Meredith and Alan are house hunting, but so far cannot seem to agree on any house, which situation looks set to continue when Meredith views the Vicarage in Lower Stovey. Alan Markby, enthusiastically surveying the large garden, recalls his visit to the house some twenty years earlier when investigating his first major case as an Inspector, and one which still rankles, as the rapist, dubbed ‘The Potato Man’ was never caught.
When a hiker discovers some bones in the nearby woods, Alan Markby has a feeling that they could relate to that earlier case.
Meanwhile, in an attempt to make some effort to see the Vicarage in a better light, Meredith returns to Lower Stovey to make another inspection of the house. Being early for her appointment she pays first a visit to the local pub, which does not enhance her day, and then, still killing time she visit to the local church, and there discovers a body.
While investigating the murder in the church, the bones found in the woods are dated as being in the region of twenty years old, and whilst Alan has a feeling that the two cases must somehow be related, on the face of it there is nothing to tie these two cases together.
Ann Granger is truly brilliant at creating a village atmosphere. Particularly, one which spans generations. Like most villages, a high proportion of the inhabitants are related either by kin or marriage. As the story progresses we learn of the uneasy relationships between the adults who were at school together, the family secrets, loyalties and unlikely alliances, which all weave together to provide a fascinating mystery.
As with all Ann Granger’s book, I could not put this down until I reached the
satisfying conclusion. That does not of course extend to Meredith and Alan’s
house hunting!
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Lizzie Hayes This the fourteenth book in the Meredith and Markby series. Ann
Granger is also the author of a second series featuring Fran Varady.