Review by Brenda Repland

The mother and son writing team, known as Charles Todd, have delivered another great mystery.

Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge comes into some unexpected information from a grateful ex-convict that leads him back to the search for a murder suspect who has evaded capture for over ten years.  The murder – during Black Ascot – was appalling and had launched a country-wide manhunt for the killer.  (The 1910 Ascot, which actually took place, takes its “Black” name from the recent death of King Edward VII during that time.)

The escape of the accused murderer, Alan Barrington, has given Scotland Yard a black eye which they are eager to rectify.  Now it seems that Barrington has returned to England and Rutledge is determined to track him down.

But the Inspector, recently returned from World War I, has issues of his own.  Namely, shell shock, which was viewed as scandalous in the early 20th century.  Civilians had little patience or compassion for the sufferers.  The embodiment of his trauma is the voice of Hamish, a Scotsman who died in the war, and lingers in the Inspector’s mind with comments on everything!  Because of the attitude at the time, Rutledge cannot let his situation (nowadays referred to as PTSD) be known to his superiors.  At times, he questions his own sanity.

This story takes the reader fully into the culture of Edwardian England which Rutledge must navigate to capture his elusive prey.