#BookReview The Black Ascot by Charles Todd @CharlesToddBks @WmMorrowBooks

The Black Ascot by Charles Todd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Scotland Yard’s Ian Rutledge seeks a killer who has eluded Scotland Yard for years in this next installment of the acclaimed New York Times bestselling series.

An astonishing tip from a grateful ex-convict seems implausible—but Inspector Ian Rutledge is intrigued and brings it to his superior at Scotland Yard. Alan Barrington, who has evaded capture for ten years, is the suspect in an appalling murder during Black Ascot, the famous 1910 royal horserace honoring the late King Edward VII. His disappearance began a manhunt that consumed Britain for a decade. Now it appears that Barrington has returned to England, giving the Yard a last chance to retrieve its reputation and see justice done. Rutledge is put in charge of a quiet search under cover of a routine review of a cold case.

Meticulously retracing the original inquiry, Rutledge begins to know Alan Barrington well, delving into relationships and secrets that hadn’t surfaced in 1910. But is he too close to finding his man? His sanity is suddenly brought into question by a shocking turn of events. His sister Frances, Melinda Crawford, and Dr. Fleming stand by him, but there is no greater shame than shell shock. Questioning himself, he realizes that he cannot look back. The only way to save his career—much less his sanity—is to find Alan Barrington and bring him to justice. But is this elusive murderer still in England?

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The Black Ascot by Charles Todd is the 21st book in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series. I had an ecopy of this book, but most of the book did I listen to (a very enjoyable workday) and I found the audiobook version pleasurable. Although to be honest, Simon Prebble is not my favorite narrator. He has a voice that I try to get used to, there is a gruffness that I just can't seem to truly enjoy. However, the story is good really good. So after a while, I forgot about the voice and let the story take over.

Now, I have not read more than six books in this series. It was through the Bess Crawford series (by the same author) that I discovered this series and I have to say that so far this is one of the best books in the Ian Rutledge series I have read. I love how Ian Rutledge (and Bess Crawford as well) have a tendency to solve even the most difficult cases. Even those cases that hardly seem like a case. Like the case in this book that seems like an open and shut case. But, is it really so? Slowly Rutledge starts to unravel a mystery only he can solve. Only he is tenacious enough and through small clues does he start to puzzle the case together...

And, I really don't want to spoil the book so I just want to say that it's a great ending!

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with the copy through Edelweiss for an honest review!

#BookReview A Fine Summer's Day by Charles Todd @CharlesToddBks @WmMorrowBooks

A Fine Summer's Day by Charles Todd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

On a fine summer’s day in June, 1914, Ian Rutledge pays little notice to the assassination of an archduke in Sarajevo. An Inspector at Scotland Yard, he is planning to propose to the woman whom he deeply loves, despite intimations from friends and family that she may not be the wisest choice.

To the north on this warm and gentle day, another man in love—a Scottish Highlander—shows his own dear girl the house he will build for her in September. While back in England, a son awaits the undertaker in the wake of his widowed mother’s death. This death will set off a series of murders across England, seemingly unconnected, that Rutledge will race to solve in the weeks before the fateful declaration in August that will forever transform his world.

As the clouds of war gather on the horizon, all of Britain wonders and waits. With every moment at stake, Rutledge sets out to right a wrong—an odyssey that will eventually force him to choose between the Yard and his country, between love and duty, and between honor and truth.

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What a fabulous book! I loved that Charles Todd decided to write a book that takes Ian Rutledge back in time to before the war. To when he still was carefree, in love and not haunted. Now, I do think he got away when it came to the marriage issue. Especially when there is someone in his life that definitely suited him better. On a side note, I still hope to one day read a book where he and Bess Crawford meets!

As for the case, it took an awfully long time for the dots to be connected. But, then again it's a case, or rather or cases that don't seem to have not much in common. And, it was interesting to read about this frustrating case, how Ian tried to solve them. Not giving up when a man he thinks is innocent is charged with murder. Ian just keeps on trying to solve the murders...

This is one of the best books in this series. A bittersweet book. If not the war happened, just imagine what kind of life Ian would have had. Not to mention poor Hamish...

#BookReview A Forgotten Place by Charles Todd @CharlesToddBks @WmMorrowBooks @FreshFiction

A Forgotten Place by Charles Todd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Though the Great War has ended, Bess Crawford finds herself caught in deadly circumstances on a remote Welsh headland in this tenth entry from the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author.

The fighting has ended, the Armistice signed, but the war has left wounds that are still agonizingly raw. Battlefield Nurse Bess Crawford has been assigned to a clinic for amputees, and the Welsh patients worry her. She does her best to help them, but it’s clear that they have nothing to go home to, in a valley where only the fit can work in the coal pits. When they are released, she fears that peace will do what war couldn’t—take their lives.

Their officer, Captain Williams, writes to describe their despair, and his own at trying to save his men. Bess feels compelled to look into their situation, but the Army and the clinic can do nothing. Requesting leave, she quietly travels to Wales, and that bleak coal mining village, but she is too late.

Captain Williams’ sister tells Bess he has left the valley. Bess is afraid he intends to kill himself. She follows him to an isolated, storm-battered peninsula—a harsh and forgotten place where secrets and death go hand in hand. Deserted by her frightened driver, Bess is stranded among strangers suspicious of outsiders. She quickly discovers these villagers are hiding something, and she’s learned too much to be allowed to leave. What’s more, no one in England knows where she is.

Why is there no Constable out here? And who is the mysterious Ellen? Captain Williams and his brother’s widow are her only allies, and Bess must take care not to put them at risk as she tries to find answers. But there is a murderer here who is driven to kill again and again. And the next person in his sights is Simon Brandon, searching for Bess and unaware of his danger...

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I've read almost all the books in the Bess Crawford series and it's always with nice to get a new book in my hands. In A FORGOTTEN PLACE by Charles Todd, one would think now that the Great War is over that life would be easier for Bess. That her work as a nurse would be less demanding. However, there are still a lot of wounded soldiers, many of whom have lost limbs. In this book, Bess is worried about her Welsh patients. Their spirits seem to be broken. With the loss of limbs, they have no job to go back to home. Bess receives a letter from their officer, Captain Williams, who writes about the soldier's despair after they have left the hospital. Bess worries so much that she decides to travel to Wales during her leave and she doesn't tell anyone about her plans. At the village, she learns the captain has moved on and is now living with his brother's widow. Afraid that he will kill himself, Bess makes the decision to follow him to the isolated peninsula where he has settled. However, soon she finds herself stranded there...

READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW OVER AT FRESH FICTION!

#BookReview The Gate Keeper by Charles Todd @WmMorrowBooks

The Gate Keeper by Charles Todd
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

On a deserted road, late at night, Scotland Yard’s Ian Rutledge encounters a frightened woman standing over a body, launching an inquiry that leads him into the lair of a stealthy killer and the dangerous recesses of his own memories in this twentieth installment of the acclaimed New York Timesbestselling series.

Hours after his sister’s wedding, a restless Ian Rutledge drives aimlessly, haunted by the past, and narrowly misses a motorcar stopped in the middle of a desolate road. Standing beside the vehicle is a woman with blood on her hands and a dead man at her feet.

She swears she didn’t kill Stephen Wentworth. A stranger stepped out in front of their motorcar, and without warning, fired a single shot before vanishing into the night. But there is no trace of him. And the shaken woman insists it all happened so quickly, she never saw the man’s face.

Although he is a witness after the fact, Rutledge persuades the Yard to give him the inquiry, since he’s on the scene. But is he seeking justice—or fleeing painful memories in London?

Wentworth was well-liked, yet his bitter family paint a malevolent portrait, calling him a murderer. But who did Wentworth kill? Is his death retribution? Or has his companion lied? Wolf Pit, his village, has a notorious history: in Medieval times, the last wolf in England was killed there. When a second suspicious death occurs, the evidence suggests that a dangerous predator is on the loose, and that death is closer than Rutledge knows.

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I found The Gate Keeper to be a more enjoyable book to read than Racing the Devil, the previous book in the series. The story is definitely more compelling in this book and the mystery of the man killed by a stranger in the night on a desolated road is perplexing. It's the kind of mystery where much of the investigation hangs on interviews of those around the dead man. Which to be honest, can be a bit of a problem when a book's story isn't that engaging. This book handles that in a good way, although there are moments in the book when I felt that the investigation didn't move along especially fast. When it felt like nothing really happened other than Ian Rutledge trying to figure out what to do next.

Besides the case are Ian Rutledge dealing with his sister's wedding. He's both happy for her and sad that this will bring a change in their lives. He's still dealing with the haunting of Hamish and meeting some really awful characters in this book isn't brightening his mood. Thankfully Melinda Crawford shows up to lend him some support. Although I'm still waiting for Bess Crawford to make an appearance...

The Gate Keeper's best part is the end when a little hint leads Ian Rutledge the right way and finally to the killer. It's an interesting case and the ending, the reason for the killing felt genuinely surprising. Without Ian Rutledge's tenacity would the killer probably have managed to get away with it...

I want to thank William Morrow for providing me with a free copy through Edelweiss for an honest review!

#BookReview Racing the Devil by Charles Todd

Racing the Devil by Charles Todd
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Scotland Yard’s Ian Rutledge finds himself caught in a twisted web of vengeance, old grievances, and secrets that lead back to World War I in the nineteenth installment of the acclaimed bestselling series.

On the eve of the bloody Battle of the Somme, a group of English officers having a last drink before returning to the Front make a promise to each other: if they survive the battle ahead—and make it through the war—they will meet in Paris a year after the fighting ends. They will celebrate their good fortune by racing motorcars they beg, borrow, or own from Paris to Nice.

In November 1919, the officers all meet as planned, and though their motorcars are not designed for racing, they set out for Nice. But a serious mishap mars the reunion. In the mountains just north of their destination, two vehicles are nearly run off the road, and one man is badly injured. No one knows—or will admit to knowing—which driver was at the wheel of the rogue motorcar.

Back in England one year later, during a heavy rainstorm, a driver loses control on a twisting road and is killed in the crash. Was it an accident due to the hazardous conditions? Or premeditated murder? Is the crash connected in some way to the unfortunate events in the mountains above Nice the year before? The dead driver wasn’t in France—although the motorcar he drove was. If it was foul play, was it a case of mistaken identity? Or was the dead man the intended victim after all?

Investigating this perplexing case, Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge discovers that the truth is elusive—and that the villages on the South Downs, where the accident happened, are adept at keeping secrets, frustrating his search. Determined to remain in the shadows this faceless killer is willing to strike again to stop Rutledge from finding him. This time, the victim he chooses is a child, and it will take all of Rutledge’s skill to stop him before an innocent young life is sacrificed.

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This is, unfortunately, by far the weakest book in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series. I started off listening to the audiobook, but I was so bored by the start that I decided to pick something else to listen to after a couple of chapters. A couple of weeks later did I try it again and it felt like I managed to get through this by my love for Charles Todd's books and willpower.

I will keep this review short since I hardly can come up with anything good to write. I mean, it's always nice to once again read about Inspector Ian Rutledge and Hamish (his ghostly companion), but the story is pretty weak. I was not impressed with the start in France with the soldier's that promise each other that if they survive will they meet each other one year later and race motorcars from Paris to Nice. And, the almost crash that occurs didn't make my pulse race. Neither did the change of scenery when the story moved one year ahead with the death of a man in an accident that could be linked to the near death in France.

The whole investigation, with Rutledge chasing clues, is a bit dreary. The only bright spot is when Rutledge contacts Melinda Crawford to help him with the investigation. And she, in turn, contacts Bess Crawford (from Charles Todd's Bess Crawford series) to help out. If Bess has made a cameo in this book would I perhaps have liked the book better. The ending is not that surprising either. It truly felt like the most likely suspect did it all.

I hope the next book will be better!

#BookReview A Casualty of War by Charles Todd (@CharlesToddBks) @WmMorrowBooks

Casualty of War by Charles Todd
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

From New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd comes a haunting tale that explores the impact of World War I on all who witnessed it—officers, soldiers, doctors, and battlefield nurses like Bess Crawford.

Though the Great War is nearing its end, the fighting rages on. While waiting for transport back to her post, Bess Crawford meets Captain Alan Travis from the island of Barbados. Later, when he’s brought into her forward aid station disoriented from a head wound, Bess is alarmed that he believes his distant English cousin, Lieutenant James Travis, shot him. Then the Captain is brought back to the aid station with a more severe wound, once more angrily denouncing the Lieutenant as a killer. But when it appears that James Travis couldn’t have shot him, the Captain’s sanity is questioned. Still, Bess wonders how such an experienced officer could be so wrong.

On leave in England, Bess finds the Captain strapped to his bed in a clinic for brain injuries. Horrified by his condition, Bess and Sergeant Major Simon Brandon travel to James Travis’s home in Suffolk, to learn more about the baffling relationship between these two cousins.

Her search will lead this smart, capable, and compassionate young woman into unexpected danger, and bring her face to face with the visible and invisible wounds of war that not even the much-longed for peace can heal.

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I'm a big fan of the Bess Crawford series and I have read almost all the books so far. A Casualty of War shows just what a wonderful mother and son writing team Caroline Todd and Charles Todd are when it comes to writing books.

In A Casualty of War must Bess help Captain Alan Travis who is convinced that his cousin shot him, but it's impossible since his cousin couldn't have been the one to do that so now his sanity is questioned. Bess together with Sergeant-Major Simon Brandon travels to the cousin, James Travis's hometown to try to find out more about the cousins and why their families are estranged.

Without giving too much of the plot away do I want to say that this is one of the strongest books in the series. Once again Bess is confronted with a strange mystery with a lot of suspicious and distrustful people in a small village. Bess herself is thinking about her future now that the war is going towards the end. What is she going to do next, she has been a nurse for so long that it has become her whole life, living with fear and the prospect of death any minute. If you have read any my previous review do you know that I'm a big fan of Sergeant Lassiter and I was thrilled that he showed up for ... just a small cameo. Bah! I wanted more of him, not just a small part. Although it was a sweet moment, that Bess kind of destroyed (for me).

A Casualty of War is a great book. You can read this book without having read any of the previous books. It's easy to get to know the characters and the stories in the books are stand-alone.

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through Edelweiss for an honest review!

#CoverCrush: A Casualty of War by Charles Todd

For new visitors do I want to explain that Cover Crush is something that my friend Erin over at Flashlight Commentary came up with and I adopted the idea together with some other friends. And, now we try to put up a Cover Crush every week. You can check below my pick of the week for their choices this week!

From New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd comes a haunting tale that explores the impact of World War I on all who witnessed it—officers, soldiers, doctors, and battlefield nurses like Bess Crawford

Though the Great War is nearing its end, the fighting rages on. While waiting for transport back to her post, battlefield nurse Bess Crawford meets Captain Alan Travis from the island of Barbados. Later, when he’s brought into her forward aid station disoriented from a head wound, Bess is alarmed that he believes his distant English cousin, Lieutenant James Travis, shot him. Then the Captain is brought back to the aid station with a more severe wound, once more angrily denouncing the Lieutenant as a killer. But when it appears that James Travis couldn’t have shot him, the Captain’s sanity is questioned. Still, Bess wonders how such an experienced officer could be so wrong. On leave in England, Bess finds the Captain strapped to his bed in a clinic for brain injuries. Horrified by his condition, Bess and Sergeant Major Simon Brandon travel to James Travis’s home in Suffolk, to learn more about the baffling relationship between these two cousins. Her search will lead this smart, capable, and compassionate young woman into unexpected danger, and bring her face to face with the visible and invisible wounds of war that not even the much-longed for peace can heal.

Some thoughts about the cover:

As a big fan of this series was I thrilled to find a new book is coming out soon and look at the cover. Bess standing among all the graves and the subdued yellow light really sets a gloomy mood. And reading the blurb does it feel quite right that the cover is gloomy.

Check out what my friends have picked for Cover Crush's this week:

Flashlight Commentary

2 Kids and Tired Books

Layered Pages

The Maidens Court

A Literary Vacation
IndieBRAG

The Piper by Charles Todd Blog Tour

The Piper

by Charles Todd

on Tour February 1-28, 2017

Synopsis:

Scotland Yard inspector Ian Rutledge returns shell shocked from the trenches of World War I, tormented by the spirit of Hamish MacLeod, the young soldier he executed on the battlefield. Now, Charles Todd features Hamish himself in this compelling, stand-alone short story.

Before the Great War, Hamish is farmer in the Scottish Highlands, living in a small house on the hillside and caring for a flock of sheep he inherited from his grandmother. When one spring evening he hears a faint cry ringing across the glen, Hamish sets out in the dark to find the source. Near the edge of the loch he spots a young boy laying wounded, a piper’s bag beside him. Hamish brings the piper to his home to stay the night and tends to his head wound, but by the time Hamish wakes the boy has fled. He tracks the footsteps in pursuit of the injured lad and finds him again collapsed in the grasses—now dead.

Who was the mysterious piper, and who was seeking his death? As Hamish scours the countryside for answers, he finds that few of his neighbors are as honest as he, and that until he uncovers a motive, everyone, including Hamish, is a suspect.

Book Details:

Genre: Mystery
Published by: Witness Impulse
Publication Date: January 10th 2017
Number of Pages: 100
ISBN: 0062678094 (ISBN13: 9780062678096)
Series: Inspector Ian Rutledge #19.5
Purchase Links: Amazon  | Barnes & Noble  | Goodreads 

Review:

The Piper is a short story that features Hamish MacLeod before he was killed in WW1. It's a bit sad reading this story with the knowledge about what will happen to him in the war. As this story only have 100 pages is hard to review the story without giving much away. Basically, it's a murder mystery story where everyone is a suspect including Hamish, and it's up to Hamish to figure out who killed the young piper that he stumbled over near the edge of the loch.

I have a read a couple of books in the Ian Rutledge series, but I've more of a Bess Crawford fan (Charles Todd's other series), but still I enjoy reading the Ian Rutledge books since they are engaging and well-written and I enjoyed reading The Piper since it gives the reader an insight into a character that otherwise is just a figment of Ian Rutledge's imagination. This book made me eager to read more books from the Ian Rutledge series.

Author Bio:

Charles Todd is the New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries, the Bess Crawford mysteries, and two stand-alone novels. A mother-and-son writing team, they live on the East Coast.

Catch Up with the latest Charles Todd news on their Website , Twitter 🔗 & Facebook 

Tour Participants:

Visit the tour stops for great features & reviews!

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The Shattered Tree by Charles Todd

The Shattered Tree by Charles Todd
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

World War I battlefield nurse Bess Crawford goes to dangerous lengths to investigate a wounded soldier’s background—and uncover his true loyalties—in this thrilling and atmospheric entry in the bestselling “vivid period mystery series” (New York Times Book Review).

At the foot of a tree shattered by shelling and gunfire, stretcher-bearers find an exhausted officer, shivering with cold and a loss of blood from several wounds. The soldier is brought to battlefield nurse Bess Crawford’s aid station, where she stabilizes him and treats his injuries before he is sent to a rear hospital. The odd thing is, the officer isn't British--he's French. But in a moment of anger and stress, he shouts at Bess in German.

When Bess reports the incident to Matron, her superior offers a ready explanation. The soldier is from Alsace-Lorraine, a province in the west where the tenuous border between France and Germany has continually shifted through history, most recently in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, won by the Germans. But is the wounded man Alsatian? And if he is, on which side of the war do his sympathies really lie?

Of course, Matron could be right, but Bess remains uneasy—and unconvinced. If he were a French soldier, what was he doing so far from his own lines . . . and so close to where the Germans are putting up a fierce, last-ditch fight?

When the French officer disappears in Paris, it’s up to Bess—a soldier’s daughter as well as a nurse—to find out why, even at the risk of her own life

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I read A Pattern of Lies (the book before this one) last year and loved the book. So I was in seventh heaven when I got approved for this one. I have read most of the books in this series since I read A Pattern of Lies and I quite enjoy both the stories and the books characters. Bess Crawford is a wonderful character, strong and competent and I'm so happy that the doesn't spend her time romanticizing about some guy. (I do wish however that she and Sergeant Lassiter would get a bit...closer)

Anyway, this book is, to be honest not my favorite in the series. I'm actually I bit disappointed how weak the story felt compared to A Pattern of Lies. I grew a bit frustrated reading the book because the main story about the soldier that may or may not be a german spy just didn't rock my boat. It was not totally bad, I just didn't find The Shattered Tree as intriguing and as engrossing to read as I usually do with the books in this series. And, I missed Sergeant Lassiter who wasn't even in this book, just mentioned a couple of times (Yes I did a search for him after reading 1/3 of the book because I was really looking forward to reading about Bess and him meeting again). Now, I don't say that the book was bad because Sergeant Lassiter wasn't in it, rather it just didn't make the situation better. 

So, not my favorite book in the series, still good to read, but I hope the next book in the series will be better!

I want to thank William Morrow for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!

#BookReview No Shred of Evidence by Charles Todd

No Shred of Evidence by Charles Todd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In this absorbing new entry in the acclaimed bestselling series, Scotland Yard’s Ian Rutledge is caught up in a twisted web of vengeance and murder

On the north coast of Cornwall, an apparent act of mercy is repaid by an arrest for murder. Four young women have been accused of the crime. A shocked father calls in a favor at the Home Office. Scotland Yard is asked to review the case.

However, Inspector Ian Rutledge is not the first Inspector to reach the village. Following in the shoes of a dead man, he is told the case is all but closed. Even as it takes an unexpected personal turn, Rutledge will require all his skill to deal with the incensed families of the accused, the grieving parents of the victim, and local police eager to see these four women sent to the infamous Bodmin Gaol. Then why hasn’t the killing stopped?

With no shred of evidence to clear the accused, Rutledge must plunge deep into the darkest secrets of a wild, beautiful and dangerous place if he is to find a killer who may-or may not-hold the key to their fate.

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NO SHRED OF EVIDENCE is book 18 in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series. I have only previously read the first book in this series, but I had no problem getting into this book. There are some mentioning of events from previous books, but I don't think one needs to read previous books to keep up with what's going on in NO SHRED OF EVIDENCE.

READ THE WHOLE REVIEW OVER AT FRESH FICTION!

A Bitter Truth by Charles Todd

A Bitter Truth by Charles Todd
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Bess Crawford is on leave from the front when she stumbles over a woman outside her house. She takes pity on her and learns that the women has been struck by her husband and has fled to London. She slowly gains the woman's trust and learns that her name is Lydia and that her husband's name is Roger. Bess agrees to travel with her home to her house in the country. But this act of kindness will result in quite a lot of trouble as everyone in the household inclusive Bess will be suspected in a murder case. 

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Once again has Charles Todd written an engrossing historical novel with where Bess en up having to find out the truth. She must try to figure out why anyone would kill a houseguest, but this time, even she is a suspect. Prior to the man's death has he asked Roger at dinner about a child that looked like Julianna, Rogers little sister that died when she was just 6 years old. But who is the child in question and could that simple question really be the reason for his death?

As much as I enjoyed the book and the mystery was I also a bit puzzled why it all had to be such a hush-hush thing. When the truth finally was revealed about the child was not that overly surprised, I would have liked a more interesting and perhaps surprising mystery than that. I felt that the family mourning of Julianna was frankly a bit over-the-top sometimes that it could affect the present time that much. Yeah, it was tragical, and yeah she was a beautiful child. But sometimes the truth could perhaps save some heartache and time. Still I enjoyed finding out the truth even though it was a little let down that it wasn't that complex.

But the murders is all whole other story, I failed to realize who the murder was. It wasn't until Bess and Simon Brandon realized who it was and then everything made sense.

One thing that really pleased me (and confused me) was that Sergeant Lassiter Larimore has finally made his first entrance in this book series. I am a bit confused about the name of him since I read about him A Pattern of Lies where he was Sergeant Lassiter, but here is he called Sergeant Larimore. Could there really be two different Aussie Sergeants with the same trademark Kookaburra laughter?

I just have to read on to figure it out...

A Test Of Wills by Charles Todd

A Test Of Wills by Charles Todd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ian Rutledge is back at work after five years at the front. But what not many know is that he is suffering from shell shock and he hears voices. Or rather he hears voices of one particular man that he knew from the war. A man that never got home alive and he feels guilty about it. But he still tries to do a good job, despite the fact that he suffering from shell shock. 

In this, the first book is he sent to deal with the murder of well-liked Colonel Charles Harris who was shot while he was out riding in the morning. He was seen by the house staff arguing with Mark Wilton, the main suspect on the day before. Mark Wilton is also the Colonels wards fiance and Charles and Mark are good friends. There is no evidence that Mark is the killer and the only man that says that he saw the two men together arguing on the day the Colonel died is a man suffering from shell shock. That disturbs Ian Rutledge who starts to suspect that someone at Scotland Yard knows about is affliction and that he was given this case so that he would fail.

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I have read a couple of Charles Todd's Bess Crawford books and I thought it was time to check out the mother and son duos other historical series; the Ian Rutledge series. The Bess Crawford books take place during WW1, but the Ian Rutledge series takes place just after the end of WW1. And, while Bess Crawford is a nurse at the front is Ian Rutledge a policeman at the Scotland Yard.

This is the kind of book that takes awhile to get into. You don't know that much about Ian Rutledge, but clues about him, about his time in the war and what happened to him, is revealed throughout the book. In the end, I came to like him very much, he is a man that been through hell, that is trying to get back to the life he had before the war, but it's hard. Jean, the woman he loves, broke up with him after he got home. He was not the man she had known before the war and neither was she the girl he knew before the war. And, to make things worse, is he hearing the voice of Hamish, an executed soldier, in his head.

The case was interesting, albeit the start of the book was a bit slow as much of the time, in the beginning, is spent on getting to know all the involved characters, their relationship with the murdered man. It was in no way boring, but it felt like it took some time to get somewhere with the case. But it's well worth it since it made you really get to know the characters, they feel well developed. Rutledge had to during the days he was on the case painstakingly try to find out the answers from people that not always was that forthcoming with the truth. And, I really liked the last part of the book when it all started to make sense and the truth about the murder was revealed. I was surprised about how it all turned out and never suspected that kind of ending. (view spoiler)[It reminds me of the ending of The Great Gatsby when I now think about it. (hide spoiler)]

I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the books in the series. I like Rutledge, and I hope he will get better and that he someday will find peace. Also, I really hope that he will meet Bess Crawford some day.