Another disappointing entry in the Ian Rutledge mystery series. This story never quite seems to get off the ground. I've noticed that most mystery authors start off with phenomenal books early in their series' and then start to peter out by book 8 or 10, and Todd seems to be following the same pattern. Read the first 7 or 8 books in the Rutledge series if you want truly satisfying, compelling mysteries.

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The tension rises slowly and inexorably, as Rutledge seeks to solve a series of murders. His super want no disturbance to the prestigeous family which is beset by not one, not two, but three related deaths. Are they murders? And the question as always is, whodunnit? Rutledge has his own ghost, Hamish, a Scotsman who was in the trenches with him in WWI, and his own anguish to bear. He seeks to drown out the memories and voices through tenacious and methodical detective work. The ending is unexpected in several ways...an excellent read and hard to put down.

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One of the more convoluted plotlines in the series, it was still a satisfying read, despite leaving some questions unanswered (like life does.) Happily, there seemed to be less of Hamish's intrusions, and some of Rutledge's personal life issues started to resolve themselves. Still waiting for Inspector Bowles to implode, though.

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