Another brilliant story from Faith Martin! Mrs Hilary Greene is on her toes yet again! Nobody pulls the wool over her eyes!

5 stars

After a two-week vacation, one of which was spent with her lover and boss Steven Crayle, Hillary returns to work to find two new faces as “interns.” Jake Barnes is a multimillionaire and Hillary wonders just what he is doing at the station. Wendy Turnbull is a Goth but is very keen to dig into police work. The former DS, Jimmy Jessop and Sam Pickles are still on the team.

They get the fifteen-year old or so case of Felix Olliphant. He was stabbed to death late New Yeay’s Eve or in the very early hours of New Year’s Day while at a masquerade party. Felix was an interior designer and had re-done the home in which the party was held. Although not much of a drinker, he apparently was very drunk when someone helped him upstairs to a bedroom to lie down.

With 100 or so guests at the party, there are a plentitude of suspects. Sam and Jimmy are tied up with a robbery case, so Hillary takes the youngsters to the interviews. Friends, business partners, former girlfriends, family – all are interviewed. The interviews all agree on one thing, Felix was liked by everyone and was very even-tempered. But someone wanted to kill him. And of course they all denied any involvement.

When Hillary and Wendy go to interview the bartender at the party home, Hillary notices a picture that the man has on his bookcase. Suddenly, she puts it all together.

While Hillary is right about having her suspicions of Jake, he seems to do the job well. Wendy is gung ho to work the cases and is coming along nicely. Jimmy and Sam solve their case as well, so a double celebration is held in the pub. Steven is almost scared to talk seriously to Hillary about their relationship.

This book is as well written and plotted as any of Faith Martin’s novels. Although shorter than usual, it still packs a punch. It is full of action and descriptions of the plodding side of police work – the not so glamorous part. I love Faith Martin’s Hillary Greene series and will continue to read them for as long as she write them. Well done again, Ms. Martin.

I want to thank NetGalley and Joffe Books for forwarding to me a copy of this great little book for me to read, enjoy and review.

Another intriguing and entertaining read, with Hillary Green displaying her unique and captivating style of crime solving. Yet another mole on the team what is he up to, and what is he after only time will tell I guess. Intriguing, captivating and downright entertaining. The storyline is an interesting one, the characters are cool but the excitement meter is getting a bit lower, a bit blase I find.

This is such a lovely series of books.. Very easy to read with lovely characters and interesting plots. Hillary Greene is a fascinating character and I love the addition of Jake to the team. Book 15 and the writing is as fresh as book 1. Thank you Net Galley for my copy. Reviews on Goodreads, Amazon and Facebook.

I so adored this book! It has brilliant main characters, an excellent plot and it kept me engrossed all the way through. I would highly recommend this book.

This is book number 15 in the ever popular series Hilary Greene series and is a revised edition of the book previously published as "A Narrow Victory". I'm a big fan and for me each new book in this series is like meeting up with an old friend again. The former DI is still working cold cases in the CRT department under the supervision of her boss and now lover Superintendent Steven Crayle. Vivienne has left for pastures new in the media industry and her team now consists of stalwart retired cop Jimmy, student Sam and two new civilian trainees, a goth girl and an older wealthy entrepreneur. One of these new faces appears to have a hidden agenda for joining the department, more of which I'm sure will be revealed in book 16. In this story Jimmy and Sam are trying to clear a spate or burglaries whilst the rest of the team are working on the unsolved murder of an interior decorator who died at a party to welcome in the new Millennium. Can they find a motive for his death and ultimately hunt down a murderer 19 years on? I highly recommend the entire series!

This is a very well written police procedural, with an OK story and very interesting characters. Unfortunately, you have to read about a tenth of the book before any mystery appears, but all in all a very good book.

There is something about Faith Martin's Murder series that always draws me in from the first page. Ex-DI, Hillary Greene is a strong character, respected and well-liked by her former police colleagues, who has a personal life with shall I say a lot of ups and downs. After taking some time off after she retired, Hillary has come back to work as a civilian consultant. She now investigates cold cases(murders, so far) with a new team and a boss who has come to mean quite a bit to her, professionally and personally.
Felix Oliphant was killed many years ago at New Year's Eve costume party. He was a young and up and coming interior designer who seemingly was a nice guy who had no enemies. As Hillary and her team re-examine the old case files and re-interview witnesses, there is only one thing that really stands out; no one seems to have a motive for killing Felix. Hillary knows she must be missing something though since Felix is most definitely dead and it certainly wasn't an accident.
As the story progressed, I was, as always trying to piece together the clues and figure out whodunit. I get no credit for even being close to identifying the murderer and the motive, but I did enjoy trying as the story was fast-paced and engaging. When Hillary retired and the focus of the series changed, I worried I would miss her old life, but the new setting in the cold case department is equally well written and I am interested in the new characters who have been introduced. I look forward to the next book and hope there is a lot more Hillary Greene still to come.
I received a DRC from Joffe Books through NetGalley.

I love a good mystery/thriller and this was good. From my understanding, this is a rewrite of “A Narrow Victory”, book number 15 in the DI Hillary Greene series. I had not read any books in this series but this works nicely as a stand alone. Hillary Greene was a superwoman in terms of solving crimes as a DI and with her relatively new civilian position working on cold cases, her solve rate is very high. She seems very astute in her police work but is extremely insecure in her private life. She is working with her boss who is also her lover and she seems to misinterpret his feelings for her often. It’s a bit inconsistent that someone who can read people so well on the job seems to be a out of touch in her private life. Her team consists of an older retired cop and two interns, a goth girl and a wealthy entrepreneur who has suspicious motives for joining the CRT. I'm assuming his suspicious motives will be the topic of book 16. Together the team works to solve the murder of an interior decorator committed on New Year’s Eve 19 years prior. While the story is well thought-out, the investigation plods along and then suddenly, poof, Hillary has solved it all and it wasn't an overly obvious solution. I had a difficult time with the writing style. The language is often obtuse and the descriptions of people and places contain so many British idioms, metaphors and slang that it was difficult for me to read. Not being British, I had to look up words often and some weren’t in the dictionary. I could suss out the meanings but some I just had to gloss over and guess what the writer meant and this was a bit annoying for me. The language felt very stilted and was at times awkward for me, as a non-Brit, to read. Since this is a rewrite, I would have expected the editing to be better, making it more accessible to a wider audience.. That being said, it was a good mystery but I probably won’t read any of the other books in the series. I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

My rating: 4.5 Stars

Felix Olliphant's body was found during a party. He was brutally murdered, and it was determined that he was drunk at the time. This fact is highly disputed because everyone interviewed said that he was a teetotaler. Yet, the autopsy showed a high content of alcohol. This was in 1999 and ex-DI Hillary Greene and two new team members are now working to solve this as a cold case.

There is no doubt that Hillary will solve this case, because she has a reputation that is second to none. She looks up every lead and talks to everyone she can find, although it has been many years since the murder. Meanwhile, one of the new team members is rather suspect and she must also keep an eye on him.

I have read the previous two books in this series, although I do wish I read the rest, and enjoyed this as much as I did those. Hillary is as solid as they come and has a an incredible work ethic. Murder at Midnight is a smooth and easy read. I really like Faith Martin's writing style and loved reading this book. This is a great police procedural story with a nice twist with Jake, one of the team members. As mentioned, this book is part of a series, but there are enough explanations easily made that it can be read as a standalone. I really need to read the next in the series, because this was left with just the right cliffhanger. Indeed, I can barely wait!

Many thanks to Joffe Books, Books n All Promotions and to NetGalley for this ARC to review and this is my honest opinion.

Faith Martin's ex-DI Hillary Greene is back with a difficult cold case to solve. A man who everyone liked was murdered at the turn of the millennium and she has two newbies to train up, one of whom is a bit of an enigma to her.

Never been disappointed by Faith Martin and this is up to her usual standard.

Hillary Greene finds herself with a new cold case to solve and two new colleagues to train. Both look to be a challenge but then Hillary is always up to a new challenge. As always Hillary is at the top of her game but this seems like a tough one. Felix Olliphant was stabbed around midnight at a costume party in 199/2000. He had a great personality and everyone loved him. Had to be someone who didn't. Also Steven is getting a promotion. Will this be the end of their relationship? Lots going on as always.

Another excellent book by Faith Martin! Even though it was a rewrite of her other book A Narrow Victory which I had previously read, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this version! Keeps you guessing to the end, and I enjoy reading about her romance with her boss.

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

A return to form for me, after my disappointment with instalment #14. Hillary has two new recruits, one of whom is up to something, which will no doubt be revealed in due course. The cold case she is investigating revolves around the murder of a universally liked man at a New Year's Eve party in 1999, and the plot is focussed almost exclusively on this, after a very slow first few chapters. I wish the author did not feel the need to recite Hillary's entire backstory at the beginning of each novel, but she does... The solution to the mystery involves a bit of a deductive leap on Hillary's part and a helpful confession by the murderer, but made sense and was satisfactory. Hillary and Steven continue to be adorable.

PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A REVISED EDITION OF A BOOK FIRST PUBLISHED AS “A NARROW VICTORY.”

Hillary Greene is still on the job as an investigator/consultant of cold cases. It's a small team she has, one retired oldster who has become her right hand, a young woman who dresses like a goth who is an intern and a young man, very rich, also an intern who has his own secret agenda.

Felix Olliphant was found stabbed to death at a New Year’s Eve costume party for the turn of the millennium. By all accounts he was a very nice man who had no enemies .. but someone sure wanted him dead.

After doing the rounds of questioning friends and family what's she's left with is not leaving her very happy.

She has a murder victim, who everyone said did not drink. But he'd been drunk when he was killed. This was a man who felt guilt about a dead child in an auto accident that wasn't his fault. He was a man who mourned the loss of a gay friend in a tragic accident. And finally he was a successful businessman with a cold hearted business partner.

Hillary is going to have to dig deep to find a motive for this man's death ... and the killer.

I really like this series. The characters are solid and interesting to follow. I like the mix of professional with Greene's personal life. I like that she lives on a boat ... a very small one at that and drives an old, but reliable car. There's just nothing I don't like.

Although this is part of a series, it can easily be read as a stand-alone, but I highly recommend starting at the beginning. It's a fascinating series.

The final sentence in this book has me salivating for the next one!

Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Netgalley / Books n All Promotions / Jill Burkinshaw for the advanced digital copy of this continuing crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

August 28/8/18 Murder at Midnight

****

I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for an advance copy of Murder at Midnight, the fifteenth novel to feature former DI turned civilian invesigator, Hillary Greene.

Hillary returns to work after a refreshing holiday and is plunged immediately ino a fresh cold case murder investigation. Interior designer Felix Oliphant was stabbed to death at a millenium fancy dress party in a house he'd recenly worked on. The case looks like a lost cause wih all the potential witnesses having hazy, drunken recollections and too much forensic evidence to be of any use Hillary and her small team have their work cut out for them. To further complicate her life her love life takes an unexpected turn and new recruit, millionaire Jake Barnes appears to have a motive other than his stated wish to give something back for joining.

I thoroughly enjoyed Murder at Midnight which with its mixture of baffling investigation, lighthearted tone and persoinal complications held my attention from start to finish. It is not a profound read but it is entertaining and engrossing. The plot is well done with small hints which allow Hillary, if not me, to put it all together. This is a definite improvement on the early novels where it was easy to guess the perpetrator early on. The situation with Jake is also well done as it had me slightly tense as he ruthlessly focuses his attention on Hillary. This is not resolved by the end of the novel so I'll be on tenterhooks in the next one until his intentions become clear.

The novel, of course, hangs on the character of Hillary Greene. Approaching 50 she is smart, savvy and wise except when her own emotions are involved. I love her measured approach to the investigation, her humour and her ability to to pull the disparate threads of her investigation into a cohesive solution. I'm not so sure that the motive in this case is entirely plausible but it's certainly a fun journey to get there.

Murder at Midnight is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending

MURDER AT MIDNIGHT. Joffe

This is a revised copy of a narrow victory. Now called Murder at Midnight .The writing and what is happening is a little behind of what has been going on for Hilary, I thought. She is working cold cases, and finding the solutions to them This was a domineering mother protecting a gay son, when love he wanted was not returned, would Hilary get her to crack of what she saw. As always her books are delightful. Interesting of how she finds the missing pieces. Always awaiting the next book . Given ARC by Joffe. .and Net Galley for my voluntary review and my honest opinion.

Thank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for this arc.

Another great one this 15th book in the Hillary Greene series.

I started reading this series with # 10 and 12. I enjoyed those so much, I backed up to the beginning and have been swallowing them whole since! Another cold case for the new CRT team and was it a doozy. It was very well paced and credible. I can't imagine having a mind that can keep all the details front and center not knowing if they matter or not. My brain filled up decades ago. I just about have to look up how to boil water these days.

It's the characters and their development that make this series for me. We're privy to Hillary's thoughts and feelings, but her ability to get done with the task at hand while mulling over her earlier feelings until she has enough information to rationally act on them is inspiring. As always the current case is not the only story going on. She has 2 new team members to get to know and they both promise to be interesting on their own as well as the on-going relationships in her personal life.