Murder at the Castle: An Iris Grey Mystery

by M. B. Shaw

Overview

Painter (and amateur sleuth) Iris Grey enters a world of buried secrets, village gossip, family feuds, and murder in the latest cosy mystery from New York Times bestselling author M. B. Shaw.

Portrait painter Iris Grey arrives at Pitfeldy Castle in the Scottish Highlands, at the request of Baron Jock MacKinnon.

Jock has commissioned Iris to paint a portrait of his fiancé, an American socialite Kathy Miller, ahead of their New Year wedding. Kathy invites Iris into her confidence, as she's received a series of threatening notes asking her to call off the wedding. Iris begins to investigate, and when a body is discovered in the grounds of the castle, she fears for Kathy's safety.

With the wedding fast approaching, Iris tries to solve a mystery that is caught up in a rarified world of family feuds, romantic intrigue, buried secrets, and murder.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643138336
Publisher:	Pegasus Books
Publication date:	12/07/2021
Pages:	400
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

M. B. Shaw is the pseudonym of New York Times bestselling writer Tilly Bagshawe. A teenage mother at seventeen, Tilly attended Cambridge University and took her baby daughter with her. She then enjoyed a successful journalism career before becoming a novelist. Her debut novel, Adored, was a smash hit on both sides of the Atlantic, becoming an instant New York Times bestseller. Tilly now divides her time between England and America, writing her own books and the new series of Sidney Sheldon novels.

Editorial Reviews

10/11/2021

Shaw’s convoluted sequel to 2018’s Murder at the Mill takes portrait painter Iris Grey from London to the wilds of Scotland, to paint beautiful, young, and twice divorced American socialite Kathy Miller, who’s engaged to gruff, elderly, and immensely wealthy Jock MacKinnon, baron of Pitfeldy Castle. When Iris arrives, she finds the castle’s vibe to be “less Downton Abbey and more Scooby Doo,” and the loquacious intended bride to be an overflowing fount of gossip. While Iris and Kathy are on a walk, Kathy’s two tiny, excitable dogs uncover the skeletal remains of two bodies. Det. Insp. Stuart Haley investigates, and soon the no-nonsense policeman is asking Iris to help him discover the victims’ identities by using her social media platform, which she successfully used in a previous case of hers. A Facebook message from Italy has Iris heading for Venice, where she finds clues to long-buried crimes and corrosive family secrets. The uneven pacing dilutes the suspense, and readers will feel little sense of concern for Iris. Still, fans of lighter mysteries will be entertained. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly

A wonderfully layered mystery with a multifaceted amateur sleuth, artist Iris Grey. Ms. Shaw's English village setting made me feel like I was right there, and kept me reading until late into the night. I can't wait to see where Iris Grey's next artistic commission takes us.

Paige Shelton

Praise for M. B. Shaw:

From the Publisher

"Be sure to start reading M. B. Shaw's evocatively written mystery early in the day, or else you'll be up late into the night-it's that unputdownable.

Ellen Crosby

A great sweeping adventure. Ideal for holiday reading.

M. C. Beaton

"One of those rare novels that perfectly balances its complex mystery writing with a juicy yet still entirely believable personal life for its detective. Ms. Shaw knows how to write a page-turner with a thoroughly modern cast and setting. I’ll definitely be looking out for more books in this series!"

Criminal Element

A festering box of secrets, providing a Christmas cocktail of family lies and deliciously conceived murder.

Mandy Morton

A snowy Christmas mystery in a country village, intriguing characters and a twisty-turny plot. I loved this book and couldn't put it down. Fabulous!

Jill Mansell

A contemporary-set cosy crime novel that harks back to the Golden Age of detective fiction. Tilly Bagshawe, writing under a pseudonym, introduces us to society portraitist Iris Grey. Iris finds herself caught up in all manner of sleuthing and intrigue.

Red Magazine