The Black Ascot

Name: The Black Ascot
Rating: 4.6 (2353 reviews)

by Charles Todd

Book 21 in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series.

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A former prisoner gives Rutledge a lead on Alan Barrington, the fugitive suspected of a notorious murder during the Black Ascot of 1910. The information reopens a case associated with wealth, racing society and a national period of mourning, but a decade has allowed witnesses to alter loyalties and memories. Rutledge follows Barrington’s possible trail while questioning whether the original investigation identified the right man.

The mystery joins Edwardian high society to the changed world after the war. The Black Ascot’s public display of grief for Edward VII concealed private rivalries, and the conflict has since disrupted the networks that protected them. Rutledge must decide whether pursuit of a famous fugitive serves justice or merely preserves an old official verdict.