The Midnight Hour

The Brighton Mysteries 6

By: Elly Griffiths

Narrated by: Beth Eyre

A twisty new murder story from the bestselling author of the Dr Ruth Galloway Mysteries. An old man lies dead and it looks like poison, but his wife isn't the only one who had reason to kill him.

Brighton, 1965

When theatrical impresario Bert Billington is found dead in his retirement home, no one suspects foul play. But when the postmortem reveals that he was poisoned, suspicion falls on his wife, eccentric ex-Music Hall star Verity Malone.

Frustrated by the police response to Bert's death and determined to prove her innocence, Verity calls in private detective duo Emma Holmes and Sam Collins. This is their first real case, but as luck would have it they have a friend on the inside: Max Mephisto is filming a remake of Dracula, starring Seth Bellington, Bert's son. But when they question Max, they feel he isn't telling them the whole story.

Emma and Sam must vie with the police to untangle the case and bring the killer to justice. They're sure the answers must lie in Bert's dark past and in the glamorous, occasionally deadly, days of Music Hall. But the closer they get to the truth, the more danger they find themselves in...

(P)2021 Quercus Editions Limited©2021 Elly Griffiths

Critic reviews

Beneath the smooth, swan-like progression of Elly Griffith's sentences there is a lot going on. She is utterly in control of her material, and the machinations of the plot are never allowed to swamp character development, sense of place or the creation of atmosphere. She is a witty writer: the sturdy legs of a toddler on a swing, for example, are said to be "kicking the sky." If only all history mysteries could be as good as The Midnight Hour.

Griffiths writes with verve and wit, and has an unflaggingly keen eye . . . deliriously entertaining

An entertaining period murder mystery full of delightfully eccentric - and one decidedly deadly - luvvies

Layered with a gripping plot ... very, very enjoyable'

An intricately plotted whodunnit

Annoying voice

Liked the story but the whispering voice, the swallowing sounds annoyed me and my misophonia.