A Most Efficient Murder - Anthony Slayton

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Author: Anthony Slayton

Narrator: Rafe Beckley
Series: Mr. Quayle Mysteries #1
Genre: Historical Mystery
Rating: 4 stars. (3.5 for the story. Jumping upwards for the audiobook.)

In a Nutshell: A classic old-time mystery, full of Agatha Christie feels. The story is mostly formulaic (dead body, loads of characters who aren’t revealing all, twists galore on the journey, a big reveal at the end). The author’s approach that combines humour and sarcasm makes a difference. What elevates the experience further is the brilliant audiobook narrator.

Story Synopsis:
1925. (Taking the year info from the blurb. I don’t recollect the audiobook revealing the time period at all.)
When the introverted and bookish Earl of Unsworth threw a party to celebrate his dear niece’s birthday, the last thing he expected was to hear of a dead body being found on the castle grounds. His secretary, Mr. Quayle, is immediately given charge by His Lordship of making sure that the police find the murderer, and nothing more, especially no damaging secrets about the Unsworth family.


Where the book worked for me:
✔ I enjoyed the quirky humour in the story. It pokes fun at the snooty upper classes of the Britain of yore without going overboard.
✔ Quayle, a secretary who “loved Sherlock Holmes and Arsène Lupin”, makes for an interesting investigator, being intelligent, subtle, understanding, and diplomatic, unlike most popular fictional detectives.
✔ There is a wonderful old world charm to the story. It brought the time period alive.
✔ In a strange irony, it is a slow-moving story written in a very quick pace. I never felt the rhythm of the story dragging. Right from the first chapter, the proceedings kept me gripped.
✔ The audiobook narrator. *chef’s kiss!*


Where the book could have worked better for me:
❌ While I do read mysteries, there are very few books that impress me with their style of reveal. Most end up info-dumping towards the climax. This was no exception. The ending scenes are typical mystery fare, what with a whole load of confessions and revelations toppling out one after the other.
❌ I am also a bit tired of the ‘characters keeping a secret’ trope. In this book, almost every character has at least one secret that he/she doesn’t reveal or lies about until later.
(Note that the points above wouldn’t matter to a mystery fiction lover. Unlike most readers, I am not a huge fan of this genre for these very reasons.)


The audiobook experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 8 hours 20 minutes, is narrated by the amazing Rafe Beckley. This was a mystery with a whole load of characters, and yet not once did I feel confused about who was speaking., From a quivery-voice for old Butler Perkins to the dominating vocals of Lady Constance, Beckley hits the right note for every character. He makes even the bland chapter titles sound wonderful! I enjoyed every minute of his narration.


All in all, I did enjoy this mystery, which is not something I can say for most mystery fiction novels I read. (I don’t know if I would have felt the same had I actually read the book – the plot stuck to the tried-and-tested formula and didn’t venture into anything novel.) That said, if Rafe Beckley is the one to narrate the subsequent adventures of Mr. Quayle, ooh la la! Count me in!

My thanks to BooksGoSocial Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of “A Most Efficient Murder: The Mr. Quayle Mysteries, Book 1”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.

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