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valefimbres's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
susanhenry's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kansas_girl's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
mg_in_md_'s review against another edition
4.0
This is the first Inspector Rutledge mystery that I've read and I really enjoyed it! An infusion of humor and a good mystery made it a fast read. I wasn't completely sure who the culprit was until near the end. I wish I'd read the first installment in the series first though, so I knew more of the back story about Rutledge and Hamish. Now, I have an excuse to find a copy and dive into a new series.
lcoverosey's review against another edition
3.0
Rutledge questions and interviews and circles back again again again. Finally they crack!
lgpiper's review against another edition
3.0
This is the second of the Inspector Rutledge mysteries written by "Charles Todd", a mother/son team. I read the 8th or 9th several years ago, and tried the first last summer. Insp. Rutledge is a shell-shocked veteran of WWI who is now working at Scotland Yard. His superior, doesn't much like having Rutledge around, so sends him off on obscure missions in places far from London. This book takes place in Cornwall, the extreme south west of England.
A brother and sister from an old aristocratic family appear to have committed mutual suicide. One of their heirs had an accident a short time later, falling downstairs and breaking his neck. One of the other heirs, however, felt that something with the family history wasn't quite correct. She got a highly placed government official to request a Scotland Yard investigation. Since Rutledge's superior wants to get him out of the way, Rutledge is sent to Cornwall. Rutledge discovers a history of family tragedy, one member fell out of a tree and was killed, another wandered off on the moor and never returned, another "shot" himself in a gun-cleaning accident, another appears to have been thrown from his horse and cracked his head on the rocks. Lots of "accidents/suicides' over the years. Rutledge investigates and concludes that likely one of the family members was a serial killer, perhaps one of the brother/sister suicides.
So, basically, Rutledge flounders around for quite some time before getting some clarity in his own mind. He is hounded by the voice in his head of "Hamish", a Scott whom he had had executed during the War for insubordination. He's also hounded by the loss of his fiancée, Jean, who dumped him after the war.
The first few books in this series that I read (#s 6, 4, then 1) I liked quite a lot, but this one not so much. It felt formulaic or something. Or perhaps the cognitive dissonance of reading this after a string of Walter Mosley novels left me disoriented. I'm on the fence as to whether I'll revisit Insp. Rutledge again next summer or not.
A brother and sister from an old aristocratic family appear to have committed mutual suicide. One of their heirs had an accident a short time later, falling downstairs and breaking his neck. One of the other heirs, however, felt that something with the family history wasn't quite correct. She got a highly placed government official to request a Scotland Yard investigation. Since Rutledge's superior wants to get him out of the way, Rutledge is sent to Cornwall. Rutledge discovers a history of family tragedy, one member fell out of a tree and was killed, another wandered off on the moor and never returned, another "shot" himself in a gun-cleaning accident, another appears to have been thrown from his horse and cracked his head on the rocks. Lots of "accidents/suicides' over the years. Rutledge investigates and concludes that likely one of the family members was a serial killer, perhaps one of the brother/sister suicides.
So, basically, Rutledge flounders around for quite some time before getting some clarity in his own mind. He is hounded by the voice in his head of "Hamish", a Scott whom he had had executed during the War for insubordination. He's also hounded by the loss of his fiancée, Jean, who dumped him after the war.
The first few books in this series that I read (#s 6, 4, then 1) I liked quite a lot, but this one not so much. It felt formulaic or something. Or perhaps the cognitive dissonance of reading this after a string of Walter Mosley novels left me disoriented. I'm on the fence as to whether I'll revisit Insp. Rutledge again next summer or not.
deehaichess's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This damn book. If the first 75% had been anything like the last 25% (which actually gave me chills at one point, the scene was that good) it would have been an absolute cracker, and I'm bitter about the possibility that that 25% was only that good *because* of the first 75%. At the half way mark I was ready to pledge to never read another Charles Todd so long as I live, but now... Damn book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Murder
Minor: Suicide and War