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.

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 Prisoner in the Castle is the 8th in the series of Maggie Hope mysteries. If it has been awhile since you read book #7, I would highly recommend re-reading it, or at least the ending of it prior to reading book #8. It picks up where things left off, but with very little recap.

The Prisoner in the Castle finds Maggie, along with other SOE agents, "in the cooler" on a remote Scottish island. The mystery begins when, one-by-one, agents and associates are murdered. The agents must determine the culprit and his/her motives.

I have been an avid reader of this series since it first began and have anxiously awaited each new book. I hate to say it, but this was my least favorite of the 8. The well worn plot (guests in a house mysteriously murdered one by one) was a disappointment. It was slow moving at first, but picked up speed once non-island activities started being discussed.

I still love the series and Maggie as a character, but this was not my favorite. Looking forward to future Maggie adventures, just not in an Agatha Christie plot.

3.5 starts

I received an advanced reader copy via NetGalley.
Per ARC instructions, review to be posted after publication date.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy. I had gotten out of the habit of reading detective mysteries for whatever reason. The Prisoner in the Castle was a great reintroduction to the genre. The character development was just enough to set up the personalities in my mind’s eye. The exiled setting helps with the physical and mental twists and turns as the storyline progresses. Like other readers, I did not realize that this was part of a series. There are what seems to be vague references to the other books but did not interfere with my enjoyment. I will definitely look for the other books. #ThePrisonerInTheCastle #NetGalley

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.

Always enjoy a Maggie Hope story and this one was no exception. Thank you Net Galley for allowing me the opportunity to read this book before it is published. The only downside to this good fortune is the wait will seem even longer for the next one in the series to come out. Maggie, our heroine in these stories, is a strong character and author MacNeal stays true to her character through out the series. I like how the book is laden with information about WWII and England's involvement in it from the SEO (secret service/MI5 per se) side of it. I look forward to the next mission Maggie Hope is embroiled in. If you haven't read any of her books you have time to catch up.

An Agatha Christie type mystery set on a Scottish island during WWII. The heroine in this series is Maggie Hope an SOE agent who is being held captive along with other captured agents. Maggie has to figure out who is picking off agents one-by-one before she becomes the next victim. This is the 8th book in the series. Rated: 3/5

OBSESSED! This book was everything I wanted it to be and more.

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The Prisoner in the Castle by Susan Elia MacNeal

Thanks to NetGalley, I got the opportunity to read this book before it comes out in August. Now, I’ve written about the Maggie Hope series before here and here. I’m such a huge fan. Maggie is just an ordinary woman who does extraordinary things in a dangerous time (WWII). At the end of the previous book, we ended up on a cliffhanger with Maggie being “taken” by her own government.

This book continues from where we left off. Maggie is sent to an island in Scotland (Isle of Scarra) were “spies” who know too much are sent to neutralize them. People can’t spread secrets if they are isolated on an inhospitable island with a dubious past. Similar to the Agatha Christie novel, “And Then There Were None” (one of my absolute favorites), there are then mysterious deaths on the island that are slowly claiming the inhabitants of the island one at a time. Is it the ghost of the old lord of the manor, is it a fellow member of the British spy service gone mad, or is it a double agent in their midst? While all this goes on, Maggie’s friends in London are concerned when no one can determine where she is. Detective Inspector Durgin, erstwhile partner and sometimes love interest, digs deep into Government politics to try and find Maggie. One of his cases needs her testimony to proceed, but he’s also concerned about her on a personal level too. This book hits on all the characters of the previous novels and shows how much Maggie touched lives across London (including the Prime Minister himself).

I was so happy to read this early….I highly recommend this series and this installment especially!

An excellent mystery, in the style of (ugh, I hate that phrase, but it really is applicable here) Agatha Christie mysteries. I didn't realize it was part of a series until I started reading. Some of it might have been better having read all the previous books (obviously) but it didn't affect the overall enjoyment of the story.

Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

American Maggie Hope is locked away with other former SOE agents who "know too much" on a remote island off the coast of Scotland in WWII England. When her fellow prisoners start being eliminated, one by one, it's up to Maggie to figure out what's going on.

One of the best Maggie Hope mysteries in a while. Sent to the isolated island of Scarra off the Scottish coast because she knows too much along with ten other Brittish agents. One by one they are being killed off, by who and why? Very atmospheric and nerve racking, makes for a very good read.

When looking for inspiration, one could hardly do better than Dame Agatha Christie, which is exactly what author Susan Elia MacNeal has done. Her latest entry in the World War II era Maggie Hope series has looked to Christie's And Then There Were None for The Prisoner in the Castle's plot. MacNeal even gives Christie's work a nod (under its original title) with Maggie referencing it.

In this incarnation of the classic plot, Maggie and other British agents have been exiled to a Scottish island, each for "going rogue" in some fashion, leaving their handlers to question their fitness for future missions. Of course, Maggie has had good reason for her deviation from the rules--not so much for some of the other agents who all have secrets that make them vulnerable.

Exile on an isolated Scottish island would be punishment enough in itself, but soon dead bodies begin piling up. Amid a group of people who have all been trained to kill, the only thing that seems to eliminate a suspect is his or her own death. A shaken Maggie has to look beyond the obvious to find the killer, even as a monster storm keeps help from arriving in time to prevent more deaths.

Back in England, Maggie's friends, who have assumed that she has been off on secret mission, begin to look for her at the behest of a police detective who needs her testimony to ensure the conviction of a vicious killer. MacNeal creates considerable tension as rescue and death inch ever closer to Maggie.

MacNeal's books are meticulously researched and she weaves fascinating fact into her fiction. Maggie Hope is a stand out series.

Full Disclosure--Net Gallery and the publisher provided me with a digital ARC of this book. This is my honest review.

This is an excellent addition to a well written and thoroughly researched series about Maggie Hope, who, although American born, is now a top operative for the British Special Operations Executive during World War II. Maggie is an intelligent and exceptionally brave woman who has been dealing with the horrors of life during the Second World War and once again finds herself in a life or death situation. This is a compelling and engrossing story and I highly recommend it.