Murder at Melrose Court: A Country House Christmas Murder

Set in 1920 mostly at an English country house, Menuhin’s winning debut and series launch blends a golden age whodunit with dry Wodehousian humor. The Jeevesian butler sets the tone by announcing to the house’s owner, Maj. Heathcliff Lennox, “I must inform you, sir, that a body has been discovered on the front doorstep.” Though the unidentified corpse has no marks of violence on it, the police suspect foul play—and that Lennox may have been responsible. On a slip of paper Lennox finds on the dead man and turns over to the police is the name of Countess Sophia Androvich Zerevki Polyakov. The plot thickens after the countess, a White Russian, who has become engaged to Lennox’s uncle Charles, is shot dead in Charles’s home. Lennox is caught holding the murder weapon, and he must turn investigator to exonerate himself and get to the bottom of both murders. The brisk pacing and capable prose are impressive. Fans of lighthearted cozies will be delighted. (Self-published)