I’ve read several Inspector Rutledge novels written by the team of Charles Todd (son and other) but have not reviewed one. I just finished The Gate Keeper (William Morrow, $26.99). Inspector Fleming has just come back from World War I and rejoined Scotland Yard, as a man haunted by his experiences in the trenches and the voice of an enlisted man whom he had to execute for refusing to go over the top.
Gate Keeper gets off to a flying start when Rutledge, desperate to escape the confines of a family wedding, aimlessly drives out of London in the middle of the night and comes upon another motor car stopped in the middle of the road with a woman crying in an evening dress, blood on her hands, and her dinner date dead at her feet. The killer has apparently disappeared. While the local constable suspects the young woman, Rutledge having been the first to size her up, believes she is entirely innocent.
The authors do a magnificent job setting the scene in a rural English village, complete with one doctor, one policeman, one greengrocer, and one book shop, the owner of which is the dead man. Rutledge finagles Scotland Yard into assigning the case to him, even though he is a witness, and begins looking into the background of the dead man. Everyone except his mother seems to adore him and she has an alibi.
As in the typical cozy mystery, another perfectly solid citizen nearby is murdered, again with no apparent motive. And Rutledge can find nothing in the background of either victim to lead to a killer, especially since the men barely knew each other.
Its all quite riveting. If there is any criticism, the rules are slightly broken because we don’t get introduced until near the end to a key suspect and the MO is perhaps a little thin to justify what becomes three murders. Nevertheless, if you like the world before motorways, computers, DNA, television, and modern life in general, the Rutledge mysteries are fantastic and this is one of the best. Solid A-.
Steve E Clark as seen in the New York Times is Author of Justice Is for the Lonely and Justice Is for the Deserving, Kristen Kerry Novels Of Suspense. Steve is a 2017 NY Big Book Award winner and a 2018 Independent Book Awards recepient. You can purchase his books via https://steveclarkauthor.com/buy-the-book/ or request it at your local book store. Want to know more about Steve Clark, read more reviews or speak directly with Steve? Learn more about Steve at SteveClarkAuthor.com
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