1. Death in the Stocks
A village constable discovers the body of Andrew Vereker dressed for dinner and locked in the stocks on the green. Vereker was wealthy, abrasive and surrounded by relatives who respond to his death with more irritation than grief. Superintendent Hannasyde must sort through financial dependence, romantic…
2. Behold, Here’s Poison
Gregory Matthews dies at his family home after an evening of quarrelling, and the household initially assumes that his health has finally failed. A post-mortem instead reveals poison, leaving Hannasyde with a group of relatives who all disliked the victim and all had access to him.…
3. They Found Him Dead
Silas Kane is found at the foot of a cliff after a tense family gathering, and his death is accepted as an accident in the fog. When his nephew and heir is later murdered, the first verdict becomes impossible to trust. The next heir is a…
4. A Blunt Instrument
Ernest Fletcher is found beaten to death in his study, although his respectable public life appears to offer no clear motive. Hannasyde soon discovers that Fletcher’s private relationships were more complicated and that several people had reasons to fear exposure. A second death repeats elements of…