Murder Takes the High Road

Title:  Murder Takes the High Road
Author: Josh Lanyon
Publisher: Carina Press
Release Date: April 23, 2018
Genre(s): Contemporary/Suspense
Page Count: 60,000 words
Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Read book blurb here

Josh Lanyon's latest mystery pays homage to all those classic whodunits in this tale of a group of people drawn together by their love of a mystery writer, Dame Vanessa Rayburn. The cast of characters are on a bus tour through Scotland, visiting various settings from Dame Rayburn's novels, ending with a visit to Rayburn's castle on a remote island.

There is a creepy, very cold Scottish inn, a mysterious last-minute addition to the group who doesn't seem familiar with Dame Rayburn's work, constant tension between Carter and his ex-boyfriend Trevor who is on the tour with his new obnoxious boyfriend and bound and determined to make trouble for Carter. And then the murders start ...


The plot reminded me of an Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None, while Dame Vanessa Rayburn, with a murder in her past, seemed like a nod to noted mystery author Anne Perry. The mystery held my interest, but I felt there were so many characters on the tour that it was hard at times to remember who was who. Also Vanessa Rayburn seemed like such a fascinating, but ultimately very illusive character. Finally, the relationship between Carter and John felt very undeveloped.

Murder Take the High Road gets high marks for its mystery, but the character development lowered the curve a bit for me personally, and I give it 3.5 stars.