Publishers Weekly
No classic detective fiction aficionado will want to miss Upson’s compelling sequel to 2008’s An Expert in Murder, which introduced mystery author Josephine Tey (1896-1952) as sleuth. In 1935, Tey’s close friend, Scotland Yard Inspector Archie Penrose, has returned on holiday to Cornwall, his childhood home, where he ends up attending the funeral of estate worker Harry Pinching, who drowned in Loe Pool, rumored to take a life every seven years. Most locals believe Pinching’s death was an accident, but Penrose and Tey, who joins the inspector in Cornwall, soon pick up on ominous undercurrents in the community that suggest otherwise. As the pair attempt to uncover the truth, Penrose witnesses another death that’s unquestionably murder. The subtle prose succeeds both at evoking the quiet splendor of the Cornish landscape and in capturing the tragedy and torment that plague many of the characters. The psychological sophistication will resonate with Charles Todd fans. (July)
Library Journal
In Upson's second installment (after An Expert in Murder) featuring real-life mystery novelist Josephine Tey, it is 1935, and a tragic drowning in Cornwall brings Detective Inspector Archie Penrose back to his family's estate. Intending to escape London for a short holiday, Tey joins him there planning to work on her next novel. Rest and relaxation are soon forgotten as the two become entangled in a murder investigation and the disappearance of a local youth. Family secrets abound in this Cornish community, and the duo learn that the truth, so long buried, can be a very dangerous thing. Unexpected plot twists will keep readers thoroughly engaged until the tale's sobering, yet satisfying, conclusion. Upson does a fine job of incorporating snippets of Tey's actual works, but it is not necessary for the reader to be familiar with them to enjoy this mystery. There are deeper themes running through this novel such as the effect of war on an entire generation and how religious faith can help or hinder an individual.Verdict Fans of classic Golden Age mysteries and detective fiction will find much to like in this engaging and inventive read.—Amy Nolan, MSIS, St. Joseph, MI
Kirkus Reviews
Josephine Tey (An Expert in Murder, 2008) finds murderous inspiration in Cornwall. What's a writer to do when she's bereft of ideas? Seeking a plot for her second mystery, Tey accepts an invitation to Cornwall, where her good friend, Scotland Yard Inspector Archie Penrose, has returned to attend the funeral of Harry Pinching, who fell from his horse and drowned, to the great distress of his twin sister Morwenna and younger sibling Loveday. Soon after a local curate delivers a rather unfeeling eulogy, he gets his own shot at being eulogized when he's pushed off a cliff during the amateur production Harry was to star in. Suddenly, Miss Tey has many plotlines to choose from, including the curate's unrequited love, the vicar's embezzlement of church money, a gamekeeper's brutalization of his wife, the parentage of the undertaker's missing son and the origins of the fire that killed Harry's parents years ago. Moreover, Archie's mum, like the gamekeeper's wife, may have been abused, and there's something decidedly dicey about the closeness Harry and Morwenna shared. The Tey pen is soon busy assigning crimes, motives and retribution. You'd have to be daft not to savor Cornwall in the '30s and the fictional sleuthing of real-life mystery writer Josephine Tey.
