An entertaining book that will keep you intrigued until the end. . This murder mystery is modern take on the British detective mystery, with a few echoes of Agatha Christie throughout. The author exhibits sensitive understanding of the cultural and geological history of the area and weaves that understanding well with the plot. And his descriptions of the Yorkshire countryside make me long to travel there.

The Nidderdale Murders is an absorbing police procedural surrounded by the stunning Yorkshire landscape. Once again, DCI Jim Oldroyd and his team are called in to solve a murder. A retired judge is killed for no apparent reason. The murderer is identified as a local handyman and the search begins. Police canvass the village and surrounding hamlets to no avail. How will they solve this high-profile case? Oldroyd is well known for his ability to clear difficult cases, but this one has him stumped, until he remembers a Sherlock Holmes film he saw in his boyhood. A robbery from years earlier, is somehow involved. But how?

This is the fifth in the Yorkshire Murders series. I definitely will pick up the earlier books.

I got tis one through NetGalley. Reviewed on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51033514-the-nidderdale-murders

This series and author were new to me. I see now that John R. Ellis has written four previous books in the Yorkshire Murder Mystery series. The story was intriguing: the murder has a witness, but are things as they seem? DCI Jim Oldroyd doesn't think so. And why this victim? With able assistants Steph and Andy, he begins a search for the killer.

The Yorkshire landscape is almost a character in itself. Ellis paints lovely word pictures of the scenery and also adds local color with attention to dialect.

I confess I was on the right track by the time the ending rolled around but after so many twists (and another victim!) I was glad that I was.

I recommend "The Nidderdale Murders" and plan to read the other books in the series as well. Jim, Steph, and Andy were likable and hard-working and I want to see what they do in Ellis's other stories.

I am never disappointed with this author's police procedurals set in some remote quaint village outside of Detective Oldroyd's home base of Harrogate. It is part of a series but is very easily read as a stand alone as are all of the series. Only the main characters are.the same in the series. Det. Oldroyd seems to be a mix of Sherlock Holmes, Morse, and maybe a little Colombo which makes for an interesting main character. The stories are unique and characters are well developed. He describes the settings in such a way that you can easily picture the hills, forests or barren lands. The story itself is quite detailed but not boring. It may take a little while to get involved and it is not a quick read but it is enjoyable and not one you can guess "who dunnit" until the end! Jacket cover gives a good synopsis of the story so I will not write a book report. Read and enjoy!
I was provided an Advanced Reader Copy of the book and was under no obligation to provide a review.The opinions expressed are my own. Thanks to the author,publisher,and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I am a fan of the British or Scottish or Irish mysteries whether they be TV series or novels. They particularly appeal to me because they are rarely violent but rather more cerebral. This one is a perfect example of the genre and I loved it. It was atmospheric, complicated enough to provide the surprise denouement at the end and had an endearing inspector to accomplish it all. I only read this one but if there is a sequel I will be delighted to read it.

Sorry, I read about 7% of the book and it didn't interest me. There aren't100 words to describe it. I couldn't get I to this book. Lack of interest. I'm just being honest!

The Nidderdale Murders is the 5th book in the Yorshire Mysteries by J.R. Ellis. Released 20th Aug 2020 on Amazon's Thomas & Mercer imprint, it's 301 pages and available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book and the rest of the series are currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

These books are well written engaging procedurals which are tightly plotted, set against the Yorkshire countryside: hills, moors, and fells. Although it's part of a series, it works quite well as a standalone. There are references to occurrences from previous books in the series, but they don't play a central role in the action and readers new to the series won't have any troubles keeping up.

DCI Oldroyd is an experienced and practical investigator in charge of a team of intelligent and hardworking detectives. The unexpected shotgun murder of a local retired judge has the team looking for motives from the past and present. I enjoyed the writing and I really liked Oldroyd's relationship with his family and colleagues. He's an honest and compassionate officer and the development of the plot and denouement were satisfying and well written. Looking forward to more in this series which compares quite favourably with P.D. James' wonderful Adam Dalgleish books.

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

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The Nidderdale Murders
The Nidderdale Murders (Kindle Edition)
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I really enjoyed this mystery. I could not put down and it is a must read for everyone. Great author and cannot wait to read more by J.R. Ellis.
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A tightly written murder mystery. Good characters and a steady plot. I really enjoyed JR Ellis’ writing style as well. The dialogue was well done and the characters were like regular neighbors. The descriptions of the land were good enough that I didn’t need to google, though I did. An excellent read that I definitely recommend.

This was a long, lonely slog through the heavily described Yorkshire dales area. There is a murder to be solved and it could have been done in half the number of pages if the author was an adept editor. Too many clichés, too much clutter, too much extraneous language and dialog. I was bored. I can’t remember the last time I fell asleep reading a book but The Nidderdale Murders put me to sleep each and every night I tried to finish it. Obviously not the book for me but apparently it hit the mark for many others.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for a copy.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. You can purchase your copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Nidderdale-Murders-Yorkshire-Murder-Mystery-ebook/dp/B0847NMGY9
This is my first book by this author. My father in law is a big fan so I thought maybe this would be something interesting to read. This book takes place on the high fells above Nidderdale, one of the Yorkshire dales. We begin the book with four men dressed in expensive weatherproof jackets shooting at birds. These men are avid shooters and end up attending a party where they will be eating what they kill. This is high pressure for the chefs, as the kill as to be rushed back and prepared and roasted prior to the men returning. After a lot of jovial enjoying of the meal, the men liquored up retire to their rooms. The staff stayed in small apartments that overlooked the front of the Inn. Kirsty, the bartender and chambermaid and Harry , the chef were in a secret relationship and he had snuck into her room, but was snoring and hogging the tiny bed, so Kirsty was laying awake, but got up because she heard something. She witnessed Alan Green shoot Mr. Fraser. The Detective Chief Inspector Jim Oldroyd and his partner, Deborah were called into action due to such a high profile murder. Mr. Alexander Fraser is a local landowner and former Judge. They drop what they are doing and head to the crime scene. We are taken on the in-depth investigation along with more murders. This book was very interesting!

Move over Agatha Christie, there’s a new author in town! J R Ellis’ Nidderdale Murders is a refreshing who dunnit that keeps you turning the page in anticipation of case. Each character leaves you guessing whom could be the murderer while keeping you rooting for the DCI in charge to solve the case. This book is entertaining from start to finish and leaves you wanting for another.

No doubting this is an English novel. It's crisp writing style and English colloquialisms make for a refreshing read. I understand this is the 5th in the series of Chief Inspector Oldroyd and his team. While it is a procedural, it is light on technology and heavy on the personalities and puzzles of whodunit and why? I had to do some research on some of the words used to describe the landscapes, but once I did a lovely picture is painted of a charming hamlet in England. I figured out most of the end right along with Oldroyd, which was fun. I enjoyed this one alot. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced read.

A fairly well written mystery with plenty of twists to keep in interesting. I liked the plot and the slower paced fleshing out of it but didn't really care for the characters. None of them seemed to have anything really redeemable about them and their crude language was annoying at times. So while it was a good read, it's not one I would recommend given the content that many would find objectionable. I think the author should have focused more on the murder side of things rather than trying to add in enough shocking behavior and language to pad his story that didn't need those inclusions to be good.

I received a temporary complimentary copy of this book from Amazon Publishing UK via NetGalley in order to provide a fair and honest review. I will receive no fiscal compensation for this review and the opinions expressed herein are entirely my own.

When after a hunting party at Judge "Sandy" Fraser's Yorkshire manor house and then a supper at the local hotel, Fraser was shot and there was a witness who saw who shot him. Since it was an important personage, Detective Chief Inspector James Oldroyd and his team was brought into the case.
As they began to gather information from all the locals in this small town, they can't find the alleged shooter but they do find that Fraser was in financial difficulties and there were also activists, sabotaging hunts.
As different theories are brought up and then discarded, another murder occurs in similar fashion. Oldroyd then begins to get a glimmer of the who and the why of these murders.
A quick and interesting British police procedural with likable characters and descriptive locales.
Thank you Harper Collins and NetGalley for this e-copy of "The Nidderdale Murders".

I was really impressed with this one! At first I wasn’t sure if it was going to be up my alley but I am so glad I kept on reading ! Really great storyline and the characters came to life!

Didn't realize this was a series when I requested...so am jumping in mid series. However does work as a standalone. An enjoyable read with an interesting twist....keeps you guessing. Thank you netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

A local landowner is murdered and as he's unpopular there are no end of suspects. When a shopkeeper is killed things become more complicated and there's a twist at the end of the book.

The characters are likeable and the descriptions of Yorkshire are evocative. A good police procedural.

A little slow at first, but captivating through the rest. The turns and twists in this novel kept me guessing until the last second. I loved that the author included characters that are native and inviting.
The fifth installation in the series is by far the best one yet.

This is the fifth in a Yorkshire Murder Mystery series by noted British writer J.R. Ellis, all of which are largely stand-alone novels, all adept at portraying the gorgeous landscape features and weather anomalies, something the author has a great feel for. So, if you enjoy rolling heather covered hillocks, rumbling ocean shores, and glowering wet weather, get your Wemblies on and give it a go.

A couple of seemingly senseless murders at which the assailant was seen and identified with unfailing description, has the countryside in turmoil. One victim was a judge, seemingly liked by all and the other was a selfish wealthy landowner who sponsored yearly grouse hunts that were extravagant self-serving events, not enjoyed by everyone but that were lucrative to the natives even though the lovely birds were missed as their numbers rapidly diminished under the greedy shotguns of the killing advocates. Reliable witnesses that viewed the murders, were able to provide clear descriptions of the murderer, different for each of the victims, but DCI Oldroyd wasn’t able to get a hook in the killer who disappeared after each killing. There were motives galore for nearly everyone in the village, but none fit the descriptions given by the witnesses.

Some confusion was present in the story because of similar names and the large number of potential perpetrators so it would be a good idea to slow down the reading pace and get into the story that is really quite intriguing. There was also quite a bit of anti-hunting sentiment expressed that might also dull the enjoyment for some readers, but I confess to getting a good bit of enjoyment from the story. The ending is somewhat contrived and even a little hokey, but fiction writers can employ whatever technique he or she considers appropriate to their invention. Don’t let that keep you from reading a good, enjoyable who-dunnit.

Schuyler T Wallace
Author of TIN LIZARD TALES