to his famous vampire and he set most of the story here). The second is the black gem stone called Whitby Jet that is found around here.
Both feature in this tale as Oldroyd is drawn away from his base in Harrogate by a call from his daughter whose reunion with a few college friends is interrupted by a death. I suppose that this could be classed as a locked room mystery and it has only a small cast of characters.
I think that I worked out the how but not the who or the why.
A nice steady comfortable read which brought back memories of several trips to the town and also of the large portions of fish and chips at The Seagull Cafe.
June 5, 2021
There were many things I enjoyed about this book but it was not my favorite of a series that I truly love. The first half of the book, although based on an interesting premise of the seaside town where Count Dracula came to England and the vampire themed escape room, I thought it was a little lackluster. It seemed to lack the usual enthusiasm and Yorkshire history and color. The second half of the book picked up with more mystery, complicated plot and character development and as usual, the final solution centered on smoke and mirrors. Oldroyd of course if famous for solving impossible murders that involve deception, lies and illusion. This case was special because his daughter was involved and it also developed the relationship between Oldroyd and his new love interest. I just did not feel the same excitement in reading it until the second half. The narrator does a great job of Oldroyd's raspy Yorkshire voice but in this book he sometimes forgot and used Oldroyd's distinctive voice for some of the younger characters and it did not seem right. The book is still definitely worth the read.
May 15, 2021
In fairness, I’ve never read a previous book in this series, but I felt like I didn’t know the characters or their relationships well. The story itself was unnecessarily complex and a bit confusing. Solving the mystery seemed to happen suddenly - especially since much of the book was spent (it felt) with the detectives not having any clues. The ending was too “scooby doo” for me - walking through the crime and how the detective solved it.... zzzzzzzzzzz. Not well written, in my opinion. I received an ARC of this book from #netgalley and I’m appreciative.
June 15, 2022
This is the first book by J. R. Ellis that I've read. I really enjoyed getting to know DCI Oldroyd and his co-workers. I also enjoyed meeting ex-wife Julia; girlfriend Deborah; and his daughter Louise. What I liked most were all the references to the novel Dracula and Bram Stoker. I had not realized the link between Dracula and Whitby. Of course, it's been ages since I read it. I will have to read other Ellis books!
January 21, 2024
Interesting and different psychological mystery
Very different from the usual mystery stories. The fact that a friend who has been part of a tight knit group could be pure evil without the others even considering it.. makes you think
Very different from the usual mystery stories. The fact that a friend who has been part of a tight knit group could be pure evil without the others even considering it.. makes you think
June 3, 2021
Superb - Whitby Murders!
Wow, what a book. From beginning to end there’s no lack of excitement and intrigue. I adore this author and hope he can write another one very soon. The plot was brilliant and really had you wondering could it be them, could it be…. and so on. Just what you want in a book. Fantastic. Please bring out the next one soon.
Wow, what a book. From beginning to end there’s no lack of excitement and intrigue. I adore this author and hope he can write another one very soon. The plot was brilliant and really had you wondering could it be them, could it be…. and so on. Just what you want in a book. Fantastic. Please bring out the next one soon.
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