Thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series, and can easily say this was an excellent continuation.

I love my historical crime/mysteries and Beth is fast becoming one of my favourite authors in this genre. Clever, witty, with occasional touches of dark humour, and a few unlikeable characters which every good mystery needs!

My abiding memory of the first book is the humour, which was often a bit slapstick and also dark and funny enough to have me laughing aloud. This time around, there isn’t so much to laugh about.

For starters, things have moved on a bit. The Inverkillens no longer own Loch Down Abbey – it’s been sold to some of the staff and a single member of the family now helps to run the place as a hotel. So far it’s been a success – to the extent that Mrs McBain has decided to hold a ball to celebrate the heyday of Loch Down Abbey when such events were part of the season. A lot is riding on this – everyone has worked very hard to make it a grand event. So when some of the Inverkillen family members – who’d been conveniently in other parts of the world, harrying other unfortunate servants and being generally impossible – decide to pitch up in the days running up to the ball, it doesn’t make Life any easier.

While I don’t think it’s necessary to have read the first book, I do think you might flounder a bit if you don’t. Apart from anything else, a lot has happened to various family members and their behaviour might not make sense if you don’t know their backstory. As for the central murder mystery – this time around, it is main the narrative engine driving the story forward.

Cowan-Erskine’s ability to weave together motivations, possible suspects and a raft of red herrings, while also providing a convincing denouement is impressive. I read a depressing number of murder mysteries where the author can’t put together the vital elements with this level of skill, so it was treat to find the whodunit so satisfactorily wrapped up. If you have a weakness for country house murder mysteries, where many of the characters are eccentric and not necessarily likeable – then give this one a go. While I obtained an arc of Only Murders in the Abbey from Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
9/10

I am not usually one for period dramas, but I read the first book in this series and quite enjoyed it so was eager to give this one a try too and I am so glad I did. It has great characters, great storylines and a great setting. I loved it all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for my ARC.

Loved the first book and this one just surpassed it. The mystery was perfect and reuniting with old friends felt like a win. I hope there are more and I hope I get to read them.

This is the second in the Loch Down series, and having read the first a couple of years ago, I was excited to read Only Murders In the Abbey. Things have changed since the last book. Two members of the staff have purchased the historic abbey to run as a hotel, and they've hired the younger son to live on residence and help. His grandmother also is allowed to live in a cottage on the estate. Although the family no longer has any ownership of the abbey, their actions often seem as if they forget this fact, and the staff ownership seems to let them get away with this to a certain degree. So the dynamics between the very eccentric family and the staff in charge leads to many amusing encounters.

I enjoyed reading the book, and appreciate its "golden age mystery" feel. I could see a lot of this playing out like theater, and since the Agatha Christie plays seems to have a perpetual place in theaters, this could be adapted as well. I found the characters amusing and I enjoyed the Scottish setting. I did feel, however, that the book could have done with a bit of editing. Certain portions dragged on and I felt the story would have progressed at a better clip with some judicious trimming.

For me the book was at its best with vivid and quirky characters and an evocative setting. I enjoyed returning to Loch Down Abbey.

I enjoyed the book and I would give it 3.75 stars, rounding up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Beth Cowan-Erskine for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My second visit to Loch Down Abbey was just as enjoyable as the first. Plenty of secrets and intrigue and populated by well described and relatable characters.
A great read

This was a very tangled web of actions and characters. Very clever the way it gradually unfolded, with more to come. Some well described, compelling characters and an open ended conclusion.

1930s Scotland. The snobbery amongst the aristocracy even if they hadn’t a penny to their name hasn’t died down as yet and the Inverkillen clan is not exempt from this trait. Original owners of the Loch Down Abbey now run as a hotel, some of them uninvited guests seem to think they are above all the rest.

Despite the story being one of mystery and murder, foreign spies, theft on an enormous scale and espionage, I found the antics, attitude and behavior of the family to hold my interest more. The utter callousness of Bella, the selfishness of Alastair, the arrogance of the Dowager and the rational brother Ferguson trying to hold a business together and not allow the hard work he and his team have done, go into ruin in a week due to the stupidity, selfishness and avarice of his family.

The story resulting in murders was good but the family intricacies were better.

I am delighted to return to Loch Down Abbey and its colorful inhabitants with their secrets and murders to solve.

Set in the 1930s in the Scottish Highlands, the story picks up a few years after the events of Loch Down Abbey. What once was the residence of the Ogilvy-Sinclair family, is now a luxury hotel. While some members of the family have remained on the estate working for the hotel, others have scattered around the world, but they are now returning for the first Highland Ball organized by Mrs McBain, the former head housekeeper and now the owner of Loch Down Abbey Hotel. The return of the Inverskillen clan means drama and having to deal with arguments and rivalries between the siblings. Add uninvited guests full of luggage and secrets and there is enough for Mrs McBain and her staff to keep busy. Luckily, the ball seems to go smoothly until one of the guests is found murdered the next morning. It is up to Mrs McBain to help constable Jarvis find the killer.

I didn’t know that Loch Down Abbey was the first in a series so when I saw that there was going to be a new book I was really excited because I adored it. And Only Murders in the Abbey is a fantastic sequel. If you love cozy crimes with humour and eccentric characters, then this is the right book for you. The Ogilvy-Sinclair family is once again self-centered and too immersed in their own problems to notice anyone else around them, while Mrs McBain manages to keep everything under control in a calm and steady manner even in front of the most demanding guests.

Only Murders in the Abbey is a wonderful read: well-paced, beautifully-written, a murder full of twists, and, my favourite of all, with a Scottish backdrop. I hope there will be more books in the series!

What an eclectic mix of characters! Mrs McBain is the main character, a very capable woman who is part owner of the hotel. Then there are the aristocratic members of the family who once owned the estate and some of them still act as though they have servants to run after them. Alongside these are the hotel guests. There is a murder at the beginning but then the reader is given the events leading up to the murder. It is a very complicated affair and I had no idea who the culprit was. I had read the first book but this book could be read as a stand-alone. I did enjoy it, although some characters needed a wake up call as to their current situation and how to behave. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Loch Down Abbey is now a country hotel run by the estate's former housekeeper, Mrs McBain. The hotel's inaugural highland ball ends with a death in the library, and what follows is a complex classic murder mystery with numerous motives, opportunities, suspects, and a detective who needs the intelligence and people skills of Mrs McBain to solve the crimes. The copious characterisation and scene setting in the early part of this story are worth persevering with as it contains crucial clues and connections. The mystery is twisty, and the setting is vibrant and easy to visualise. The cast of characters has hidden agendas and secrets. Some are unlikeable, but this does not necessarily make them guilty. I like the evocative 1930s setting with insightful social and political observations and the twisty mystery. It's an entertaining story.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

I love love love Loch Down Abbey. An amazing please and the story is brilliant. I don’t want to say anymore as I just don’t want to spoil it. It’s a treasure to read and a real little gem.

I do love a cosy mystery - and this is a great read!

Formerly a family home, Loch Down Abbey is now a hotel but there are some family members who struggle with the transformation. With the Highland Ball taking place for the first time in many years, there is much excitement among both the staff and villagers but when several uninvited guests turn up Mrs MacBain, housekeeper, has her work cut out trying to find them all rooms and - in some cases - rooms which suit. With the ball fast approaching, things seem to be finally settling down - until, that is, a dead body turns up in the library ...

This book is right up my street and I'm not sure how I missed the first in series but hopefully I can catch up with it at a later date. I enjoyed everything about this one; the characters, the setting, the storyline all came together to make a truly lovely read. Definitely an author to add to my watch list and a book I'm delighted to give all five shiny stars, as well as my recommendation.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley.

Perfectly Delicious..
The second outing in the Loch Down Abbey Mysteries finds the aftermath of the Highland Ball proving fatal and housekeeper Mrs MacBain with more on her hands than finding rooms for guests. With a dead body in the library and a huge house full of suspects, what on earth is a housekeeper to do? A perfectly delicious follow on to the first in this series with a glorious cast of characters populating a frothy, fun plot laced with gentle humour and reminiscent of the Golden Age of Crime with a solid murder mystery at its heart.

Give me more stories like this one: well plotted, gripping and entertaining
Due to health issues cannot will write a proper review at a later time
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mineA more extensive review will follow

I read the first Loch Down Murder Mystery, Loch Down Abbey in 2021 and enjoyed it very much, so I was looking forward to reading Only Murders in the Abbey, set in 1930s Scotland . And I’m glad to say that I thought it was even better than the first one.

The Abbey, formerly the ancestral home of the Ogilvy-Sinclair family is now an hotel, owned by several of the long-standing employees and staffed mainly by the former servants, led by Mrs Alice McBain as the Director of Operations. The manager of the hotel is The Honourable Fergus Ogilvy-Sinclair, the youngest grandson of Lady Georgina, the Dowager Countess of Inverkillen. Her eldest grandson is Lord Angus Inverkillen, the current Earl of Inverkillen.

There are so many characters in this book including family members, hotel staff and guests that I found it difficult to keep track of all of them. However the main characters are very clearly defined and there is a list of all the characters at the beginning of the book, which is a great help.

The book begins the morning after a Highland Ball as Hudson, one of the co-owners of the Abbey, is doing his rounds when he finds a dead body in the Small Library, which had been locked for the Ball. The name of the victim is not revealed. The narrative then goes back to the fortnight before the Ball, introducing the characters and their relationships and it is not until the second half of the book that the identity of the victim is revealed.

Detective Inspector Jarvis from the local constabulary is called in to investigate, but as Mrs McBain thinks he is not ‘the sharpest axe in the shed’. And it is mainly down to her to get to the bottom of the mystery – how a murder could take place in a locked room, who had the motive to commit murder and how was the opium trade in Shanghai involved. As the victim had been stabbed to death the number of suspects includes all the men at the ball who were in Highland dress which includes a sgian-dubh, (pronounced ‘skeen doo’), a small single-edged knife, worn as part of Highland dress in the sock of a kilted Scot. So, there are many suspects, making the investigation tremendously complicated and involving many red herrings, and twists and turns as several secrets and scandals are revealed.The Epilogue introduces yet another unexpected turn.

How on earth Beth Cowan-Erskine kept so many strands in play, set in a richly described location and with believable characters is totally beyond me. But she did, with immense skill making this a most enjoyable book. As she describes it it is ‘a lunatic world’ that she has created. I really hope there will be a third Lock Down Murder Mystery.

Many thanks to the publishers for a review copy via NetGalley.

Loch Down Abbey is full of guests for a Highland Ball. Including several uninvited members of the Inverkillen clan, the Abbey's former residents. Housekeeper Mrs MacBain thinks her biggest challenge will be finding suitable rooms for everyone and keeping the peace at cocktail hour. Until the morning after the ball, when one of the guests is discovered inside the Abbey's library - as dead as a doornail.
The second book in the series & a well written murder mystery. The characters had depth & the pace was good. I do like Mrs MacBain, a part owner of the hotel & housekeeper. There were twists, turns & red herrings & I was kept guessing until the end. I look forward to more in the series
I voluntarily read and reviewed a special copy of this book; all thoughts and opinions are my own

It's four years since [book:Loch Down Abbey|57743434] was published so I was rather curious as what to expect.
Well, a lot.
A lot of people and a lot of secrets - after all that's happened in the first book, and now it seems that things have quite settled down, a lot of family members who moved to (far away) countries decide to come back for the large ball organized by Mrs MacBain, who's somewhat reluctantly accepts help from Lady Victoria (I keep seeing Maggie Smith 😉).

It takes a while for the story to lead up to the evening of the ball but it is a turning point; after the ball, there are even more secrets among the family members and the guests than you could have guessed from the first part of the book.
What I loved is how certain characters really have no idea how the world works and how the staff who are in fact now the owners of Loch Down Abbey keep on working to make it a success. The interactions between them are sometimes hilarious but you have to think about the fact that the impoverished family still thinks they are 'better' than 'the common people'.

Anyway, I can't remember precisely after four years whether or not I thought this book could have done with more editing. There are a lot of people involved but I still cannot wholly figure out who is who, especially not since Lady Victoria has four children but the grandchildren in the story are not the children of her children. I also noticed people having a conversation in one room, and in the next sentence appear to be in another room. There is a murder, yes, and of course the killer is found, but it is absolutely not clear to me what happened there. I think just some extra explanation, even a few sentences, would have added the necessary detail.
The clues as to who the killer is were far and wide between too and I had to go back a few times to see how the clues led up to finding the killer at last.

So, three stars this time and not four, but I enjoyed reading this book because it also contains a lot of sharp characterization and hilarious scenes.

Thanks to Hodder and Stoughton and Netgalley for this digital review copy.

A very 'gentle' book, written in the Agatha Christie style. A real 'who dunnit' lots of characters who are not as they seem. Many twists, turns and red herrings. Great fun to read
Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the advance copy.

Set in atmospheric 1939 Scotland, Only Murders in the Abbey is the second in the series, a delightful discovery for Golden Age mystery fans. Locked room mysteries are tricky to get right and I admit to being pleasantly surprised with the conclusion.

Loch Down Abbey has gone through changes, including function and ownership. A Highland Ball is held with a range of guests and interesting family drama on hand. But things take a sinister turn when murder is on the menu and guests grow wary and suspicious.

Spoiled and entitled characters add zip to the story. I'd hate to have friends like them but they can be fun in books. My favourite character is Mrs. MacBain who is full of common sense and diplomacy, an excellent counter balance. Scotland has a special place in my heart and though there are Scottish details, I longed for more. Still. This was a fun book to dive into headfirst and get lost in.