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A Lonely Death: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery (Ian Rutledge Mysteries)

Charles Todd
William Morrow (2011)
ISBN 9780061726194
Reviewed by Ray Palen for Rebecca's Reads (3/11)

The terrific new novel by the mother and son team writing under the name Charles Todd, "A Lonely Death," represents the thirteenth entry in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series.  This critically acclaimed mystery series is set in the years following World War I where Inspector Rutledge was a veteran of the British army.

What makes the character of Rutledge so unique is the fact that the man, literally, is haunted --- both by the horrors and loss he has experienced in his personal life as well as by the ever present ghost of his army colleague, Hamish.  Hamish works as more of a voice of reason/conscience for Rutledge as opposed to being a Watson to his Holmes.  Their inner monologues always make for interesting reading.

"A Lonely Death" opens with a graveyard in Northern France where many bodies lie forever in unmarked graves.  These ‘unknown soldiers’ are casualties from World War I and the loneliness exists in the fact that there appears to be no one to mourn for these departed souls.  That imagery proves to be quite symbolic of the eerie new case that is handed to Inspector Rutledge.  He is summoned to the small village of Eastfield Sussex where a series of grisly murders have all taken place.  The only similarity to the three murders Rutledge investigates is the fact that all of the young men belonged to the same regiment that fought in France during the war.  They have also all been garroted to death and wooden identification discs are placed in each of their mouths.

Prior to the use of metal dog-tags, identification tags were made mostly of wood and hung around a soldier’s neck on a string.  Upon the death of any soldier, their recovered body would have this disc inserted into their mouth for identification and successive burial.  The curious thing about the discs found in the mouths of the three Sussex men is that the names on the discs are not their own.  With the assistance of his home office at Scotland Yard, Inspector Rutledge is able to identify the names of the three soldiers and finds that all of these men are still alive.  What then is the significance of their names being placed inside the mouths of three murdered ex-soldiers?

With the assistance of local Constable Walker, Inspector Rutledge begins questioning the townspeople of Eastfield and finds some resistance --- particularly from Mr. Pierce, the wealthy father of the last boy killed and the mysterious young woman who runs the local school, Mrs. Farrell-Smith.  At one point during the investigation, Inspector Rutledge,

finds himself pulled off the case upon the series of complaints made to Scotland Yard by Mrs. Farrell-Smith.  What could she be hiding?  Is there any truth to the fact that the murders may be tied to Mr. Pierce’s youngest son, Daniel, who was romantically tied to Mrs. Farrell-Smith and also was a member of the same army regiment as the deceased?

With Daniel Pierce’s whereabouts unknown, Inspector Rutledge continues his quest to get through the mysteries and secrets that exist in the Eastfield area before another murder takes place.  When the Inspector who replaces Rutledge ends up being severely injured during his own investigation in Eastfield, Rutledge is called back to the case.  With the aid of neighboring law enforcement from the town of Hastings, Inspector Rutledge begins to put together clues that may lead to Daniel Pierce as well as another mysterious character from Eastfield’s past who may be tied to all of the murdered men.

Inspector Rutledge is one of the most distinctly original characters found in any mystery series today.  Coupled with great historical references and steeped in local atmosphere, Charles Todd has once again penned a riveting mystery novel and makes "A Lonely Death" one of the finest entries in this well-written series.

 

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