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A review by pgchuis
Henrietta Who? by Catherine Aird
4.0
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley.
Grace Jenkins' body is discovered lying in a quiet village road by the postman and the post-mortem reveals both that she has been run down deliberately and that she has never had a child. Her daughter, Henrietta, who is away at college, is therefore left not knowing who she is. Grace has always told Henrietta about her father, whose photo sits on the mantelpiece and who supposedly died fighting in WWII, but the police determine that this too is a fiction.
I gathered that this mystery was set in the early 60s, when phone calls were always made from call boxes and (surprisingly) everyone was available for questioning over the weekend - gentler times! I enjoyed this story very much and read it in one sitting. The detective running the investigation, Inspector Sloan, was humorous and gently contemptuous of both his constable, Crosby, and his superintendent, Leeyes, (in true Morse fashion). The story is largely dialogue and plot-driven, with little in the way of musings on the nature of evil or lengthy back-stories explaining why certain characters were in some way "damaged". The plot was logical and clearly laid out and Henrietta's despair at ever finding out her true identity seemed all too understandable at times. The rector and his wife were lovely supporting characters and I was glad that Bill stood by Henrietta.
Slight niggles: why did Henrietta's birth family never try to find out what had become of her? I did not really buy into the suggestion that her parents might have been murdered.
Grace Jenkins' body is discovered lying in a quiet village road by the postman and the post-mortem reveals both that she has been run down deliberately and that she has never had a child. Her daughter, Henrietta, who is away at college, is therefore left not knowing who she is. Grace has always told Henrietta about her father, whose photo sits on the mantelpiece and who supposedly died fighting in WWII, but the police determine that this too is a fiction.
I gathered that this mystery was set in the early 60s, when phone calls were always made from call boxes and (surprisingly) everyone was available for questioning over the weekend - gentler times! I enjoyed this story very much and read it in one sitting. The detective running the investigation, Inspector Sloan, was humorous and gently contemptuous of both his constable, Crosby, and his superintendent, Leeyes, (in true Morse fashion). The story is largely dialogue and plot-driven, with little in the way of musings on the nature of evil or lengthy back-stories explaining why certain characters were in some way "damaged". The plot was logical and clearly laid out and Henrietta's despair at ever finding out her true identity seemed all too understandable at times. The rector and his wife were lovely supporting characters and I was glad that Bill stood by Henrietta.
Slight niggles: why did Henrietta's birth family never try to find out what had become of her? I did not really buy into the suggestion that her parents might have been murdered.