I appreciated receiving an advance copy of The Nidderdale Murders from NetGalley. I wanted to like it more than I did. It was ok. My enjoyment may have suffered because I hadn’t read any of the 4 previous books in the series and didn’t have a familiarity with the characters. I felt as if I had just watched an old BBC mystery film. I liked the mechanism of using stories from Sherlock Holmes and Shakespeare to inform the solution to the mystery. All in all, I can understand a reader following that is invested in the characters and the locale. It missed the mark for me.

I really enjoyed this book. It had the feel of an Agatha Christie / early 20th century British mystery that takes place in the present day. I especially liked how the opening chapter doesn't give away the time period in its descriptions of the setting and the characters.

I definitely was kept guessing about the murderer with plenty of suspects in this tiny English hamlet. DCI Olyrod has a deliberate, cerebral presence that reminded me of Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. Fans of the Louise Penny series would probably enjoy this one.

*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.*

MY BOOK REVIEW:
4 Stars: 4/5 Star Rating Scale

Looking for a steadily-paced murder mystery? This is the one. I found this book enjoyable but would have liked a more exciting one! I found this book moved a bit slowly for my taste.

I received a digital ARC of this book from netgalley and Thomas & Mercer. All opinions expressed are my own.

Atmospheric police procedural which has a very well crafted mystery at it's center. Filled with twists and turns that kept me reading hours longer than I intended. I now have another new author to track down books from next book buying spree.

I felt like I was reading a Midsommer Murders episode and that’s a good thing. Nice British cozy mystery but more complex than I expected and a very clever outcome.

Interesting story line with enough suspense to keep the reader engaged. Some of the dialect was a little difficult to understand at first but didn't take away from the story.

DCI Oldroyd finds himself and his associates in the Yorkshire village of Nidderdale investigating the murder of the local gentry - a retired judge - who is the sponsor of grouse hunting expedition s for wealthy clients on his manor. A witness to the murder identifies the alleged killer, but the killer seems to have evaporated into thin air. Oldroyd, relying on his team and associates from the local constabulary, attempt to track down the murderer and find themselves enmeshed in a parade of denizens of the town who may (or may not) have a motive for murdering the judge.

Replete with images of the Yorkshire Dales, a large cast of characters, some quite minor, the story moves slowly for a police procedural. Misdirection is at the center of this novel, and a low level of suspense permeates the latter section of the work.

The writing is straightforward even with the amount of description little would be considered' poetic' orf 'literary'. The characters are drawn in broad brush rather than high definition and conversation between and amongst at times appears stilted. The story raises many issues and interesting pathways, but few are actually explored, much to my surprise. The length of the essential story - initiation to conclusion - is rather long, but the additional explanatory material adds little to the story telling and actually invites the reader to want to hurry up and get it over with.

The resolution - while clever - stretches credulity leaving one a little dissatisfied. The intriguing premise was concluded on a less than appetizing basis. Would I read another in this series? Yes.

I really enjoyed this book. I read a great deal of murder mysteries and so often popular titles these days run together. I enjoyed the setting and the pace of the novel.

A retired judge is shot outside a local pub in northern England. The shooter was seen by a witness. When DCI Jim Oldroyd and his team arrive on the scene, they learn the identity of the shooter only to discover the shooter has disappeared. When continuing their investigation, they find that the judge did have some enemies but did they dislike him enough to kill him and where did the killer go?

The Nidderdale Murders is a classic murder mystery featuring DCI Olydrod and his team of detectives. A murder of a retired judge brings them to the sleepy village of Niddersgill in Yorkshire The killing is witnessed by a local barmaid, however the killer has completely vanished. With plenty of people wanting to see the judge dead there are plenty of suspects and thus begins the excellently laid out detective work. Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this book- it's the first I have read in this series but I enjoyed it as a standalone. There are some personal life aspects of the characters mentioned and past cases but it didn't distract from the story line. In fact it was refreshing to read an old-fashioned Agatha like mystery. I also loved the Sherlock Holmes and Shakespeare references. I highly recommend this to those who appreciate whodunits with a surprise culprit . Great fun-well done!

The Nidderdale Murders has a whole slew of who-did-it characters with a terrific conclusion.

As I was reading the book I was having difficulty with the number of people who might have wanted to see Sandy Fraser meet his demise. But, as the list of suspects dwindled, I was able to concentrate upon a few suspects that might have killed him and another villager.

The solution to the murders was interesting, satisfying, and a bit unusual. If you pay attention to details throughout the story, you may be able to solve the case along with DCI Jim Oldroyd.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to read and review this book.

In what seems to be a peaceful Yorkshire village, there is a conflict between the local grouse shoot and some protesters who want to protect the birds. The shoot is organized by a former judge who has retired to the countryside, and he is not the most likable person. When there is a brutal murder, and a witness can tell the police who did the shooting, Detective Oldroyd and his team are called in to investigate.

This was a well-written story with all of the necessary characters in a British mystery, along with some additional side-stories. With the usual plodding investigation, the team of police finally unearths enough information to resolve the case, but with the usual drama and uncertainty of a successful conclusion.

The Nidderdale Murders begins with what appears to be an open-and-shut case of murder. A persnickety and unlikeable judge retired and bought a manor house with a hunting moor where he hosted grouse-shooting parties to the dismay of animal rights activists. But such was his tight-fisted parsimony, he managed to make everyone else dislike him. Even his oldest friend had cause to wish him ill. So, being shot would have generated a long list of suspects except the shooting was witnessed. Unfortunately, the suspect is nowhere to be found.

DCI Oldroyd and his team come to help the local investigation and they find far too many reasons to kill the judge and no trace anywhere of the suspect. Something just feels wrong and that becomes even more clear with a second murder with a second witness seeing a second killer. Something strange is afoot.



I thoroughly enjoyed The Nidderdale Murders and look forward to reading more in this series. This was the fifth in the Yorkshire Murders series and I never once felt lost. There were brief references to past murder investigations, but just as a way of noting similarities or differences and not once necessary to follow the investigation. The book is fair and all the clues are there so we reach the same conclusions as or just before our detectives. It was a clever, methodical procedural with a creative solution.

I received an e-galley of The Nidderdale Murders from the publisher through NetGalley

The Nidderdale Murders at Thomas & Mercer | Amazon Publishing
J.R. Ellis at Facebook

Entertaining if a little on the meh side - I think I would have enjoyed more if I had previous books in series.

There are some books in a series that are function as stand-alone novels - a reader can pick one up without prior knowledge and enjoy the book. There are others where previous books are important, with the characters and events building on what happened prior books. Unfortunately, this book, at least for me, was one of the latter.

There were sections that talked about the growth of a character, how they would previously have tackled a problem one way, but now are addressing it differently. There's a lot of information about the characters' personal lives, that without any background, was distracting. I'm not saying books that build on previous installments in a series is bad – there are number of series that I love for doing precisely this - it's that coming in after four books feels like it's the first day at a new job, and everyone is talking about how great Susie looks after coming back from maternity leave and the special at the cafe is cheeseburger tacos while you're trying to remember if Susie was the one wearing red or blue and if the cafe is on the third floor or fourth.

My recommendation: if this is your first book in the series, stop, and go read the earlier books in the series. If you've read the previous books, then dive in - I think you'll enjoy it.

Intriguing DCI Mystery!
Thoroughly enjoyable read with a surprising twist ending. The interesting characters and British countryside adds to this latest murder mystery from Mr Ellis. Enjoy!

English countryside murder crime story. A moor owner is shot by a local resident, But why? Then another resident is shot as well. Both times, the shooter seemed to deliberately show his face. As the investigation unfolds, it begins to uncover unforeseen motives. A really interesting story with a few well placed characters and an ending that holds a nice surprise. solution. Very good read, I recommend.

This mostly got four or five stars from reviewers. I’m giving it 3…It was a fairly standard police procedure book, and although the plot was a bit twisty in places, it didn’t really hold my attention. I skipped bits of it, and was a bit bored, I’m afraid. I read it quickly, not because I wanted to finish it because it was so gripping, but because I wanted to finish it.

The characters were believable, on the whole, but I’ve read two of this author’s novels now, and wasn’t really blown away by them. If I remember, I probably won’t choose any more.

A short review I know, but there’s not much else to say. It’s a rather workmanlike book, with nothing to hate about it, but neither is there much to like.

This was my first foray in this series and was very satisfying, a bit edgy and really kept me guessing. Just as I felt I was figuring things out, yet another plot twist happened.

In a sleepy Yorkshire village, shocking and surprising events take place, including murder. DCI Oldroyd is in charge of the baffling case which has us riding roller-coasters with fascinating turns. We meet many characters I could visualize. I am smitten with the Yorkshire Dales so was thrilled with the location descriptions.

Also enjoyable are the writing style and use of the local dialect. Unexpected endings appeal to me, too.

All in all, the author's unique story is strong and enthralling, difficult to put down. I'm replaying scenes in my mind at this moment!

Another good book from JR Ellis! If you like old English cozy mysteries, you will love this one. Many strands to the web of the story, and I really like the characters in this book.

DCI Jim Oldroyd is sent to the village of Niddersgill, site of a puzzling murder witnessed but with no apparent motive and few leads. The murderer is known in the local pub but disappears without a trace immediately after the crime. Oldroyd and his team struggle to learn anything about the murderer when a second murder is committed in similar circumstances but no apparent connection.

I hadn't read any of the previous books in the Yorkshire Murder Mysteries so I didn't recognize references to previous cases. It reminds me of British TV's Midsomer Murders although there a fewer red herrings to confuse the reader here. The characters are not as well developed as in other mystery series I've read, e.g., Inspector Gamache, but perhaps that's because the characters have been developed over the course of the previous four books. I enjoyed references to the Yorkshire countryside so perhaps I'll go back to the first in the series to catch up on the career of DCI Oldroyd and his team.