The Prisoner in the Castle: A Maggie Hope Mystery

Dame Agatha Christie would be pleased, I think. The Prisoner in the Castle pays homage to And Then There Were None and Murder on the Orient Express. It's an engaging, twisty locked room mystery. Maggie Hope finds herself trapped with a killer, will she escape the island or will it become her burial place?
Maggie soon discovers that she is a prisoner, completely cut off from the outside world. No phone, no news, no radio, and no family looking for her as they have been told she, and her fellow prisoners are on assignment. Each person has been deemed a liability to the war effort. Then a killer strikes and Maggie must unravel the mystery before she's next.
I enjoyed this entry in the series even though I haven't read all of the previous books. I will be catching up,ASAP. I had the feeling that I would have gotten more out of the story if I had read them all but I can still, without hesitation, say this is fine as a standalone. Until the ninety book comes my way, I will be playing catchup. I'm looking forward to spending more time with Maggie.

The Prisioner in the Castle is the eighth and latest installment in the Maggie Hope series and author Susan Elia MacNeal has given us a compelling, captivating and cerebral tale.
World War II British secret agent, Maggie Hope, finds herself banished to the remote Scottish island, Scarra, with other SOE agents. MacNeal’s attention to detail in her description of the remote island and the castle that Maggie and the others inhabit is superb and fascinating. She gives the reader a real feel of what each one of the spies is feeling on the island.
What sets this book apart from the previous books is MacNeals use of the plot from Agatha Christie’s classic novel, “And Then There Were None”, as a way of eliminating characters one by one.
Maggie finds herself in a race against time to save herself and others on the remote island from a murderer.
Maggie must use all the skills and tools in her arsenal to outsmart a treacherous individual out to due harm to others as well as potentially changing the course of the war.
While there are references to past stories and characters, Prisioner in the Castle, is enjoyable and certainly entertaining as a stand-alone book, though you may find yourself enticed to go back and read the previous books in the series.
The Prisioner in the Castle will leave you anxious for the next Maggie Hope adventure.
I received an advance copy of this book from Netgalley. My review of the book is unbiased. #netgalley #theprisionerinthecastle

If you like Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None and WWII intrigue, you will certainly like this book. I have read and enjoyed all of the novels in this series, starting with Mr. Churchill's Secretary. Maggie Hope is a resourceful, smart and spunky protagonist who takes great, and possibly foolish, risks, in order to help with the war effort. In The Prisoner in the Castle, Maggie has been exiled to an island where agents who pose a risk to security are secretly being housed. Over the course of Maggie's stay on the isolated and claustrophobic island, life goes on with one big exception...Maggie's fellow agents are being killed at a rapid, daily rate. Why? What danger do they present? Who can be trusted? How will the murderer be stopped? Will Maggie survive or could this be the end of the series? You will need to read the novel to find out.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a fun read in an enjoyable series.

In this new Maggie Hope mystery, we take a break, mostly, from spying and the war to have an old-fashioned Agatha Christie-style manor house mystery. [cue spooky music] Isolated on a Scottish island, residents are dying one by one. Maggie Hope must solve the case!!

A couple of things were a little silly - a man interred in a vault twenty years before would not emit a strong smell of decay. Some to the characters were a tad overdrawn and caricaturish. Characters include one character who carried a taxidermied fox around, another kept talking about ghosts, and one had a club foot. Some poor editing, as well: one character was noted to leave the house in one scene, then be in the room to go get paper and pencil (chap 20), then mentioned to be outside.

Still, it was an entertaining book, with rich historical information and atmosphere. The characters were fun, and I doubt if they'll be back in the series. The book feels very separate from the others. I enjoyed reading it.

I received this book from Netgalley.

Ms. MacNeal gives her own original twist to a plot reminiscent of Agatha Christie's And Then There were None. As her readers have come to expect, we have a story filled with danger, one of spies and espionage. Ms.MacNeal expertly spins a story that gains momentum at the end, leaving the reader unable to put the book down until the last page has been read.
I loved the vivid descriptions of the Scottish island that appealed to the senses. Ms. MacNeal provides an eclectic cast that kept me guessing until the very end. As always, I can rely upon Ms. MacNeal to provide well-researched historic detail of the setting and the British SOE agents in WWII. I look forward to reading more of Maggie Hope's adventures in the future.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley and the author/publisher. I was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I thoroughly enjoyed this latest installment in the Maggie Hope series. It has a gothic feel colliding with a Murder on the Orient Express vibe as Maggie is trapped in a castle with a lurid history. One by one the people on the island with her are murdered, and the remaining inmates are further secluded by a storm that prevents anyone from reaching them. Those on the island are all unique individuals, and I thought I had the culprit figured out twice, only to have scatted by the real antagonist. This novel will satisfy readers of historical suspense.

What a delightful (belated) introduction to a new-to-me-writer! For readers who ask about each series, "Do I have to read the books in order?", my answer in this case is, apparently not. I enjoyed Prisoner in the Castle, #8 in the Maggie Hope series, and plan to chase down the earlier installments.

Since this is a historical mystery, set in the UK during WWII, it seemed fitting and satisfying that the style and literary techniques had a vintage feel. Character development was good, and I had only one quibble about the credibility of a character's behavior (that would be Anna, who I can't picture making it through the rigorous training required of an espionage agent. She seemed more like a neurotic recluse.)

But the rest of the group -- a dozen or so British spies being held captive by their own government in a so-called cooler facility -- were great fun to hang out with, particularly as my suspicion swung from one to another of them.

Author Susan Elia MacNeal did well with the pacing, too. She hit the "Goldilocks" point where the book was neither too long (thus dragging) nor too short (leaving the reader unsatisfied and the plot unresolved.) It was just right!

Reading this book (which I obtained from Netgalley as an ARC) was time well spent.

The Maggie Hope series has gotten grittier over time and while I really enjoyed the Paris Spy, I wasn't sure if I was up for more of the torture Maggie and Sarah had endured in Nazi-occupied France. So it was a bit of a relief to catch up with Maggie back in Britain and in a fairly standard murder mystery. This story is a riff on Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. Instead of invited guests, the characters here are prisoners in an old manor house on a remote island in the Hebrides. Maggie and her fellow "guests" are all trained SOE agents being held on ice because they know too much or have been judged unfit for missions. As they are murdered one by one, Maggie has to investigate and try to save herself from the killer. In the meantime, DCI Durgin is trying to find Maggie to testify as a witness against the Blackout Beast, and starting to get suspicious about not getting any answers to his inquiries about her. I enjoyed the story, but I'm ready for Maggie to be reunited with her friends and back to work on the war effort in some capacity.
I received a free ebook ARC from Random House-Ballantine Bantam via NetGalley. This is my honest review.

Maggie Hope is back! The Prisoner in the Castle is the next installment in the Maggie Hope Mystery series. I have read many books in the Maggie Hope series and really enjoyed them.

Throughout her travels, Maggie Hope has acquired a lot of knowledge (among other things) and it’s this collection of knowledge that makes her a threat some believe. It's these beliefs which have landed Maggie imprisoned in Killoch Castle on a remote Scottish island.

In The Prisoner in the Castle, Maggie Hope faces one of her greatest predicaments thus far, imprisonment in an isolated castle away from friends and family who don't know where she is. Not only is she imprisoned but others around her are coming up dead. In true Maggie Hope style she has to use all the gifts and skills she has to escape from her prison before she's next.

I really enjoy this series because Maggie Hope is resilient, bright and filled with mirth.

I received an advanced review copy (ARC) of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is another total immersion into WWII. All the grit, danger, tensions, and boredom when waiting.
The characters are marvelously drawn and pulled me right in.
I was left a bit puzzled as to why she was being imprisoned. I couldn't remember enough details from the last story. I think my confusion was at least in part a result of the bureaucratic folly that put her there.
It is amazing to step into these lives and see how they each cope with the isolation and, at least for some, the feeling of uselessness while the war goes on.
It's a fine read and I , again, look forward to further adventures and more expansion of my WWII knowledge.

Maggie Hope has been sent to a Scottish island to the Killoch Castle because she knows too much about what is going to happen to end the war. She is not alone though, there are a group who for one reason or another have been sent there to stay until the war ends.Suddenly those on the island start dying. Who is behind it? They would all like to know. In the mean time it is discovered there is a German spy among them. This comes from the mainland where hardly anyone knows they are on the island. Maggie is needed for a trial as witness and her friend David starts looking for her. Can they find what happened and get to the island before it is too late?

I first met Maggie Hope six years ago. Since that meeting, I’ve counted her among my friends and look forward to spending a few days with her each year. During that time she’s moved frequently—from secretarial work in Prime Minister Churchill’s office; to Windsor Castle where she tutored the young Princess Elizabeth; across the Atlantic to WWII-era Washington, DC, and the Roosevelt White House; to Berlin; and finally to occupied Paris.

I was dismayed to find that in the past year, Britain’s SOE (Special Operations Executive), the organization running much of Britain’s wartime intelligence-gathering activities, has held her prisoner on a isolated island off the Scottish coast because she had learned information vital to the war effort.

The island’s inmates are housed in a gloomy, Revival-style castle where the original owner’s questionable decorating choices contribute to the pressing atmosphere. Old newspaper clippings and some time going through old documents in the castle library reveal the sordid history of the original owner, thus contributing to the sense of danger and isolation the captive SOE agents experience. As in Agatha Christie’s classic "And Then There Were None", the tension builds as Maggie’s fellow inmates are murdered one by one—who is hunting down the island’s inhabitants and more importantly, why is this happening? Who is trustworthy and who is a murderer?

Tension builds during a long storm and eventually contact with the mainland is completely severed. The former SOE agents are pitted against each other, wondering who among them is the murderer.

During the final day of the storm, the tension erupts. How will Maggie use her sense of reasoning and mathematical skills, her constant assets, to get out of the sticky situations that develop on this isolated island with a history of violence? Will Maggie escape the seemingly inevitable fate of the island’s residents? Will the SOE ever get a rescue team to the island? Will Maggie live for another day and a chance for another assignment?

There’s only one way to find out. Read the book!

I loved the pacing, characterization and atmosphere of this book. I was hooked by the first Maggie Hope adventure especially because I had visited the Churchill War Rooms shortly before it was published. This book recaptured the spirit of the first one and brought to life the experiences of those brave souls who worked every day in the war effort. The author is a master of weaving the reality of the war into a moving adventure. Highly recommended for mystery lovers, those who prize well depicted historical novels and books that make the great war and the greatest generation to life.

A very interesting concept for a mystery. A group of highly trained agents (all capable of murder with their bare hands) being restricted to a remote Scottish island without any communication with the outside world. When they start being murdered, and dropping like flies, suspicion and mistrust abound amoung the survivors. Can Maggie Hope (also being detained) solve the mystery and survive? The book must be read to determine the outcome.

I have rated this book 4 stars

I received an ARC from Netgalley for my unbiased review.
Thank you Frank for the Review!

This story is full of twists and turns. It reads like Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians." One of the characters/suspects even mentions that book. Maggie Hope is sequestered on a Scottish island against her will, along with other spies considered security risks. None of her friends or acquaintances knows her whereabouts. The inmates are allowed free rein of the island but no outside communication. A young lady arrives one day, believing she is there for specialized training. And then the murders begin. I found it very hard to put this book down. As always, the Maggie Hope books reveal bits of WWII history as well as a good mystery.

Maggie Hope is a strong, intelligent protagonist who encounters unique, historically-based struggles in each entry of this wonderfully crafted series. At the end of the previous installment, The Paris Spy, I was quite worried about Maggie’s ability to continue her work for Churchill’s Special Operations Executive (the SOE) as a secret agent. I wasn’t alone. Concerned about her knowledge of highly sensitive information that could significantly impact the Allies’ ability to push the Germans back, Maggie’s superiors have now sent her away to an island off the coast of Scotland where she is hosted in a castle that has secrets of its own. While this prison is set up to be more like a vacation, freedom of movement and contact are severely limited. Maggie is effectively cut off from her world except for a few others who also make those in charge nervous. MacNeal engagingly weaves the tales of these new characters, Maggie’s frustrations, an old island mystery, a new and dangerous mystery into a well-crafted, exciting, and enormously satisfying story. (Note: I highly encourage anyone new to the series to start with Mr. Churchill’s Secretary and read the other novels in the series first in order to get the most out of this one. I loved every single one of them!)

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This is an Agatha Christy type murder mystery set off the coast of Scotland during World War II where British SOE agents are being kept against their will in Killoch Castle. This is my first Maggie Hope mystery series book and the eighth in this series. I don't usually read this type of book but it was well written and full of mystery and suspense. I did enjoy reading it and probably would have enjoyed it more had I read the previous seven books.

A very interesting concept for a mystery. A group of highly trained agents (all capable of murder with their bare hands) being restricted to a remote Scottish island without any communication with the outside world. When they start being murdered, and dropping like flies, suspicion and mistrust abound amoung the survivors. Can Maggie Hope (also being detained) solve the mystery and survive? The book must be read to determine the outcome.

I have rated this book 4 stars

I received an ARC from Netgalley for my unbiased review.

A Scottish castle, an isolated island, and murders are happening amongst the guests. A WWII take on a Christie classic. This story was extremely well crafted with plenty of twists, turns, and red herrings to keep me glued until I finished the book. I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

The Prisoner in the Castle is a great spy thriller/murder mystery. The characters are, for the most part, quirky egocentric spies who have been derailed to the "cooler" during WWII. Maggie Hope seems like one of the few who can "stay calm and carry on." The story kept me on edge with lots of false starts and accusations, and interested with new information to apply at each turn. I really enjoyed it! This is the first book I have read by Susan Elia MacNeal, and I will definitely be reading the other Maggie Hope mysteries!

This wasn't the gritty World War II espionage tale I was hoping for but rather a solid mystery in the Agatha Christie vein. While that's not my favorite genre, this one kept my interest, with great period details and a strong sense of British society at that time (the self-consciousness regarding when to use first names rather than surnames, for instance, was well evoked), and I did not guess the culprit till near the end.
I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent first chapter followed by progressive surprise at awkward dialog, unlikely characterizations, and (I think) some errors of fact. A lot of telling, not showing, made me think at first this book was a young adult book (it's my first Maggie Hope). It quickly became obvious it was not a YA. The hysterics of one character, who is supposed to be a highly trained assassin, was extremely unconvincing and distracting. The insertion of a sadist into the backhistory of the prison seems entirely unnecessary for the basic plot---another distraction. The doctor in the story could not have given the mechanism of toxicity of strychnine that he gives---it was not discovered till long after the period of the story. I don't believe Maggie could have survived the explosion of the boat she jumped off---the impact should have killed her. It sounds like the previous Maggie stories in this series were better, but I don't think I'll bother.

I have enjoyed this series in the past--the dialogue may not be historically accurate, but the information is good. I also think the books admirably don't soften the ruthlessness and danger of the war effort in WWII. However, I thought this explicit rewriting of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None (originally published with several different racist titles) was tedious. Too easy to guess the Nazi and too hard to tell apart (or care about) the many victims. (Which to me is the problem with Christie--her books are puzzles without humanity.) The murder solution was fairly clever, the setting cliched but effective, and the writing professional, but ultimately I didn't care and skimmed through to the solution. The romantic elements were very perfunctory too; you got the feeling the author felt the need to include some romance for the heroine but didn't really care. And finally, the reminders that the heroine is a math whiz were silly and unconvincing. I can see that the book is intended as a riff on Golden Age mysteries, but it didn't work for me. I think this author can do a lot better.

The swashbuckling Maggie Hope returns! In another of Susan Elia McNeil’s action packed novels set in Britain during World War II, Maggie, and the security threatening information she has learned, has been quarantined in Scotland along with a dangerous group of “unreliable” spies and a killer. As usual, Maggie steps up and takes charge. (Not a spoiler; you already knew she had to come out alive!)

This was a fun read, with the Hope series’ usual historical interest.

This one was a disappointment. Poorly written, endless repetition of dialogue and scenarios. The characters just said the same things over and over again. I figured out who the bad guy was way before the end. The story just rang false - yet another "love" interest because I guess it isn't a story without a love triangle? I really like the Maggie Hope character but she has become a less interesting and more dull character as this series goes on. I hope the next installment will bring new life to this once admirable and empowered and interesting female character.

Rampant paranoia about the secrecy surrounding D Day sends Maggie to a Scotish Island which turns out to be a detention center for the SOE. Shades of Agatha as the inmates and keepers begin to be murdered in various ways. A violent storm cuts off access and help and a German submarine lurks. Maggie was safer in France than she finds herself seeking a murderer and finds several. This series continues to remain interesting and a worthwhile read.

Not a huge fan of British history and espionage. The story is an important one for making the reader evaluate what should be kept secret and what should be known. But when the social stratification of British society affects decision making it clearly causes problems. I much prefer American characters whose "just do it" mentality moves the story along better. It would have helped if I'd been familiar with previous books in the series.

The adventures of Maggie Hope continue on in this story of her being sent to an island off the coast of Scotland because she knows something that would be dangerous in the wrong hands. There are other "prisoners" like Maggie at this island retreat where no communication with the outside world is allowed. Then, people start turning up dead. Maggie and the others must find out who is killing them before they are all done for.

While knowing that its an homage to Christie and her novel, and greatly enjoying Christie's novels, I felt that the intro was a tad light on details, and the story felt a bit convoluted. In general this one just didn't do anything for me. Thank you for giving me a chance with this book and I feel that others who read this series or genre may enjoy it more than me.

Susan Elia MacNeal does not disappoint with this latest installment in her Maggie Hope series! 'The Prisoner in the Castle' is clever, full of suspense, and draws you in from the very first page. One of the darker story lines in the series, MacNeal nevertheless manages to include a fleet of quirky characters, as well as plenty of witty dialogue. We reunite with some old favorites and meet a whole new cast of friends. Maggie is in fine form (per usual), but we also get to see a more vulnerable side of her as she encounters one of her most psychologically terrifying scenarios yet. If you're already a fan of the series, this new addition is pitch perfect--if you've never read any of MacNeal's books before, let this be a recommendation for you to do so as soon as possible!

I tore through this story, turning the pages as quickly as I could. I totally didn't expect the circumstances in which we find Maggie in this book. But, as always, I loved the Maggie character. The bad news is that I read it so quickly and now must wait for the next book in the series. Please hurry, Ms. MacNeal!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I looked forward to reading it with anticipation every day. The “who done it?” flowed interestingly and I appreciated the parellel action between the island activities and the search for Maggie on the mainland. I gave the book 3 stars instead of four stars because I just couldn’t get passed Anna and her behavior. She was just too annoying with the handling of all the situations that arose regarding her fellow prisoners (details not mentioned due to spoilers). Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Maggie Hope has been sent to a Scottish island to the Killoch Castle because she knows too much about what is going to happen to end the war. She is not alone though, there are a group who for one reason or another have been sent there to stay until the war ends.Suddenly those on the island start dying. Who is behind it? They would all like to know. In the mean time it is discovered there is a German spy among them. This comes from the mainland where hardly anyone knows they are on the island. Maggie is needed for a trial as witness and her friend David starts looking for her. Can they find what happened and get to the island before it is too late?

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This is an Agatha Christy type murder mystery set off the coast of Scotland during World War II where British SOE agents are being kept against their will in Killoch Castle. This is my first Maggie Hope mystery series book and the eighth in this series. I don't usually read this type of book but it was well written and full of mystery and suspense. I did enjoy reading it and probably would have enjoyed it more had I read the previous seven books.

MacNeal writes a very interesting, and I don't want to put it down, tale. It is lightly based on fact that England did have a 'prison' for their trained spies that they thought might share information with the Germans. There is murder or more in the castle on the isolated island in western Scotland. Maggie Hope has been on this island for 5 months so far and she needs to find out who is killing these spies off one by one.

Excellent first chapter followed by progressive surprise at awkward dialog, unlikely characterizations, and (I think) some errors of fact. A lot of telling, not showing, made me think at first this book was a young adult book (it's my first Maggie Hope). It quickly became obvious it was not a YA. The hysterics of one character, who is supposed to be a highly trained assassin, was extremely unconvincing and distracting. The insertion of a sadist into the backhistory of the prison seems entirely unnecessary for the basic plot---another distraction. The doctor in the story could not have given the mechanism of toxicity of strychnine that he gives---it was not discovered till long after the period of the story. I don't believe Maggie could have survived the explosion of the boat she jumped off---the impact should have killed her. It sounds like the previous Maggie stories in this series were better, but I don't think I'll bother.

I picked up the audiobook version of this title on a whim, not knowing it was part of a series. Now I'm very excited to go back and start at the beginning.
Events from previous stories were alluded to, but did not hinder me from enjoying this story on its own. Now I look forward to reading everything from this author!

Well, a bit different from preceding titles. Interesting in some ways. The 'Western Isles' - Inner and Outer Hebrides are not known for forestation as detailed in the story ... but this is fiction. Yes, I have been to the 'Western Isles' in years past and never walked into a tree.

The Prisoner in the Castle is the latest in Susan Elia MacNeal’s World War II mystery series featuring Maggie Hope, an American-born mathematician and cryptographer, once a secretary to Winston Churchill, and now a spy working for the top secret organization Special Operations Executive (SOE). Maggie has been imprisoned on an island off the west coast of Scotland because she knows the plans for the Allied invasion of Normandy and she refused to cooperate with a high-ranking SOE officer who was knowingly sending agents to their deaths. She and her fellow inmates, also former agents who know too much, are confined to a prison camp in a creepy castle on the island. They are completely cut off from the outside world, except for one radio that can only be used in emergencies. Their families and friends all believe they’ve been sent abroad on top secret missions.

Then the prisoners start being killed off one by one. Maggie knows the killer must be one of them, unless rumors are true that the castle’s former owner is still alive. He was a cruel and vicious man who supposedly killed his wife and their dinner guests before shooting himself. But Maggie, unlike some of her fellow prisoners, does not believe the rumors. She must discover which of the prisoners is killing the others, before she becomes the next victim. All of them have been trained to kill, but no one seems to have a motive. At first she suspects Camilla, a new prisoner, because the murders began just after she arrived. But when Camilla turns up dead, Maggie realizes she was wrong. Could one of the prisoners be a Nazi spy? Meanwhile, Detective Chief Inspector Durgin, who had worked with Maggie to catch a serial killer in an earlier book in the series, needs Maggie to testify in the man’s trial, or the killer could go free. But he has no idea where she is, and the head of SOE will not tell him. Will Durgin and Maggie’s other friends in London be able to rescue her from the island?

The Prisoner in the Castle is very suspenseful, with many twists and turns. The characters are well developed, and you come to care about each of the prisoners, and feel bad when they are killed off. It is an unusual entry in the series, though, because it is a locked-room mystery, very much in the tradition of Agatha Christie. In fact, there are references to Christie throughout the book. Most of the other books in the series are spy stories. But, as always, when you finish reading, you want to know where Maggie’s next adventure will take her. I highly recommend The Prisoner in the Castle for fans of World War II stories and for fans of Agatha Christie. It is not necessary to begin the series with the first book, Mr. Churchill’s Secretary. As a matter of fact, I began it with one of the later volumes and then went back to catch up with the earlier ones. But it helps to read the series in order and follow the character development of Maggie and her friends.