13th out of 14 books
—
4 voters
The Red Door (Inspector Ian Rutledge #12)
by
Charles Todd (Goodreads Author)
New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd brings back Scotland Yard detective Ian Rutledge in another riveting mystery set in post–World War I England Lancashire, England, June 1920. In a house with a red door lies the body of a woman who has been bludgeoned to death. Rumor has it that two years earlier, she'd painted that door to welcome her husband back from the Fro...more
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
January 1st 2010
by HarperCollins Canada / Fiction
(first published December 10th 2009)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
1,793)
Feb 25, 2011
Sue
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
mysyery lovers, historical mystery readers
I think I may have liked this the best of all the Ian Rutledge books to date (and considered a 5 rating). There is a subtle change in our main character this time out and, to me, a subtle change in Hamish as well. But perhaps I'm reading too much into quiet and not so quiet moments.
As for the story, there are mysteries upon mysteries here and once again Rutledge is given the task of sorting out the guilty from the innocent. There are reminders of the War all around and reminders of his wound. A...more
As for the story, there are mysteries upon mysteries here and once again Rutledge is given the task of sorting out the guilty from the innocent. There are reminders of the War all around and reminders of his wound. A...more
Inspector Ian Rutledge is a veteran of WWI, with his shell-shock manifesting itself in his head as the voice of a young Scottish soldier he failed in the war. Sometimes Hamish makes useful observations, helping Rutledge with his detecting, but sometimes he just forces Rutledge to re-live the horrors of the war.
In this book, Rutledge gets involved with the Teller family when Walter Teller, a famous missionary and author, disappears from a hospital after an inexplicable case of paralysis. Later, R...more
In this book, Rutledge gets involved with the Teller family when Walter Teller, a famous missionary and author, disappears from a hospital after an inexplicable case of paralysis. Later, R...more
When Charles Todd began the Ian Rutledge series, I remember writing an enthusiastic review for my local bookstore, and sharing my delight with friends. I kept my enthusiasm for several of the books in the series, but by book five or six my interest was already flagging. The reason could be the Hamish character, a kind of interesting literary tool, but one which has begun to seem a little ridiculous by book twelve.
In book twelve, The Red Door, Todd commmits the cardinal sin of fiction: the myster...more
In book twelve, The Red Door, Todd commmits the cardinal sin of fiction: the myster...more
There's a voice inside his head that keeps talking to Inspector Rutledge. But wait, it gets dumber. The voice has a Scots accent. It's called Hamish.
I can make a long list of things wrong with this book, but the constant "Ye ken, the lass hadna' telt ye" schtick made it worse every time.
The next most bothersome thing was that there was practically never any sense of place. Okay, at the very beginning of the book, we do get a nicely framed scene about a wartime wife waiting to welcome her husband...more
I can make a long list of things wrong with this book, but the constant "Ye ken, the lass hadna' telt ye" schtick made it worse every time.
The next most bothersome thing was that there was practically never any sense of place. Okay, at the very beginning of the book, we do get a nicely framed scene about a wartime wife waiting to welcome her husband...more
A man suffering what seems to be a nervous breakdown resulting in his paralysis, disappears from the medical facility he was in. Apparently he managed to dress himself and walk out of the place without anyone noticing. Inspector Rutledge, still fighting his own demons from the war, is called in to investigate. After interviewing the family members, he gets the sense that they are keeping something from him, but every avenue he goes down seems to be a dead end. Walking along a bridge, deep in tho...more
Charles Todd’s THE RED DOOR is one of the best in the twelve book series. Walter Teller, a missionary in China and Africa and a chaplain in WWI, is suddenly stricken with a paralysis. He is taken to an exclusive clinic in London where his wife, his brothers, Edwin and Peter, and their wives wait for some sign of improvement. The doctors are stymied and the family fears that Walter is dying. Then, as suddenly as the paralysis came on, it disappears and so does Walter. Ian Rutledge is assigned ano...more
Reason for Reading: I've always wanted to read a book by this "author". The reason for reading the book now though is that this was actually the very first book I received in 2010 to review and while I was putting my piles of review, won, tbr, etc. books onto my new bookcase I found it grouped with the wrong books so I rectified the situation by making it my next read.
Jumping in with book twelve in a mystery series has the potential to cause some problems. As to an ongoing personal story there w...more
Jumping in with book twelve in a mystery series has the potential to cause some problems. As to an ongoing personal story there w...more
I can't believe that this is the 12th book in the Ian Rutledge series. The plot in this book is as good as the one in the first book in the series. It's July of 1920 and Rutledge is called in to investigate the disappearance of Walter Teller from a hospital in London. It seems strange to Rutledge that the Teller family leaves his wife in London alone while they fan out to check sites all over southern England where Walter may have gone. What's going on here? Does this family have a secret? Well,...more
Apr 07, 2010
LJ
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Shelves:
1900s_early,
england,
golden_age_1918-1939,
historical,
mystery,
police_procedural,
writing_pair
First Sentence: She stood in front of the cheval glass, the long mirror the Peter had given her on their second anniversary, and considered herself.
Insp. Ian Rutledge has two cases. First is disappearance of Walter Teller.
Rutledge finds the behavior of the missing man's family decidedly odd. The second case is of a violent robber who attacked Rutledge and who murders his next victim. Rutledge is pressured to solve both cases, especially as deaths mount in both.
This is another instance of an auth...more
Insp. Ian Rutledge has two cases. First is disappearance of Walter Teller.
Rutledge finds the behavior of the missing man's family decidedly odd. The second case is of a violent robber who attacked Rutledge and who murders his next victim. Rutledge is pressured to solve both cases, especially as deaths mount in both.
This is another instance of an auth...more
This entry doesn't quite reach the high standards of the previous 11 books in the series, though it is still a very enjoyable read.
These books are more 'whydunnits' than' whodunnits' - if Todd gives you the clues to figure out everything that happened, I certainly didn't catch them all, though looking back everything fits together. The place and time are well established without hitting you over the head with geography and history lessons. The main mystery has plenty of twists and turns. Althoug...more
These books are more 'whydunnits' than' whodunnits' - if Todd gives you the clues to figure out everything that happened, I certainly didn't catch them all, though looking back everything fits together. The place and time are well established without hitting you over the head with geography and history lessons. The main mystery has plenty of twists and turns. Althoug...more
Though I have not read the earlier books in this series, I did recently read the first of another series by Charles Todd, and wanted to see what the Ian Rutledge mysteries were like.
In this installment, Inspector Ian Rutledge is called on to investigate the death of a woman in the Lancashire countryside of England who may or may not have a relationship to a family that Rutledge has recently helped in London. The initial investigation, into the disappearance of Walter Teller from a hospital where...more
In this installment, Inspector Ian Rutledge is called on to investigate the death of a woman in the Lancashire countryside of England who may or may not have a relationship to a family that Rutledge has recently helped in London. The initial investigation, into the disappearance of Walter Teller from a hospital where...more
Ian Rutledge returns in his 12th case in "The Red Door." He must deal with a young knife wielding robber in London, a missing missionary, and the murder of a teacher named Florence in a distant village.
Charles Todd has constructed a series of puzzles seemingly unrelated but perhaps they are. We begin with Florence, an attractive woman, at the time of the Armistice. She is waiting for her soldier husband to return from France. She paints her front door a brilliant red for him to see when he comes...more
Charles Todd has constructed a series of puzzles seemingly unrelated but perhaps they are. We begin with Florence, an attractive woman, at the time of the Armistice. She is waiting for her soldier husband to return from France. She paints her front door a brilliant red for him to see when he comes...more
This is the first book that I have read by this author and I enjoyed it very much. I was caught from the first page and enjoyed it so much that I couldn't put it down and finished it in one day.
I kept thinking that I knew who the killer/killers was/were until the very end. I hadn't suspected that person in either case at all. Although looking back, the one does make sense.
I'm adding the previous 11 books in this series to my to-read pile so that I can get more background on the characters in the...more
I kept thinking that I knew who the killer/killers was/were until the very end. I hadn't suspected that person in either case at all. Although looking back, the one does make sense.
I'm adding the previous 11 books in this series to my to-read pile so that I can get more background on the characters in the...more
Apr 19, 2013
Babs
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
mystery,
mystery-historical
I must admit, I'm addicted to this series. I am compelled to go on, even thought this one was less satisfying than the others. Inspector Rutledge is a hero, a tortured hero, its true, but one you just have to love and admire. Well, at least that's my opinion.
He seemed more fallible in this book. He didn't seem on top of his game in investigating this latest murder he's been assigned to solve. That made this less satisfying to me. He seemed more in tune, more careful, more intelligent in previou...more
He seemed more fallible in this book. He didn't seem on top of his game in investigating this latest murder he's been assigned to solve. That made this less satisfying to me. He seemed more in tune, more careful, more intelligent in previou...more
I’m currently reading the new Charles Todd mystery, The Red Door, which is the latest in the Inspector Rutledge series. As I read it, I have a picture in mind of what Rutledge looks like…it’s this guy, the actor Anthony Howell. Some of you may recognize him as Sgt. Milner from the BBC show Foyle’s War. I’m not exactly sure how he got into my mind as Rutledge, but it probably has something to do with both of them just being back from a war, both being a bit wounded physically and psychologically,...more
A different kind of mystery, at least to me. Shortly after the end of WWI, Inspector Ian Rutledge is assigned two investigations: into a man who has been attacking people at night, and into the disappearance of a prominent citizen. He sets his own pace, however, not always showing up where he is expected to be.
The disappearance is of a former missionary, Walter Teller, followed his hospitalization for a mysterious illness. He apparently came out of the paralysis that siezed him and took off out...more
The disappearance is of a former missionary, Walter Teller, followed his hospitalization for a mysterious illness. He apparently came out of the paralysis that siezed him and took off out...more
I enjoyed this twelfth installment in the Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery series. I stumbled upon the series earlier this year when I was doing research on WWI and have happily gobbled them up one by one. There is one more to read before the fourteenth novel is released in early January. The mysteries are always interesting, and Rutledge remains intriguing. However, I have felt his personal development, as well as that of his personal life have been very slow to evolve. This novel gave us more of...more
In fairness to the author (mother and son team of Carline and Charles Todd - writing as Charles Todd), this was my first book in this series - despite the fact that 11 previous mysteries have been released.
The mystery is set in early 1920. Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge is called to investigate the disappearance of one Walter Teller. Walter was a missionary who disappeared from the Belvedere Clinic after suffering a mental breakdown which resulted from some war time trauma. At around the s...more
The mystery is set in early 1920. Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge is called to investigate the disappearance of one Walter Teller. Walter was a missionary who disappeared from the Belvedere Clinic after suffering a mental breakdown which resulted from some war time trauma. At around the s...more
THANK GOODNESS!!! Now this is the Ian Rutledge series I got hooked on! I started reading these books and loved them. But the last three were quite terrible, especially the last one where they changed names of recurring characters and absolutely nothing happened. Here Ian is showing some improvement again, nothing like a true healing, but there's a progression. His conversations with Hammish are back to not seeming gimmicky. He still has the flashbacks and the worry but it feels more organic to t...more
Fellow readers, I am OCD about reading series in order. I want to meet the characters as they introduce themselves and then see them develop and evolve over time. I want to re-acquaint myself with them in each new instalment, like keeping in touch with a very enjoyable friend who I only see once every year or so.
But I was really pressed for a quick new read recently, between library reserves and had to make a hasty grab off the new book shelf. This cover intrigued me, so I broke my rule and read...more
But I was really pressed for a quick new read recently, between library reserves and had to make a hasty grab off the new book shelf. This cover intrigued me, so I broke my rule and read...more
This is the latest entry in Charles Todd's excellent historical series set in Britain shortly after WWI and the style, plot and period detail are all first-rate as expected. As Inspector Rutledge of Scotland Yard investigates the mysterious disappearance (and equally mysterious) return of a wealthy man in one town, he is handed what seems to be a completely unrelated case of a war widow's murder in a small country village. As Rutledge delves deeper into the two cases, he is sure they are connect...more
Inspector Ian Rutledge has returned to Scotland Yard after action in WWI. He suffers from the effects of the war and seeing so many men under his command killed.
He's ordered to investigate the murder of a woman on a farm some distance from London. She was waiting for her husband to return from the front but he never returned and she received no official notice of what might have happened to him.
Rutledge finds another man with the same name but this man is from a prominent family and Rutledge's b...more
He's ordered to investigate the murder of a woman on a farm some distance from London. She was waiting for her husband to return from the front but he never returned and she received no official notice of what might have happened to him.
Rutledge finds another man with the same name but this man is from a prominent family and Rutledge's b...more
Feb 06, 2011
Doug
added it
This is the first book I read in this series. A body of a woman bludgeoned to death is found in a house with a red door. And back in London a man with a mysterious illness goes missing and then suddenly appears. This man, his two brothers, and the wives of the two brothers seem to be hiding a secret while the other wife is sort of kept on the outside. Inspector Rutledge is drawn into and must solve both cases. The story takes place in 1920 after WWI in England. I am always amazed by the social s...more
This being the first of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries that I have read, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I found myself deep into the story line starting with the first short chapter. And unlike a lot of books, I spent the entire day reading it until it was completed. I found the character of Inspector Rutlege complex with Hamish always in the background helping him, or at the very least prodding him into thinking about the case in different light. Everytime, you think you have figured...more
This is an Ian Rutledge mystery set in England in the 1920's---after WWI. In this tale, a wife awaits the return of her husband---only this husband has two wives. The story is about the Teller family, and the pitfalls and deaths that happen. First Florence Teller is killed, and no one seems to care. Then Peter Teller suspiciously falls down the stairs, and then Jenny Teller dies from an overdose of medicine. Too many deaths for one family, and the riddle of keeping all the members in order. This...more
This latest Charles Todd novel is a continuation of the Ian Rutledge series. Rutledge has better control of his personal "demon" in this story but it's still a atruggle for him. The mystery is fairly complicated and I didn't find it easy to figure out. In fact, I only figured it out very near the end. There are a lot of red herrings here and that adds to the pleasure of sorting it all out. Now I'm hoping for him to establish a personal relationship with a character other than his sister in the n...more
Loved the uniqueness of The Red Door. The plot was interesting as were the characters of this multi-dimensional family. The hero, Rutledge was haunted by his past war time ultra ego, which added a new dimension to the fabric of the story.
Taking place in post World War I England with all of it old world charm and many different locations and charming characters, I was intrigued with the fast moving and smoothness of the language. It made it an interesting read and much warranted first read.
Real...more
Taking place in post World War I England with all of it old world charm and many different locations and charming characters, I was intrigued with the fast moving and smoothness of the language. It made it an interesting read and much warranted first read.
Real...more
If you're of a mind for a good, old-fashioned British mystery, this will bring back the Agatha Christie voice.
The scene is post-WW I England and a family struggling to live with each other while hiding from ghosts of the past. Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge is dealing with a number of characters and a number of violent scenes that all seem to have ties, but ties desperately needing unraveling. Are the red door, the knifings on the bridge, the death on the staircase and the broken Malacca c...more
The scene is post-WW I England and a family struggling to live with each other while hiding from ghosts of the past. Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge is dealing with a number of characters and a number of violent scenes that all seem to have ties, but ties desperately needing unraveling. Are the red door, the knifings on the bridge, the death on the staircase and the broken Malacca c...more
A paralyzed patient goes missing, a soldier who didn't return from France, a mugger's attack on Rutledge, and a train wreck are the threads that tie this gripping novel together. Rutledge is asked to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Walter Teller and in a small village the widow of a missing soldier with the same name as Walter's brother is murdered. As Rutledge puts the pieces of a complicated puzzle together, he begins to understand that running away from involvement with his family...more
Really was 2 stars. No quibble with any half stars. I had not read one of Charles Todd's Rutledge books in a while and I was reminded of why I hadn't.
Not sure what the one silly plot was about. Maybe to help the reader understand Rutledge has some enemies in the Yard. If so, was just annoying more than anything.
And could they really travel those distances in those days in those old cars? I really don't know the answer to that, but the fact that I'm asking is concerning. There was nothing in the...more
Not sure what the one silly plot was about. Maybe to help the reader understand Rutledge has some enemies in the Yard. If so, was just annoying more than anything.
And could they really travel those distances in those days in those old cars? I really don't know the answer to that, but the fact that I'm asking is concerning. There was nothing in the...more
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Charles Todd is the pen name used by a mother-and-son writing team, Caroline Todd and Charles Todd.
More about Charles Todd...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Loading...

























Feb 27, 2011 05:13pm
Feb 28, 2011 09:02am