Murder at Claridge's by Jim Eldridge - Book Review

Murder at Claridge's by Jim Eldridge

Series: Hotel Mysteries #3 (Standalone)

Publication Date: 21st April 2022 

Genre: Historical Mystery, WWII

3.7 Stars 

One Liner: Interesting and entertaining but has too many subplots 

*****

An unsuspecting kitchen porter from Claridge’s has been murdered (garroted to be precise). He was a Romanian who did his job and kept to himself. Why would anyone want to kill him? Was he silenced or prevented from causing damage? 

With WWII raging in the backdrop, many of the world’s important personalities are staying at Claridge’s. Inspector Coburg knows the case is more complicated than it appears. As if that’s not enough, he has to deal with another inspector who hates him, established illegal market dealers, and more! 

Can Coburg get to the root of the case and solve the others before things get out of control? 

This is the third book in the series and my first. It did take me a while to get hang of the characters. The book can be read as a standalone, though it would make more sense if we knew who was who from the beginning. 

• There’s a bit of info dump at random places. I’m not sure I want to read the entire transcript of Princess Elizabeth’s radio speech. It doesn’t add anything to the story. A mention of it would’ve done the job.

• The story is most tell and no show, which works for a mystery. I got the information about the case without any elaborate descriptions. 

• Coburg is a likable and amicable character. Lampson and Rosa were interesting, though I wish the women were better written. They needed to be fleshed out more. 

• What didn’t work for me were the multiple subplots. Some were solved a bit too easily, and a few distracted me from the actual case. I understand the police and Yard usually have a lot going on at once, but we don’t need all of it. 

• Moreover, the primary case wasn’t resolved the way it should have been. It felt a little bland and doesn’t satisfy the mystery lover in me. 

• That said, I didn’t feel bored when reading the book, so I will read the next (and the previous ones) to see how I feel about the series. I rather liked Inspector Coburg, so he deserves another chance. ;) 

To sum up, Murder at Claridge's is an interesting historical mystery set in the WWII backdrop if we ignore the excessive subplots. It would be fun reading the next books in the series.

Thank you, NetGalley and Allison & Busby, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

#NetGalley #MurderatClaridges