You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
One of the best in the series! Love, love, love Ian Rutledge.
Had to keep reading, even though it was suspenseful.
The plot was really surprising! It was really exciting! It wasn't what I expected. Inspector Rutledge does not disappoint! He will not give up until he has found the truth! Love him!!!
Inspector Ian Rutledge has returned to Scotland Yard after serving the UK Army during the great War. Although at the time they are unaware of PTSD, this is his struggle.
He is called in to a case in which 4 women from good, solid families have been accused of trying to kill a young man, whose small dinghy was sinking off shore. A farmer who was also a witness, claimed this is what he saw when he went out to try and rescue the man. Unfortunately, the man died from his mysterious head wound.
This isn't really a whodunit, per se. The Inspector needs to determine the intent to kill.
The cast of characters is interesting and illustrates the class-system in place in 1920s England, where presumption of guilt, and innocence, is almost a matter of evidence and social standing.
The pacing of the story feels deliberate. Not brisk, but thoughtful, drawing readers in.
Still, there was just something missing to make it a great story. 3.5 stars.
He is called in to a case in which 4 women from good, solid families have been accused of trying to kill a young man, whose small dinghy was sinking off shore. A farmer who was also a witness, claimed this is what he saw when he went out to try and rescue the man. Unfortunately, the man died from his mysterious head wound.
This isn't really a whodunit, per se. The Inspector needs to determine the intent to kill.
The cast of characters is interesting and illustrates the class-system in place in 1920s England, where presumption of guilt, and innocence, is almost a matter of evidence and social standing.
The pacing of the story feels deliberate. Not brisk, but thoughtful, drawing readers in.
Still, there was just something missing to make it a great story. 3.5 stars.
Ian Rutledge is barely back in London from a case when his superior sends him to Cornwall; the previous inspector assigned to the case dropped dead of a heart attack. Rutledge is given a synopsis of the case--four young women out for a row on the Camel River are accused of attempting to drown a local banker's son. But Ian is unprepared when he arrives to conduct new interviews, and finds one of the accused is Kate Gordon, the cousin of his one-time fiancee Jean, and a young woman who was once in love with Ian.
Now Rutledge must battle to save his friend, as well as untangle a case in which there is a confusion of evidence that fails to tie anything together. As he works to discern exactly how Harry Saunders came to be in a sinking dinghy--and who might have had cause to sabotage the boat--he also finds threads of another sort. A mysterious young woman Saunders escorted the previous summer apparently stayed at the rental cottage where Saunders kept his boat. Was the bit of pretty fabric Ian finds in the sand near the pier from her dress? But no one seems to know her name or address; the vicar claims she was a cousin, the owner of the cottage says the renters were spinster sisters, and Saunders can't be asked--he dies of his injuries. And now it's a murder case. But did the women have a reason to kill him?
When another person is attacked, the mystery woman becomes even more important. And now it seems someone more dangerous than four young ladies is abroad at night on the moors.
Charles Todd keeps delivering fine tales for young detective Ian Rutledge. A fine series and one of the better books of this series.
Now Rutledge must battle to save his friend, as well as untangle a case in which there is a confusion of evidence that fails to tie anything together. As he works to discern exactly how Harry Saunders came to be in a sinking dinghy--and who might have had cause to sabotage the boat--he also finds threads of another sort. A mysterious young woman Saunders escorted the previous summer apparently stayed at the rental cottage where Saunders kept his boat. Was the bit of pretty fabric Ian finds in the sand near the pier from her dress? But no one seems to know her name or address; the vicar claims she was a cousin, the owner of the cottage says the renters were spinster sisters, and Saunders can't be asked--he dies of his injuries. And now it's a murder case. But did the women have a reason to kill him?
When another person is attacked, the mystery woman becomes even more important. And now it seems someone more dangerous than four young ladies is abroad at night on the moors.
Charles Todd keeps delivering fine tales for young detective Ian Rutledge. A fine series and one of the better books of this series.
Ah ha! I kind of suspected we jumped backwards in time in the last book in order to retroactively introduce Kate Gordon, Ian’s ex-fiancee’s cousin, specifically to establish her as a future potential love interest, and here she is, suspected of murder in the very next book!
It’s a pretty good mystery, less involving but also more satisfactorily concluded than the last one, and Kate is a good foil for Ian. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of her in the future for Ian to angst over.
It’s a pretty good mystery, less involving but also more satisfactorily concluded than the last one, and Kate is a good foil for Ian. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of her in the future for Ian to angst over.
I think it's fair to say that I read this series for Rutledge himself and not the murders he is called upon to solve. He's a richly-drawn and complex character. Following his progress while he learns to overcome his shell-shock so that he can readapt and readjust to post-war life is really what makes this series worth reading.
The problem with this series is that the plots are uneven. They all start off intriguingly but they don't all finish as strongly. Motives and murderers don't always make sense, or are sometimes forgotten altogether for the sake of ending the novel. (See [b:Legacy of the Dead|20237|Legacy of the Dead (Inspector Ian Rutledge, #4)|Charles Todd|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436043169l/20237._SY75_.jpg|21432] as a prime example - we STILL don't know what happened in Scotland, and it's a dozen books later!)
That's the issue here
It's the kind of thing that drives me craziest about this series. And yet, I still love Rutledge and will continue reading.
The problem with this series is that the plots are uneven. They all start off intriguingly but they don't all finish as strongly. Motives and murderers don't always make sense, or are sometimes forgotten altogether for the sake of ending the novel. (See [b:Legacy of the Dead|20237|Legacy of the Dead (Inspector Ian Rutledge, #4)|Charles Todd|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436043169l/20237._SY75_.jpg|21432] as a prime example - we STILL don't know what happened in Scotland, and it's a dozen books later!)
That's the issue here
Spoiler
that even though the mysterious woman seen with Saunders was introduced early in the book, the actual murderer and the plot with Mrs. Worth seem to suddenly appear in the last few chapters. The four girls actually accused of the murder are all but forgotten in the book except when Rutledge feels the need to speak with Kate Gordon (the cousin of his former fiancée.) It creates the impression that two separate books were joined together because they took place in the same location.It's the kind of thing that drives me craziest about this series. And yet, I still love Rutledge and will continue reading.
Although I've enjoyed a previous story featuring Inspector Ian Rutledge, this one drags on unnecessarily. However, it gets two stars because I had the good fortune of listening to the audiobook narrated to perfection by Simon Prebble. It's a real pleasure to spend time with Simon Prebble, even if he's telling a story that goes on. And on. And on. It's like I'm hanging out with my favourite (though somewhat annoying) friend from far away. If you're going on a long drive, this audiobook might be good company. Or, choose a better title with Simon Prebble as narrator!