I really liked this book. A great setting - a stuck, snowbound train in the Scottish highlands two days before Christmas - and very atmospheric. A good selection of well-defined characters/suspects and a very likeable, sympathetic central character in Ros. Kept me guessing until the end!

As with her previous novel, to fully enjoy and attempt the puzzles included in the stories, I think you need a physical copy of the book as opposed to an ebook. Grateful for an early copy from Netgalley but find this method of reading not quite such fun when puzzles are involved. Do like a sleeper train, the last time I took this journey you were allowed to stick your vehicle on the back! A very serious back story going on alongside the entertaining murder mystery. A rather large cast of characters to keep track of which can detract sometimes. Owes rather a lot to Agatha Christie with this book and the last.

For much of this Murder on the Orient Express-inspired novel, I was feeling it was a good 4 star tale. But I’ve bumped it down to 3 stars given the ending - I can’t quite square people’s actions away, or Roz doing as she does (even if she’s no longer in the police). I did like Roz and Craig’s characters, and would probably like a second book if they featured…

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

'Murder on the Christmas Express'wasn't quite what I was expecting, definitely darker than the cosy murder mystery I thought it may be, and with different themes of violence against women running through the book. This was not an issue, and says more about my assumptions than the author - it was interesting to see the dark themes.

However, I did think some of the characters, Grant in particular, were a bit too one dimensional which meant it lost something.

Overall, a decent read and good denouement that I didn't see coming.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this one.

Thanks for the opportunity to read and review.
Great opening (and I enjoyed the rest of the book). Having always wanted to travel on a sleeper train, I’m now not so sure!
Enjoyed meeting Rox and her family. It wasn’t who I thought the murderer would be.
Will Roz return in another book eating doughnuts?

Dark Themes Abound,,
The sleeper train to the Highlands is derailed on Christmas Eve amidst appalling weather conditions. In the midst of the snow, the passengers are trapped and a killer lurks. With a large, although well drawn, cast of characters making a long list of suspects, a typical setting and an intricate plot this is a modernised version of a well used Golden Age theme although distressing and serious themes abound amongst the characters which makes this particular tale rather heavier and much darker than expected. An interesting mystery.

It's the second time I read an Alexandra Benedict mystery expecting something lighter and entertaining.
It's the second time I'm surprised by a complex mystery, full of puzzle, a great homage to Golden Age mysteries.
I quite enjoyed this mystery and liked the puzzles.
It's gripping and kept me turning pages but it also deals with some very serious topics like PTSD and abuse and this was a bit unexpected even if I appreciated the empathy of the author.
Alexandra Benedict delivers another gripping story that challenged me to solve the puzzle and find clues.
Entertaining and gripping, recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

A new Agatha Christie has arrived in the 21st Century.

I enjoyed this book from the minute I opened it. Seen from the point of view of several characters but primarily newly retired police detective Roz, as they meet death, a derailment and PTSD. The back story leading Roz home gave her a greater depth, and leaves you hoping for a quick and safe resolution for everyone.

I was kept changing my mind who I thought the killer was as I made my way through the book. Seeing death as a ‘passenger’ was a fabulous touch by the author. Although I can understand their reasoning, the ending of the events on the train left me doubting several characters.

I would definitely read books by Alexandra Benedict and hope there will be a second book in this series.

"Eighteen passengers. Seven stops. One killer”

A murder mystery on a train to Scotland should make for an excellent “closed room” sort of mystery. But while the plot was intriguing, the introduction of weighty issues into the plot made, what I thought would be a lightweight Christmas mystery, rather dark and depressing.

My thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster UK

This is my second book by this author, both based around Christmas. This mystery has a very Golden Age feel, with events taking place on a train. We have Roz, a retired ex-detective, heading to Scotland for the birth of her first grandchild. She has a difficult relationship with her at times, feeling she has put her career first and still having issues with coming to terms with events when she was young and about to become a young mother herself.

On the journey, more or less half the book, involves setting up the characters. We have Meg, a social media influencer, her aggressive reality television show partner, some students, a belittled father, an elderly woman with her adoring son, and some others. When the train is detailed and a body found, it is up to Roz to solve the crime.

I enjoyed the characters and felt the book made a typically GA crime more contemporary. On the minus side, I felt there were a lot of coincidences and I felt impatient with Roz at times, for wanting to investigate, yet also backing away. Realistic, perhaps, but not as decisive as the reader would often want in their detective. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

I expected a cosy mystery witrh festive vibes but what I actually got was a lot darker than I expected - and, I loved it. It was well written with a compelling storyline full of descriptive language and vivid imagery and well developed characetrs who were all believeable. I was kept guessing until the end. I loved it.

"It's about every person who has been made to feel like nothing. Violated mentally and physically. Extinguished. How many on this train have gone through an experience where ... the next day they have curled up into a ball, and screamed silently into a pillow?"
"It's probably easier to say who hasn't." Roz's voice was very quiet. Very small. [loc. 2654]
It's the night before Christmas Eve, and the sleeper train to Fort William leaves Euston with a number of passengers on board, including a killer, a stowaway, and former Met detective Roz Parker. Roz is heading north to be with her daughter, who's gone into labour prematurely. Social media influencer Meg intends to propose to her partner Grant. There are four students competing for a place in a quiz team; a couple travelling with their teenage children; a lawyer who seems familiar to Roz; an elderly woman and her son; and of course the train crew. Somewhere after Edinburgh, in heavy snow, the train is derailed by a tree on the line -- and shortly afterwards, one of the passengers is found dead. They won't be the last ...

A homage to Murder on the Orient Express, laced with cryptic clues and Kate Bush references, and featuring a competent and interesting female lead (who remembers being a Goth as a teenager: she's 49: suddenly I feel ancient), this was an entertaining whodunnit with some clever plotting, a lot of misdirection, and a truly unpredictable ending. The isolation of the passengers, the fear setting in as the bodies mount up, the intersection of Roz's personal and professional lives, the mysterious 'killer' who is sometimes the narrator, but is not identified until very late in the story, the diversity of the characters, the secrets each of them hide -- all make for a well-plotted and well-paced novel.

However, the plot does depend on a lot of physical and emotional abuse of women. Nearly all the female characters have been victims of sexual assault. (None of this is 'on screen', but some of the descriptions are very vivid.) 'Trauma sticks to trauma', and memories become tangled together: Roz's recollection of giving birth is inextricably linked with her recollection of a previous assault. She's not the only passenger haunted by her past.

Despite this theme, Murder on the Christmas Express manages a happy ending (at least for some) and an unexpected but apt resolution. Still, I think I preferred Benedict's previous Christmas crime novel, The Christmas Murder Game.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance review copy, in exchange for this full honest review. UK Publication Date is 10th November 2022.

It's time we stopped saying what we 'should' or 'shouldn't' do. They should stop raping us. [loc. 2841]

Murder on the Christmas Express is rather deceptive - it feels like it should be a fairly ‘cosy crime” with lots of puzzles built in that the reader can solve, as well as the main narrative. Even being familiar with some of Benedict’s other work I was still surprised by some of the darkness and traumatic areas the book explores.

I’d stress this is not criticism, I think it’s a marvellous book - it’s just heavier than I was expecting! There’s a great group of characters- a number of whom you’ll want to be on the murder list - with a complex central character. Some of the later decisions are perhaps questionable… but I didn’t care, I was wrapped up in it and there was internal logic and consistency.

Highly recommended - a great dark Christmas read.

What is not to love about a packed train from London to the Scottish Highlands that becomes derailed and upon which there’s a motely crew of passengers… and a murder. But, no point in having a murderer without a murder so crime lovers settle in to an essentially locked piece of public transport mystery where the killer is picking off passengers one by one. Certainly puts a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘sleeper train’ doesn’t it? Aboard, however, is former Met detective Roz Parker, en route to Scotland to see her in-labour daughter and celebrate her first grandchild. Carrying precious edible cargo, a derailment and some pesky deaths are not on her Christmas list. She quickly takes charge, investigating the murders – slightly more grizzly than you’d think – and questioning the passengers. It may be the season of goodwill but it’s clear not everyone wants to be on Santa’s good list. This paces along nicely, unlike the derailed train…

Murder On The Christmas Express is so much more than I was expecting. As well as a cosy little crime that needs to be solved, more tender subjects are touched on and dealt with.
Going in I had no idea I would read about what I did, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the story.
I loved Roz, her character as she tries to get used to retirement but is naturally pulled into one last mystery and dealing with her own trauma was brilliant. You could really feel her passion for the job when she was looking out for the passengers on the train.
A mix of other characters too, from the good, the bad and the ugly personalities made for an eventful trip as they make their way back to Scotland for the Christmas holidays.
I liked getting to know a lot of Roz’s backstory but I feel like some trigger warnings should have been included, but as I mentioned I still really enjoyed this story and would like to see where Roz’s story takes her; I really don’t feel like this is the end of her.
TW: rape, emergency caesarean, PTSD, traumatic labour, birth trauma, premature birth, neonatal unit, domestic abuse, pre-eclampsia.
Overall a well written mystery with a nice twist, I thought I finally caught the murderer for once, but also managed to deal with some tough subjects in a way that wasn’t detrimental to the story.
4/5 stars.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Murder On The Christmas Express is everything you could expect from the title and more. With all the charm of a classic Agatha Christie whodunnit, there's a motley cast of characters, terrible weather conditions and a murder on the train (or two)

We follow the main character Roz, a retired police detective who is on the way to meet her first grandchild. Also on board are a university quiz team, a pair of social media influencers, and a mother and son, along with their cat. Seemingly all of the passengers are strangers, but are they really?

When the trail derails in heavy snow, a quiz party in the bar turns nasty when beloved celebrity Meg is found dead in her cabin. Roz starts to investigate, with the help of her fellow passengers.

Murder On The Christmas Express is not cosy crime though. There are some very modern themes involved, which bring the book right up to date.

I loved the premise for this book, "Eighteen passengers. Seven stops. One killer," it sounded like just the sort of 'locked room' mystery I enjoy and I jumped at the chance to read it. Moreover with a passing nod to Agatha Christie's 'Murder on the Orient Express' at least with the title, I was hoping for an excellent and thrilling read.
The story begins as the passengers board the sleeper train for Scotland, just about the only train leaving that evening as the snow had been falling and many lines were blocked. As the train is halfway through its journey however, one of the passengers, a social media influencer, is discovered dead and apparently murdered in her cabin. In addition to the death, the train is then stopped by the snow and in steps retired detective, Roz Parker to take matters in hand until the police can arrive.
This tale deals with somewhat more weighty matters than it originally appears and rather lacks the cosy mystery quality of Agatha Christie. I found there was quite a cast of characters and much of the first third of the book was spent introducing them and setting up their backgrounds and even then I had to keep checking who was who as they didn't all stick well enough in my mind. The story on really gets going at about 40% in and for a while in the middle I enjoyed being along for the ride.
However the ending rather stretched my belief and the reasons given for the crimes, whilst appalling and intolerable, were over played and somewhat brow beating.
All in all it was not a book for me.
With thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster UK for an early copy in return for an honest review.

My thanks to NetGalley and Simon and schuster for a copy of “ Murder On The Christmas Express”

I enjoy reading “ whodunnits “ and as it gets closer to Christmas I choose to read seasonal books.The premise for this book was intriguing, and offered a lot to draw me to it ,but unfortunately , for me, it didn’t deliver .
I couldn’t connect to any of the characters and found the storyline rather far fetched
I hadn’t read anything before by this author , and this book hasn’t urged me to read any more by her.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Simon and Schuster UK for an advance copy of Murder on the Christmas Express, a stand-alone locked room mystery set on the London to Fort William sleeper.

In the early hours of Christmas Eve the sleeper train is derailed and in the aftermath one of the passengers is found dead in suspicious circumstances, the first of several deaths. Roz Parker, a recently retired detective inspector from the Met, is asked to investigate.

I jumped at the chance to read Murder on the Christmas Express as the synopsis suggested that it would be exactly the kind of novel I like - a murder mystery with clues and the chance to pit my wits against a cunning author. In actual fact I didn’t like the novel and couldn’t get enthusiastic enough to care about who killed who.

There is a large cast of characters so the author spends the first 40% of the novel introducing them, their squabbles and their personalities. Obviously they’re all keeping secrets, but as none of them are particularly likeable it’s hard to get involved. This feeling of lack of involvement is reinforced by the switching between points of view.

In the second half of the novel where the murders occur and Roz gets going with her investigation there is more engagement to be had, but it’s not simply an investigation as Roz has her own worries and secrets to take care of. It means a modernisation of the golden age format I was expecting. It made the novel seem as if it didn’t know what it wanted to be. And can I just say that I absolutely loathed the solution, which doesn’t seem true to the characters and is highly unlikely.

Murder on the Christmas Express is not for me.

Obviously inspired by Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, but a modernized, darker version. A train traveling to Scotland during a blizzard gets stuck and a murderer strikes. The action doesn't get going for a bit in order to introduce the reader to the many characters and let us get to know them and start to wonder who will be the murderer/murdered. I appreciated getting to know the characters. There were red herrings and twists and I thoroughly enjoyed being along "on the ride".