This is the second book in this cozy crime series set at fictional Loch Down Abbey and set in a beautifully described Scottish village. Having not read the first book the initial worry was that I would not be able to pick this up but despite the vast quantity of characters I was able to do so easily and throughly enjoyed the book.

Well written and told at a good pace I enjoyed the plot and the characters and will be going back to read the first in the series.

Good cozy crime which can be read as a standalone and I will also be looking out for future books in the series.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn’t gripped and it took me such a long time to get into this book that I nearly gave up a few times. I’m glad I finished it but it wasn’t the best. The plot was holey and clunky. Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I liked the story a lot. The idea of a family manor turned into a hotel and the whole family coming back was interesting and the story was amusing. I really liked the way the characters were confronted with it and how it showed their development from the first part of the series. They were still as loveable and strange as always and I can imagine some more stories with them. I really liked Mrs McBain and her capability to solve the crime, The policeman Jarvis was a good Dr Watson in a way.
I can recommend this book!

Set in 1930’s Scotland, this cozy murder mystery was perfect to snuggle up with on a cold and gloomy day!
Some wonderful characters, the perfect setting and a real Agatha Christie style locked room mystery!
Highly recommend !
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC

3.75 stars

This continues the story of Loch Down Abbey, which went from a private estate belonging to a wealthy aristocratic family to a servant (now employee) owned hotel. The general manager is former head housekeeper Mrs. McBain, a supremely competent woman with a bent for solving crimes and taking care of problems. Fergus, a son of the rich family who once lived there, is her fellow manager. And they have their hands full. They have a hotel full of paying guests but matters get complicated when various eccentric members of the family keep showing up, blithely assuming they can stay for free and get waited on like the good old days.

And matters aren't helped when the first murder occurs. A mysterious woman formerly of Shanghai has fled the political upheaval there and showed up with an associate and her nephew. Something is not quite right about her and soon her body is discovered. Hints of opium trade, brothels, political shenanigans and blackmail float around and it is up to Mrs McBain and local constable Jarvis to figure it out.

Entertaining, nicely paced, and full of mostly clueless aristocrats complicating the situation. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This easy read was a joy.

It has murder, mystery and a posh hotel where everyone and anyone could be a suspect.

I loved how the story unfolded and while its not a pacy read I enjoyed the slow plod of the guessing game.

It is a little Agatha Christie which is always a good thing, and the setting of the 1930's with all the glamour and culture this is, for me, a recommended read..

The novel takes place at Loch Down Abbey, a former stately home turned hotel, and the mystery and murder at the centre involves the guests and staff who are at the hotel - including the Inverkillen family who used to live at the estate.

While the central mystery to this story was good, I found the pacing of the reveals to be a bit disjointed. I also didn't particularly enjoy the narrative structure, and could find myself confused at times when moving from character perspectives quite suddenly especially as there was a lot of characters to keep track of.

Overall this was an ok read, and one I'd recommend to someone looking for a quick paced historical crime with a Scottish backdrop. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this novel, in exchange for an honest review.

My review of the first book starts "What a little ray of sunshine this book is.", so you can imagine I rushed to this one.
It has a murder, and quite a bit of guessing from me as to the who did it and why. Everyone and anyone could have.
Murder aside, the highlight of the book is truly the family and the way their lives are tangled, and how the treat each other and those around them.
I don't need a crime to make me come back for them, I'm coming back anyway.
Incredibly good fun.

Set in 1930's Scotland ,this is a fun cosy murder story .Lots of colourful characters ,Mrs McBain and the local Bobby try to investigate the murder of one of the guests of her Hotel and why .Such a good mystery with a few twists and turns .A mist enjoyable book .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC.

1930's the aristocratic and the servants run what's now a Horel so they're comedy as week as murder.

The morning after the 1st Ball they've organised a body is found. Bit of a downer after a great night for all (well most) I really enjoyed this read a disfunction familyfrom the aristocracy that could make fit a great TV series not a Downton Abbey but a lot of fun. There are some great characters that some you'll love and some you'll hate several extras to watch for and a fantastic storyline with several avenues running from it.

This is a wonderful read and a great whodunit with all the intriguing clues and read herrings the hapless Detective Jarvis and the hotel manager (that's what we call them nowadays or a different fancy title) getting to grips with the case..

So I highly recommend this as a great read if your looking for a murder mystery a bit of humour and an escape from life as an books should be.

The Abbey is not what it sounds like but is an estate which belonged to an aristocratic family who hit hard times financially. It is now a hotel run by one of their former staff having been sold at auction. The family however have decided to hold a ball in the hotel bringing back memories of how these were planned in earlier days. The family gather for this event. What is clear is that they may have lost their estate but they have not lost their feelings of superiority. Half of the book is finished before we get one of the murders promised in the title. Then these are pursued by one policeman and the manager of the hotel. There are so many people involved from the aristocratic family that you would need a list of their names and relationships. The characters who are murdered chafe not had a sufficient role in the story to make much impact. I did not find this a compelling read.

Loch Down Abbey is doing rather well as a hotel, under the management of Mrs MacBain.

They're throwing a Highland Ball.

The only trouble is that a good many memebers of the Inverkillens, the former residents, are turning up uninvited.

Can Mrs MacBain find enough rooms for everyone, and stop the bickering?

But that proves to be the least of her worries.

One of the guests is found dead after the ball. In the library. With the door locked from the inside...

Just brilliant

Scotland, 1930s, family-dynamics, cosy-mystery, amateur-sleuth, secrets, situational-humor, sly-humor, historical-fiction, historical-research, rural, hotelier, hotel, servants, local-law-enforcement, investigation, housekeeper, closed-circle-mystery, murder****

A little longer than it needs to be, but a fine mystery to escape into. Meet a sizeable cast of laughable characters with or without any sense. Then there are the horde of unruly children, secret passages, Mrs. MacBain the intrepid housekeeper, and the spoof of the local constabulary!
Another example of great fun with some obvious and some very sneaky spoofs. A most enjoyable read!
I requested and received a free temporary ebook/PDF copy without TTS from Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley.
Avail Feb 13, 2025 #OnlyMurdersInTheAbbey by Beth Cowan-Erskine #LochDownAbbeyBk2 #NetGalley #HodderFiction #HodderBooks #CozyMystery #HistoricalFun