Portrait of a Murderer by Anne Meredith

Portrait of a Murderer by Anne Meredith ISBN-13: 9781464209048 Paperback Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press Released: April 3, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
'Adrian Gray was born in May 1862 and met his death through violence, at the hands of one of his own children, at Christmas, 1931.'

Thus begins a classic crime novel published in 1933 that has been too long neglected - until now. It is a riveting portrait of the psychology of a murderer.

Each December, Adrian Gray invites his extended family to stay at his lonely house, Kings Poplars. None of Gray's six surviving children is fond of him; several have cause to wish him dead. The family gathers on Christmas Eve - and by the following morning, their wish has been granted.

This fascinating and unusual novel tells the story of what happened that dark Christmas night; and what the murderer did next.


My Review:
Portrait of a Murderer is a historical crime fiction set in 1931 at Christmas in England. It was published in 1933. The story is told primarily from the viewpoint of murderer. He calculated how to get away with the crime as well as justified himself mentally and waxed philosophical about it. The first half of the story was setting up murder--describing who was in the house and why they would want to kill the victim--and then describing how the murderer tried to cover his crime up.

The second half was how the police and one of the other people at the house at the time of the murder figured out who did it and how they proved it. The murderer was not likable, but the man that he set up to take the fall was even less likable.

There was no sex. There was a minor amount of bad language. Overall, I would recommend this interesting mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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