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Inspector Ian Rutledge #6
A Fearsome Doubt
Bestselling author Charles Todd has earned a special place among mystery’s elite writers with his acclaimed series featuring Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge, a former soldier seeking to lay to rest the demons of his past in the aftermath of World War I. But that past bleeds into the present in a complex murder case that calls into question his own honor...and the crimes committed in the name of God, country, and righteous vengeance.
In 1912 Ian Rutledge watched as a man was condemned to hang for the murders of elderly women. Rutledge helped gather the evidence that sent Ben Shaw to the gallows. And when justice was done, Rutledge closed the door on the case. But Shaw was not easily forgotten.
Now, seven years later, that grim trial returns in the form of Ben Shaw’s widow Nell, bringing Rutledge evidence she is convinced will prove her husband’s innocence. It’s a belief fraught with peril, threatening both Rutledge’s professional stature and his faith in his judgment. But there is a darker reason for Rutledge’s reluctance. Murder brings him back to Kent where, days earlier, he’d glimpsed an all-too-familiar face beyond the leaping flames of a bonfire. Soon an unexpected encounter revives the end of his own war, as the country prepares for a somber commemoration on the anniversary of the Armistice. To battle the unsettled past and the haunted present at the same time is an appalling mandate.
And the people around him? Among them the attractive widow of a friend, a remarkable woman who survived the Great Indian Mutiny; a bitter, dying barrister; and a man whose name he never knew—unwittingly compete with the grieving Nell Shaw. They’ll demand more than Rutledge can give, unaware that he is already carrying the burden of shell shock—and the voice of Hamish MacLeod, the soldier he was forced to execute in the war. The killer in Marling is surprisingly adept at escaping detection. And Ben Shaw’s past is a tangle of unsettling secrets that may or may not be true. Rutledge must walk a tortuous line between two murderers...one reaching out to ruin him, the other driven to destroy him.
In 1912 Ian Rutledge watched as a man was condemned to hang for the murders of elderly women. Rutledge helped gather the evidence that sent Ben Shaw to the gallows. And when justice was done, Rutledge closed the door on the case. But Shaw was not easily forgotten.
Now, seven years later, that grim trial returns in the form of Ben Shaw’s widow Nell, bringing Rutledge evidence she is convinced will prove her husband’s innocence. It’s a belief fraught with peril, threatening both Rutledge’s professional stature and his faith in his judgment. But there is a darker reason for Rutledge’s reluctance. Murder brings him back to Kent where, days earlier, he’d glimpsed an all-too-familiar face beyond the leaping flames of a bonfire. Soon an unexpected encounter revives the end of his own war, as the country prepares for a somber commemoration on the anniversary of the Armistice. To battle the unsettled past and the haunted present at the same time is an appalling mandate.
And the people around him? Among them the attractive widow of a friend, a remarkable woman who survived the Great Indian Mutiny; a bitter, dying barrister; and a man whose name he never knew—unwittingly compete with the grieving Nell Shaw. They’ll demand more than Rutledge can give, unaware that he is already carrying the burden of shell shock—and the voice of Hamish MacLeod, the soldier he was forced to execute in the war. The killer in Marling is surprisingly adept at escaping detection. And Ben Shaw’s past is a tangle of unsettling secrets that may or may not be true. Rutledge must walk a tortuous line between two murderers...one reaching out to ruin him, the other driven to destroy him.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 2002
409 people are currently reading
1436 people want to read
About the author
Charles Todd
112 books3,495 followersCharles Todd was the pen name used by the mother-and-son writing team, Caroline Todd and Charles Todd. Now, Charles writes the Ian Rutledge and Bess Crawford Series. Charles Todd ha spublished three standalone mystery novels and many short stories.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 443 reviews
May 3, 2022
Battling one’s ghosts from the past on a constant basis must be emotionally exhausting. Yet Rutledge has learned to live side by side with his.
In this quiet, yet powerful installment, Rutledge’s self doubt comes into play as he is drawn both personally and professionally into a series of murders in a sleepy town.
I’ll admit to being slightly underwhelmed and confused while reading the first third of this book but as Rutledge is forced to face another ghost from his WW1 past, the book’s vibe changed.
I’d say this book is a turning point for Rutledge— and in addition to solving the murders of other WW1 veterans, he also resolved several important events in his own past.
Certainly looking forward to spending more time with Ian and Hamish!
In this quiet, yet powerful installment, Rutledge’s self doubt comes into play as he is drawn both personally and professionally into a series of murders in a sleepy town.
I’ll admit to being slightly underwhelmed and confused while reading the first third of this book but as Rutledge is forced to face another ghost from his WW1 past, the book’s vibe changed.
I’d say this book is a turning point for Rutledge— and in addition to solving the murders of other WW1 veterans, he also resolved several important events in his own past.
Certainly looking forward to spending more time with Ian and Hamish!
March 28, 2020
I enjoyed reacquainting myself with inspector Ian Rutledge. A good read in troubled times.
October 8, 2020
After feeling that book #5 was a bit blah, I was thrilled to jump into this one and it did not disappoint.
Rutledge is fighting a battle on two fronts - the past and the present.
Before the war, Ian was instrumental in convicting Ben Shaw, a man who murdered three elderly women so he could still from them. Now his widow has appeared with new evidence saying that her husband was innocent and shouldn't have been hanged. Rutledge doesn't want to open the past, because that was the one time he felt whole. What if everything he thought he was, was a lie?
In the present, Rutledge is sent to investigate the murders of amputee war veterans. It is in the village of old friends and Rutledge is worried about his friend's widow. His friend died in the war and Rutledge feels a certain responsibility and loyalty, though he knows it doesn't make sense.
I felt lots of things reading this book. Even when I don't love the mysteries as much, or think it's going slowly, I just eat this series up because of Rutledge. I just adore him. In this volume, Rutledge is quite introspective trying to come to terms with his past and what happened during the war. I felt like we got to know him even better. The author's do a good job of setting the scene post-World War 1. It's a world that I've loved learning about and being a part of.
It will probably be awhile before I finish the next book. I have a ton of audiobooks from the library to finish and since I own all the Rutledge books, they'll just have to wait!
Rutledge is fighting a battle on two fronts - the past and the present.
Before the war, Ian was instrumental in convicting Ben Shaw, a man who murdered three elderly women so he could still from them. Now his widow has appeared with new evidence saying that her husband was innocent and shouldn't have been hanged. Rutledge doesn't want to open the past, because that was the one time he felt whole. What if everything he thought he was, was a lie?
In the present, Rutledge is sent to investigate the murders of amputee war veterans. It is in the village of old friends and Rutledge is worried about his friend's widow. His friend died in the war and Rutledge feels a certain responsibility and loyalty, though he knows it doesn't make sense.
I felt lots of things reading this book. Even when I don't love the mysteries as much, or think it's going slowly, I just eat this series up because of Rutledge. I just adore him. In this volume, Rutledge is quite introspective trying to come to terms with his past and what happened during the war. I felt like we got to know him even better. The author's do a good job of setting the scene post-World War 1. It's a world that I've loved learning about and being a part of.
It will probably be awhile before I finish the next book. I have a ton of audiobooks from the library to finish and since I own all the Rutledge books, they'll just have to wait!
August 21, 2007
The weakest in the Rutledge series so far, Fearsome Doubt's big problem is that the A mystery makes little sense and the B mystery is really boring. The writing is strong as always, but there are too many coincidences and too many irritating characters (I actually groaned in one scene when Nell Shaw appeared) in this one.
May 12, 2015
This one was kind of nerve-wracking, but in a "can't put this book down" way. I enjoyed the complications, the character of Inspector Rutledge trying to come to terms with his past, with the war, with the possibility of love, the frustration, doubts about an old case, Guy Fawkes Day bonfires and of course, Hamish. The conclusion is dramatic and struck me with its emotional intensity. Another well-done mystery in the series, I recommend it.
November 21, 2010
I can't read this series anymore. The mystery solutions seem totally disconnected from the well-drawn characters and fabulous writing style. I just get so infuriated with the magic endings it's not worth it.
March 30, 2011
Charles Todd presents Inspector Ian Rutledge in his sixth outing. The novel presents Rutledge in an even more complex character, not only dealing with the after effects of combat in World War One, but with the possibility that prior to the Great War, he may have sent an innocent man to the gallows.
Ben Shaw was a likable man. He performed acts of kindness to elderly women, performing tasks around their homes that needed doing. He refused to take payment. The problem is that the women whom he helped by keeping up their homes end up dead, smothered with their own pillows. Thrust into the lead investigator's spot when the original Inspector dies of a heart attack, Rutledge puts the pieces together and Shaw is arrested, tried, convicted and executed.
Now, seven years after Shaw's death by hanging, Rutledge is confronted by the dead man's widow, Nell Shaw, who insists she's found evidence that points to another criminal. She insists that Ben Shaw was the victim of a flawed investigation and an over zealous prosecutor. Reopening the case may lead to the end of Rutledge's career. The Yard doesn't like to be shown to have been mistaken.
At the same time, a killer is murdering veterans of World War I. The method is unusual. Each victim has died of an overdose of laudanum, a subtle and seemingly painless form of death. Each victim has lost an arm or leg during the war. Is an angel of mercy putting shattered men out of their misery? Or is there some other reason for their deaths.
Todd injects yet a new character into the mix. Rutledge encounters a man he met on the battlefield of the Somme and regains memories of his time during the war that he had forgotten or deliberately forced from his mind.
All the pieces will come together in the end. Each piece has its place in the puzzle. With each novel, Ian Rutledge becomes a more unique and complicated character whose past is an integral part in the way he approaches the investigation of crime in post World War One England.
Charles Todd (actually a mother and son writing team) becomes more convincing, adroit, and a master of mingling psychological suspense with historical mystery with each successive Ian Rutledge novel.
Ben Shaw was a likable man. He performed acts of kindness to elderly women, performing tasks around their homes that needed doing. He refused to take payment. The problem is that the women whom he helped by keeping up their homes end up dead, smothered with their own pillows. Thrust into the lead investigator's spot when the original Inspector dies of a heart attack, Rutledge puts the pieces together and Shaw is arrested, tried, convicted and executed.
Now, seven years after Shaw's death by hanging, Rutledge is confronted by the dead man's widow, Nell Shaw, who insists she's found evidence that points to another criminal. She insists that Ben Shaw was the victim of a flawed investigation and an over zealous prosecutor. Reopening the case may lead to the end of Rutledge's career. The Yard doesn't like to be shown to have been mistaken.
At the same time, a killer is murdering veterans of World War I. The method is unusual. Each victim has died of an overdose of laudanum, a subtle and seemingly painless form of death. Each victim has lost an arm or leg during the war. Is an angel of mercy putting shattered men out of their misery? Or is there some other reason for their deaths.
Todd injects yet a new character into the mix. Rutledge encounters a man he met on the battlefield of the Somme and regains memories of his time during the war that he had forgotten or deliberately forced from his mind.
All the pieces will come together in the end. Each piece has its place in the puzzle. With each novel, Ian Rutledge becomes a more unique and complicated character whose past is an integral part in the way he approaches the investigation of crime in post World War One England.
Charles Todd (actually a mother and son writing team) becomes more convincing, adroit, and a master of mingling psychological suspense with historical mystery with each successive Ian Rutledge novel.
July 5, 2015
I've enjoyed the first five of this series (I'm reading them in order). Determined to figure this one out before Todd reveals the murderer(s?), I took copious notes as to who is who and when and what, etc., with diagrams of interconnecting relationships, etc. This book has about 275 pages of red herrings on top of red herrings and actually lots of fascinating mysteries/questions are opened. I thought I had solved it this time, but alas I was wrong again! That's fine, I've read a lot of Agatha Christie's work and only got one right (Thirteen at Dinner... or was it Third Girl?). Anyway, for me, the problem here is there are just too many loose ends. All this complicated plotting, and 90% or more of it just doesn't come together at all. I have nine pages of notes, with 12 big unanswered questions. That's just sloppy story-telling, almost insulting from the author to readers. This is the weakest in the series, in my opinion. I gave the first one a two-star rating, this one a two-star rating also. I'm a "three-strikes-you're out" series reader (Alex Grecian and Sue Grafton come quickly to mind) and although I'll read the seventh in this series, it may be Todd's final at-bat for me. I hope not though, as Inspector Ian Rutledge is one of the most fascinating "detectives" I've encountered in the cozy murder mystery genre.
September 9, 2019
3.5 stars, but I rounded down. These are very readable. I'm enjoying them. I liked the complexities of the case in this one. I also liked how the previous case was dealt with,
I am getting a bit sick of the internal politics of Scotland Yard, more specifically how apparently every single one of Rutledge's cases seems to be an attempt by his boss to get rid of him. It's getting tedious. I really wish it came up less. Or the plot moved along somehow. I also didn't like how Ian and Elizabeth's friendship was handled. In other words, these books are also all getting a bit hard on Rutledge's existing relationships. I mean, obviously her point that things can't be as they were before the war, and before her husband - his close friend - died is a valid one, but everything always seems to happen almost at Rutledge's expense, and through no fault of his own.
There was a bit too much of that, with the work stuff in this one.
I am getting a bit sick of the internal politics of Scotland Yard, more specifically how apparently every single one of Rutledge's cases seems to be an attempt by his boss to get rid of him. It's getting tedious. I really wish it came up less. Or the plot moved along somehow. I also didn't like how Ian and Elizabeth's friendship was handled. In other words, these books are also all getting a bit hard on Rutledge's existing relationships. I mean, obviously her point that things can't be as they were before the war, and before her husband - his close friend - died is a valid one, but everything always seems to happen almost at Rutledge's expense, and through no fault of his own.
There was a bit too much of that, with the work stuff in this one.
October 25, 2021
Charles Todd, Inspector Ian Rutledge series
https://www.orderofbooks.com/authors/...
Charles Todd is the pen name of an American mother-and-son writing team: Caroline Todd, died 2021.08.28 (book 24 already sent to the publisher) and Charles Todd.
Our hero is Inspector Ian Rutledge, shell-shocked after WWI, routinely hears the voice of his dead corporal, Hamish McLeod, in his head. The two of them are good characters; their relationship develops over the series from antagonism to a kind of partnership.
Rutledge is the Rodney Dangerfield of Scotland Yard: no respect from his higher-ups, no respect from the public.
Especially early in the series, they end abruptly.
To orient the stories in time and place:
1857 Melinda Crawford survived Indian Mutiny (she's 72 in 1919; she lives on the Kent/East Sussex border https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ken... )
1912 Rutledge was a (New) Scotland Yard inspector
1914.08 WWI began
1916 Captain Ian Rutledge put Corporal Hamish McLeod to death for refusing an order to lead more men to their deaths, on the Somme.
1918.11.11 WWI ended
1919.02 Shell-shocked WWI survivor Rutledge's fiancée, Jean, ended their engagement.
1919.06.01 Rutledge returned to work at (New) Scotland Yard after recuperating from WWI. New Scotland Yard: https://www.google.com/maps/place/51%...
Simon Prebble is the best audio narrator: books 10-16, 18-22.
Tales -- Short Stories 0.5 and 12.5, Kindle ✅ ★★★
2013 0.5 Cold Comfort -- Kindle, in Tales, Short Story ✅ ★★★
2015 0.6 A Guid Soldier -- Kindle, Short Story ✅ ★★★
1994 1 A Test of Wills -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1998 2 Wings of Fire -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★★
Suspicious deaths in the house of fictional poet O.A. Manning. Cornwall. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cor...
1999 3 Search the Dark -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.08 Dorset. Ends rather badly.
2000 4 Legacy of the Dead -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.09 Scotland. Features Fiona MacDonald, fiancée of the late Corporal Hamish McLeod.
2001 5 Watchers of Time -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.10 Norfolk https://www.google.com/maps/place/Nor...
2002 6 A Fearsome Doubt -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.11 Kent. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ken... farther from London than Maidstone https://www.google.com/maps/place/Mai... (33%)
Rutledge remembers a little of what happened 1918.11.11-1919.02.
2005 7 A Cold Treachery -- Audible ✅ ★★★★
2006 8 A Long Shadow -- Audible ✅ ★★★★
2007 9 A False Mirror -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
2007 10 A Pale Horse -- Kindle, Audible, first book narrated by Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★
2008 11 A Matter of Justice -- Audible: Simon Prebble, library large print, ✅ ★★★★
Starts in the Boer War (11 October 1899 – 31 May 1902). Good story.
2009 12 The Red Door -- Libby ebook, Audible: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★
2010 12.5 The Kidnapping -- short story, Kindle ✅ ★★★
2011 13 A Lonely Death -- Audible: Simon Prebble, large print ✅ ★★★★
2011 14 The Confession -- Audible: Simon Prebble, Kindle ✅ ★★★
2013 15 Proof of Guilt -- Libby audio: Simon Prebble; Libby ebook ✅ ★★★★
2014 16 Hunting Shadows -- Audible: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★; Kindle
2015 17 A Fine Summer’s Day -- Libby audio ✅ ★★★★; large print
1914.06.28 - 1914.12.26. This one has Inspector Rutledge's backstory as a Scotland Yard inspector in the months before he goes to war. The fine summer's day is the day the Austrian archduke is murdered in Serbia.
2016 18 No Shred of Evidence -- Libby audio: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★★; Libby ebook
2017 19 Racing the Devil -- Audible: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★
2017 19.5 The Piper -- Kindle ✅ ★★★
2018 20 The Gate Keeper -- Audible: Simon Prebble; Kindle ✅ ★★★★
2019 21 The Black Ascot -- Audible: Simon Prebble; Kindle ✅ ★★★★
2020 22 A Divided Loyalty -- Audible: Simon Prebble; Kindle ✅ ★★★★
2021 23 A Fatal Lie -- Audible; Kindle ✅ ★★★★★
Has an overage of unpleasant characters. Early 1920s, Wales and Shropshire.
2021.08.28 Caroline Todd died (book 24 already sent to the publisher)
2022 24 A Game of Fear
Trivia:
Book 5: Watchers of Time:
https://www.goodreads.com/trivia/work...
https://www.orderofbooks.com/authors/...
Charles Todd is the pen name of an American mother-and-son writing team: Caroline Todd, died 2021.08.28 (book 24 already sent to the publisher) and Charles Todd.
Our hero is Inspector Ian Rutledge, shell-shocked after WWI, routinely hears the voice of his dead corporal, Hamish McLeod, in his head. The two of them are good characters; their relationship develops over the series from antagonism to a kind of partnership.
Rutledge is the Rodney Dangerfield of Scotland Yard: no respect from his higher-ups, no respect from the public.
Especially early in the series, they end abruptly.
To orient the stories in time and place:
1857 Melinda Crawford survived Indian Mutiny (she's 72 in 1919; she lives on the Kent/East Sussex border https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ken... )
1912 Rutledge was a (New) Scotland Yard inspector
1914.08 WWI began
1916 Captain Ian Rutledge put Corporal Hamish McLeod to death for refusing an order to lead more men to their deaths, on the Somme.
1918.11.11 WWI ended
1919.02 Shell-shocked WWI survivor Rutledge's fiancée, Jean, ended their engagement.
1919.06.01 Rutledge returned to work at (New) Scotland Yard after recuperating from WWI. New Scotland Yard: https://www.google.com/maps/place/51%...
Simon Prebble is the best audio narrator: books 10-16, 18-22.
Tales -- Short Stories 0.5 and 12.5, Kindle ✅ ★★★
2013 0.5 Cold Comfort -- Kindle, in Tales, Short Story ✅ ★★★
2015 0.6 A Guid Soldier -- Kindle, Short Story ✅ ★★★
1994 1 A Test of Wills -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1998 2 Wings of Fire -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★★
Suspicious deaths in the house of fictional poet O.A. Manning. Cornwall. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cor...
1999 3 Search the Dark -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.08 Dorset. Ends rather badly.
2000 4 Legacy of the Dead -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.09 Scotland. Features Fiona MacDonald, fiancée of the late Corporal Hamish McLeod.
2001 5 Watchers of Time -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.10 Norfolk https://www.google.com/maps/place/Nor...
2002 6 A Fearsome Doubt -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
1919.11 Kent. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ken... farther from London than Maidstone https://www.google.com/maps/place/Mai... (33%)
Rutledge remembers a little of what happened 1918.11.11-1919.02.
2005 7 A Cold Treachery -- Audible ✅ ★★★★
2006 8 A Long Shadow -- Audible ✅ ★★★★
2007 9 A False Mirror -- Kindle, Audible ✅ ★★★
2007 10 A Pale Horse -- Kindle, Audible, first book narrated by Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★
2008 11 A Matter of Justice -- Audible: Simon Prebble, library large print, ✅ ★★★★
Starts in the Boer War (11 October 1899 – 31 May 1902). Good story.
2009 12 The Red Door -- Libby ebook, Audible: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★
2010 12.5 The Kidnapping -- short story, Kindle ✅ ★★★
2011 13 A Lonely Death -- Audible: Simon Prebble, large print ✅ ★★★★
2011 14 The Confession -- Audible: Simon Prebble, Kindle ✅ ★★★
2013 15 Proof of Guilt -- Libby audio: Simon Prebble; Libby ebook ✅ ★★★★
2014 16 Hunting Shadows -- Audible: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★; Kindle
2015 17 A Fine Summer’s Day -- Libby audio ✅ ★★★★; large print
1914.06.28 - 1914.12.26. This one has Inspector Rutledge's backstory as a Scotland Yard inspector in the months before he goes to war. The fine summer's day is the day the Austrian archduke is murdered in Serbia.
2016 18 No Shred of Evidence -- Libby audio: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★★; Libby ebook
2017 19 Racing the Devil -- Audible: Simon Prebble ✅ ★★★★
2017 19.5 The Piper -- Kindle ✅ ★★★
2018 20 The Gate Keeper -- Audible: Simon Prebble; Kindle ✅ ★★★★
2019 21 The Black Ascot -- Audible: Simon Prebble; Kindle ✅ ★★★★
2020 22 A Divided Loyalty -- Audible: Simon Prebble; Kindle ✅ ★★★★
2021 23 A Fatal Lie -- Audible; Kindle ✅ ★★★★★
Has an overage of unpleasant characters. Early 1920s, Wales and Shropshire.
2021.08.28 Caroline Todd died (book 24 already sent to the publisher)
2022 24 A Game of Fear
Trivia:
Book 5: Watchers of Time:
https://www.goodreads.com/trivia/work...
September 20, 2007
A FEARSOME DOUBT – VG
Todd, Charles – 6th of Series
Rutledge is taken aback when a persistent Nell Shaw brings him new evidence that could clear her late husband's name. Had Rutledge and his fellow policemen inadvertently sent an innocent man to his death six years earlier? Reconsidering the pre-World War I case serves to distract the inspector from his current assignment: determining who is killing maimed ex-soldiers in the peaceful countryside in Kent. Rutledge is sidetracked as well by his friendship with Elizabeth Mayhew, the widow of an old school chum. Elizabeth's feelings for a mysterious stranger further complicate Rutledge's investigation.
Rutledge investigates the murders of disabled war veterans, and is asked, by the widow, to prove the innocence of a man who was hanged, while still dealing with own demons from WWI. I love this series. It is well written with excellent characters.
Todd, Charles – 6th of Series
Rutledge is taken aback when a persistent Nell Shaw brings him new evidence that could clear her late husband's name. Had Rutledge and his fellow policemen inadvertently sent an innocent man to his death six years earlier? Reconsidering the pre-World War I case serves to distract the inspector from his current assignment: determining who is killing maimed ex-soldiers in the peaceful countryside in Kent. Rutledge is sidetracked as well by his friendship with Elizabeth Mayhew, the widow of an old school chum. Elizabeth's feelings for a mysterious stranger further complicate Rutledge's investigation.
Rutledge investigates the murders of disabled war veterans, and is asked, by the widow, to prove the innocence of a man who was hanged, while still dealing with own demons from WWI. I love this series. It is well written with excellent characters.
January 28, 2019
Penned by a son-mother team, Charles Todd, I was told, wrote cozy mysteries. Well, Inspector Rutledge of Scotland Yard does sip a lot of tea in London and rural England. But this literate, somewhat melancholy crime fiction is grittier than I expected it to be. The ghost of Hamish, Rutledge's dead soldier-friend from the World War One trenches, breaks into Rutledge's thoughts, dispensing advice and philosophical asides. Sometimes this literary device works, sometimes it's a little annoying. The prose style is enjoyable, though. I'm not sure I'll hurry on to the other titles, but at some point probably I'll read another one.
September 3, 2011
Okay, if the plots don't get better, I'm giving up on these. Good setting and characters do not make up for plots which don't tie together and get resolved out of nowhere in about the last ten pages of the book.
February 4, 2016
Number 6 in the Inspector Rutledge mystery series, and it's just as enjoyable as the previous five. Well written, atmospheric (post-WWI period), and hard to solve before the pieces all fall together in the end.
April 8, 2019
It is early November 1919, almost a year since the guns were silenced on the battlefields of World War I. Everyone is looking forward to the upcoming Armistice Day festivities but grim reminders of the war are everywhere. Inspector Ian Rutledge still has terrible memories of his time at the front, continuing to experience flashbacks and reliving terrors that were best left forgotten. Like many others, he came home shattered in body and spirit and still struggles to find a pleasant façade to face his friends and colleagues. His most difficult memory, being forced to execute Corporal Hamish MacLeod on the bloody battlefield of the Somme, continues to haunt him. He is reminded of that terrible time by the ghost of that young man who remains a voice in his head and his constant companion. The execution brought Hamish the release he wanted but his death has almost destroyed Rutledge who still struggles to pick up his life and reconnect with old friends. His sister Frances has supported and encouraged him, but it is proving to be a long and difficult journey.
Things become more difficult when Ben Shaw’s widow Nell enters his office. Before the war, Rutledge had helped send Ben Shaw to the gallows for the death of three elderly women, murdered in their beds and robbed. Nell Shaw says she has evidence her husband was innocent and shows him a locket without its chain, a piece of jewellery she found hidden at the back of her neighbor’s chest of drawers. It was an item reported missing by one of the relatives of the dead women, but was never found. If it had surfaced at the time of the trial, there might have been a different outcome. Nell Shaw demands Rutledge reopen the case and clear her husband’s name, threatening to go over his head and up the chain of command if he does not give her the satisfaction she feels she deserves.
Rutledge does not know if what she is saying is true or if she is simply looking for absolution for her husband’s name. He doesn’t want to believe her. The only thing that brought him back to sanity after his experience in France was the reputation he had at Scotland Yard before 1914. He was recognized as an excellent detective with a solid record of achievement, something he hung on to as the bedrock of his sanity. Although he questions Nell Shaw’s motives and wonders if her story is true, he knows he is honor bound to get to the bottom of her allegations. But there is a more troubling aspect to the problem. The Shaw investigation had brought a promotion for then Chief Inspector Bowles who used the murders to his political and professional advantage. He cleverly spoke in public, fostering the notion he had come up with the solution to the crimes. Rutledge must be careful. Bowles was a vindictive enemy when aroused and may crucify him for trying to find out the truth. Bowles valued his position and his title more than he did his subordinates, no matter how competent they were.
When Bowles hears rumours of questions in the case, he reverts to his usual way of handling Rutledge. He sends him out of London to Kent to look into the murder of three military men. His unspoken message is clear: do not meddle in things best left alone. The trip gives Rutledge an opportunity to visit Elizabeth Mayhew, the wife of his best friend Richard who was killed in the war. She confides in Rutledge that she is in the midst of a new relationship and is thinking of selling her home and going to Canada.
Rutledge begins his investigation of the veteran murders and discovers they were all amputees who died on three different nights on three different lonely, isolated country roads after drinking wine laced with laudanum. There are few if any leads in the case. He struggles to maintain his focus as Nell Shaw follows him to Kent and continues to hound and torment him. She wants to know the progress he has made in proving her husband unjustly convicted and is proving to be intransigent and unyielding in her efforts to reopen the case. Shaw shakes Rutledge to his core, driving him to listen to her demands and relive the trial in his own mind. She raises questions in his thinking about his abilities and he wonders if he is as competent as he believes himself to be. He even wonders if he has botched other cases in the past.
Like Todd’s other novels, this one includes a full cast of fully developed characters. The best is that of Melinda Crawford, a long time family friend who is smart, observant and misses nothing.
Once again Todd provides the grim, historically accurate background of the war as it was experienced on the battlefield and on the home front. Readers experience it through Rutledge’s dreams as he relives the sound of gunfire in the dark, the flashes of light, the arcing descent of flares and the shots of artillery as his men hunch down behind the trench walls waiting for a lull to go over the top. And after the war there are the men in the streets with amputated limbs, facial burns and the hacking coughs of the men who inhaled the gas that damaged their lungs and now linger for whatever is left of their lives. It was all a dreadful reminder of what they had endured.
During this investigation, Rutledge learns an unexpected lesson about the cost of exploring the past and how it may hurt the wrong people, including his sister Frances. The story also fills in some of Rutledge’s military experience with the sudden return of a missing part of his memory and the truth about the end of his own war, how he had walked behind the German lines badly confused and shell shocked, hoping to be shot.
This is another solid addition to what is turning out to be a fascinating series.
Things become more difficult when Ben Shaw’s widow Nell enters his office. Before the war, Rutledge had helped send Ben Shaw to the gallows for the death of three elderly women, murdered in their beds and robbed. Nell Shaw says she has evidence her husband was innocent and shows him a locket without its chain, a piece of jewellery she found hidden at the back of her neighbor’s chest of drawers. It was an item reported missing by one of the relatives of the dead women, but was never found. If it had surfaced at the time of the trial, there might have been a different outcome. Nell Shaw demands Rutledge reopen the case and clear her husband’s name, threatening to go over his head and up the chain of command if he does not give her the satisfaction she feels she deserves.
Rutledge does not know if what she is saying is true or if she is simply looking for absolution for her husband’s name. He doesn’t want to believe her. The only thing that brought him back to sanity after his experience in France was the reputation he had at Scotland Yard before 1914. He was recognized as an excellent detective with a solid record of achievement, something he hung on to as the bedrock of his sanity. Although he questions Nell Shaw’s motives and wonders if her story is true, he knows he is honor bound to get to the bottom of her allegations. But there is a more troubling aspect to the problem. The Shaw investigation had brought a promotion for then Chief Inspector Bowles who used the murders to his political and professional advantage. He cleverly spoke in public, fostering the notion he had come up with the solution to the crimes. Rutledge must be careful. Bowles was a vindictive enemy when aroused and may crucify him for trying to find out the truth. Bowles valued his position and his title more than he did his subordinates, no matter how competent they were.
When Bowles hears rumours of questions in the case, he reverts to his usual way of handling Rutledge. He sends him out of London to Kent to look into the murder of three military men. His unspoken message is clear: do not meddle in things best left alone. The trip gives Rutledge an opportunity to visit Elizabeth Mayhew, the wife of his best friend Richard who was killed in the war. She confides in Rutledge that she is in the midst of a new relationship and is thinking of selling her home and going to Canada.
Rutledge begins his investigation of the veteran murders and discovers they were all amputees who died on three different nights on three different lonely, isolated country roads after drinking wine laced with laudanum. There are few if any leads in the case. He struggles to maintain his focus as Nell Shaw follows him to Kent and continues to hound and torment him. She wants to know the progress he has made in proving her husband unjustly convicted and is proving to be intransigent and unyielding in her efforts to reopen the case. Shaw shakes Rutledge to his core, driving him to listen to her demands and relive the trial in his own mind. She raises questions in his thinking about his abilities and he wonders if he is as competent as he believes himself to be. He even wonders if he has botched other cases in the past.
Like Todd’s other novels, this one includes a full cast of fully developed characters. The best is that of Melinda Crawford, a long time family friend who is smart, observant and misses nothing.
Once again Todd provides the grim, historically accurate background of the war as it was experienced on the battlefield and on the home front. Readers experience it through Rutledge’s dreams as he relives the sound of gunfire in the dark, the flashes of light, the arcing descent of flares and the shots of artillery as his men hunch down behind the trench walls waiting for a lull to go over the top. And after the war there are the men in the streets with amputated limbs, facial burns and the hacking coughs of the men who inhaled the gas that damaged their lungs and now linger for whatever is left of their lives. It was all a dreadful reminder of what they had endured.
During this investigation, Rutledge learns an unexpected lesson about the cost of exploring the past and how it may hurt the wrong people, including his sister Frances. The story also fills in some of Rutledge’s military experience with the sudden return of a missing part of his memory and the truth about the end of his own war, how he had walked behind the German lines badly confused and shell shocked, hoping to be shot.
This is another solid addition to what is turning out to be a fascinating series.
April 12, 2018
This is the gap in my reading history of the Charles Todd Ian Rutledge series. It's fairly early in the series. The year is 1919. The one year armistice is coming up. Rutledge, like so many veterans, is feeling anxious. He decides to take some leave and visit friends who live in a quiet Kent County town. Before he leaves, he is stopped by the widow of a man who he investigated for a series of murders. The man was convicted and hung, but his widow claims that she has new evidence. He promises to help her, but her plea causes him to feel guilty. He's worried that he was wrong about the case which he took over from another detective. While he is on leave, he attends a Guy Fawkes Day celebration and sees a face of a soldier who he thought was dead. We learn later it's the face of a German officer. When he comes back from his leave, he is sent back almost immediately to help solve a series of murders of veterans of the Great War. The men came back not only wounded in body but also in spirit. Rutledge is still suffering from his time as a officer. We learn a lot about his state of mind a year after the war has ended as well as how things actually ended for him, almost a story in itself. It's really outstanding.
January 6, 2012
I have become more and more enamoured of Charles Todd's Ian Rutledge. His alter ego formed by guilt and shell shock is his soundboard for mulling over the mysteries he's sent to solve by Scotland Yard. I'm glad that the author only explains, for the most part, that Hamish berates him and tries to wear him down with his reminders that Rutledge felt forced to kill him during WWI. I continue to say that I think his methods are sometimes brutal and more of an attempt to assure himself he still has what it takes to be a detective than a search for justice and truth. But he has mellowed over the series and has tempered his approach to question the suspects.
After 3 maimed WWI vets are murdered Rutledge is sent to investigate. The characters include his childhood friend's widow, an old friend and a face from the past. I think these books are very atmospheric. Rutledge's flash backs ae particularly unnerving. I have more insight after eading these into WWI, shell shock, and the devastation of that war on the soldiers that were there.
After 3 maimed WWI vets are murdered Rutledge is sent to investigate. The characters include his childhood friend's widow, an old friend and a face from the past. I think these books are very atmospheric. Rutledge's flash backs ae particularly unnerving. I have more insight after eading these into WWI, shell shock, and the devastation of that war on the soldiers that were there.
July 21, 2013
If I spend the hours to read a mystery I expect a conclusion that is plausible, this one isn't. there is no way anyone would expect this ending and such an unbelievable ending. I had come to a conclusion on the side story of Mrs. Shaw which was as the author intended, but the primary plot, while well developed and created some very well developed characters, ended very poorly. it's as though the author realized at the end there was no possible explanation and just picked a character out of the blue and revealed this as the murderer.
July 23, 2018
I am hooked on this series by Charles Todd. I first read the "Bess Crawford" series by this author and enjoyed the very relatable characters, the WWI setting and the intriguing mysteries to be solved by our main character. I have found the Ian Rutledge series a bit darker and the main character not as quickly relatable. He is growing on me though and I do enjoy the mysteries that he is faced with solving.
August 18, 2012
Not my favorite Ian Rutledge mystery by a long shot. Nell Shaw's screaming and all those exclamation points were extremely grating. The resolution to the mystery wasn't very satisfactory--I had an ending in my head that felt much more compelling!
April 27, 2013
This is my favorite in the series so far. I loved all the different story lines and how they were woven together. I like how we are seeing more of Ian in his personal relationships and learning more about his past, and I love all the interesting characters.
March 28, 2018
Still entertaining
September 19, 2023
In most of the mysteries I read, including historical fiction like A Fearsome Doubt, the investigator is challenged to overturn someone else’s error. This is often the police, as in the case of Nero Wolfe’s, Sherlock Holmes’, and Sam Spade’s frustrations with the law, but can also be with a rival investigator (either concurrent with the protagonist’s investigation or in the past as in Charles Todd’s early Inspector Rutledge mystery, Wings of Fire (not so much an erroneous investigation as a non-investigation). In A Fearsome Doubt, as though Rutledge’s inner turmoil wasn’t enough, apparent new evidence forces him to reconsider his own investigation from before WWI. Naturally, this makes for a fascinating (and frustrating to Rutledge) conundrum which impinges upon his “current” investigation which proceeds simultaneously with his reevaluation of the past. And, of course, should Rutledge prove himself wrong, he undermines the very case on which his superior, Superintendent Bowles, was promoted. The fact that he could make a bad relationship worse by uncovering a problem in the past case exacerbates Rutledge’s usual inner turmoil.
Although the interesting problem of re-investigating his own case could well be solid enough to wrap an entire plot around, the mother-son team known as Charles Todd doesn’t settle for that. There is a major case in which Rutledge seems to be making no progress whatsoever. Yet, it is filled with red herrings and a personal complication or two. This case, from which the past case provides unwelcome distraction, takes place in a small village in Kent. Dismembered WWI veterans from this village and those nearby are being murdered by what appears to be a dark angel of euthanasia but may simply be a war criminal trying to cover up his crimes. Yet, as in all of the Charles Todd mysteries that I’ve read involving Ian Rutledge, the perpetrator always seems to be someone you’d never suspect (unless, of course, you’re familiar with the formula). As in all of these novels which I’ve read so far, there is always someone very likeable on whom the targeting reticle of suspicion resides for a time and always someone extremely disgusting or unpleasant that you’d like to be punished (but proves, of course, to be the ideal “red herring”). This time, I really wanted it to be the latter so much that I built a tentative (but skeptical) case in my mind and hoped that the authors would be digressing from the formula.
Anyone who has read any of these mysteries would know that Rutledge has a rather unique “Dr. Watson.” Hamish, the Scottish insubordinate who Rutledge was forced to execute during The Great War, lives in Rutledge’s mind. The inspector visualizes Hamis sitting in the back seat of his car like a gray ghost and constantly dialogues with this phantom from his past both mentally and verbally (at least, when he is alone). Most of the time, Hamish accuses and undermines, but there are times when Hamish expresses Rutledge’s inner impatience and pushes the inspector to investigate things he might otherwise ignore. It certainly rings true with the way my subconscious sometimes causes me to shift focus and find answers I would otherwise miss, though my subconscious doesn’t speak with a Scottish accent or cause me to answer out loud.
In many ways, these mysteries are like episodes of Downton Abbey with a psychological twist and a harder edge. Indeed, A Fearsome Doubt has a character, a contemporary of the famous Indian mutiny of the 19th century, who rather reminds me of one of the strong, elderly women in the former television series. A Fearsome Doubt is forcing me to invest more and more of my time in this fascinating series. This may well be my best experience of the series and it makes me want to keep reading them in order as I find them. And while I still look forward to seeing the expected television series, these books are better than television.
Although the interesting problem of re-investigating his own case could well be solid enough to wrap an entire plot around, the mother-son team known as Charles Todd doesn’t settle for that. There is a major case in which Rutledge seems to be making no progress whatsoever. Yet, it is filled with red herrings and a personal complication or two. This case, from which the past case provides unwelcome distraction, takes place in a small village in Kent. Dismembered WWI veterans from this village and those nearby are being murdered by what appears to be a dark angel of euthanasia but may simply be a war criminal trying to cover up his crimes. Yet, as in all of the Charles Todd mysteries that I’ve read involving Ian Rutledge, the perpetrator always seems to be someone you’d never suspect (unless, of course, you’re familiar with the formula). As in all of these novels which I’ve read so far, there is always someone very likeable on whom the targeting reticle of suspicion resides for a time and always someone extremely disgusting or unpleasant that you’d like to be punished (but proves, of course, to be the ideal “red herring”). This time, I really wanted it to be the latter so much that I built a tentative (but skeptical) case in my mind and hoped that the authors would be digressing from the formula.
Anyone who has read any of these mysteries would know that Rutledge has a rather unique “Dr. Watson.” Hamish, the Scottish insubordinate who Rutledge was forced to execute during The Great War, lives in Rutledge’s mind. The inspector visualizes Hamis sitting in the back seat of his car like a gray ghost and constantly dialogues with this phantom from his past both mentally and verbally (at least, when he is alone). Most of the time, Hamish accuses and undermines, but there are times when Hamish expresses Rutledge’s inner impatience and pushes the inspector to investigate things he might otherwise ignore. It certainly rings true with the way my subconscious sometimes causes me to shift focus and find answers I would otherwise miss, though my subconscious doesn’t speak with a Scottish accent or cause me to answer out loud.
In many ways, these mysteries are like episodes of Downton Abbey with a psychological twist and a harder edge. Indeed, A Fearsome Doubt has a character, a contemporary of the famous Indian mutiny of the 19th century, who rather reminds me of one of the strong, elderly women in the former television series. A Fearsome Doubt is forcing me to invest more and more of my time in this fascinating series. This may well be my best experience of the series and it makes me want to keep reading them in order as I find them. And while I still look forward to seeing the expected television series, these books are better than television.
December 13, 2020
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"As if being bedeviled by Hamish, the ghost of the Scotsman he found it necessary to execute during the Great War, weren’t guilt-inducing enough, the Yard’s Inspector Ian Rutledge now has to deal with the widow of Ben Shaw, the man he sent to the gallows seven years ago, in 1912. Shaw never killed those old ladies, she says, and she has proof: a brooch from one of them she found tucked in a neighbor’s drawer. Nudged on by his conscience, Rutledge attempts to reopen the case, but his superior, Supt. Bowles, who rose to power on the strength of the conviction, first packs him off to Kent to solve a rash of new murders in Marling: three ex-soldiers, who returned from the war disabled and died on desolate country paths after ingesting laudanum-laced wine. While he’s in Marling, Rutledge calls on Elizabeth, the widow of another war casualty, his best friend, who is chary about admitting to a new romance, and dines with Raleigh Masters, a raging, moody amputee, and his despairing wife. Then who should reappear but the widow Shaw, in full whine, and worse yet, a German officer Rutledge thought he had left for dead on the battlefield. Beset on all sides—and even from the backseat of his car, where Hamish has taken up residence—Rutledge must exorcise not only a village’s demons but his own as well."
My assessment is: either I need to read it over or the figure out what I missed. The ending was rather confusing I could not stand widow Shaw the wife of one of the killers. whine whine and more whine - here daughter was a little better. Also I found Elizabeth, the widow of another war casualty, his best friend, who is chary about admitting to a new romance kind of stupid.
"As if being bedeviled by Hamish, the ghost of the Scotsman he found it necessary to execute during the Great War, weren’t guilt-inducing enough, the Yard’s Inspector Ian Rutledge now has to deal with the widow of Ben Shaw, the man he sent to the gallows seven years ago, in 1912. Shaw never killed those old ladies, she says, and she has proof: a brooch from one of them she found tucked in a neighbor’s drawer. Nudged on by his conscience, Rutledge attempts to reopen the case, but his superior, Supt. Bowles, who rose to power on the strength of the conviction, first packs him off to Kent to solve a rash of new murders in Marling: three ex-soldiers, who returned from the war disabled and died on desolate country paths after ingesting laudanum-laced wine. While he’s in Marling, Rutledge calls on Elizabeth, the widow of another war casualty, his best friend, who is chary about admitting to a new romance, and dines with Raleigh Masters, a raging, moody amputee, and his despairing wife. Then who should reappear but the widow Shaw, in full whine, and worse yet, a German officer Rutledge thought he had left for dead on the battlefield. Beset on all sides—and even from the backseat of his car, where Hamish has taken up residence—Rutledge must exorcise not only a village’s demons but his own as well."
My assessment is: either I need to read it over or the figure out what I missed. The ending was rather confusing I could not stand widow Shaw the wife of one of the killers. whine whine and more whine - here daughter was a little better. Also I found Elizabeth, the widow of another war casualty, his best friend, who is chary about admitting to a new romance kind of stupid.
November 23, 2024
I am listening to this series and really enjoying it. The aftermath of WWI are so terrible, with returning soldiers paid a pittance from the bankrupt government. Some has been killing injured soldiers in Marlin and Ian's superior, who dislikes him for some reason, sends him there to find the murderer hoping he will fail. He doesn't and I was quite surprised.
Meanwhile there is a subplot of a hanging of a murderer that Rutledge was part of solving. He comes to doubt himself when the wife of the murderer claims she has proof her husband was innocent.
Driving back and forth from London to Kent, Rutledge is quite exhausted, physically as well as mentally, with Hamish ever in his head.
Meanwhile there is a subplot of a hanging of a murderer that Rutledge was part of solving. He comes to doubt himself when the wife of the murderer claims she has proof her husband was innocent.
Driving back and forth from London to Kent, Rutledge is quite exhausted, physically as well as mentally, with Hamish ever in his head.
December 17, 2020
Great series dealing with post World War One England, this #6 in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series featuring a veteran of WW1, deals with a case in which the guilty man was hung in 1912 London, and now in 1919, it appears he may have been innocent. Rutledge already feels great guilt especially for the death of his comrade, Hamish, who he was forced to execute, and now Hamish has taken up residence in Ian's head. While investigating the earlier case Ian also investigates several murders of disabled veterans.
August 31, 2022
In this one poor Inspector Ian Rutledge is trying to solve not one, but two mysteries. The first is the result of the wife of a man he helped send to the gallows before the war coming to him with what she says is proof that her husband did not kill the old people he was hired to do handy man type of work for. Rutledge is n0t sure what to do, but when she threatens to go up the chain of authority he agrees to at least look into the new evidence. At the same time, he has been assigned to investigate deaths in Kent of veterans missing limbs from the war. As usual there is a lot of angst involved with his wartime memories being aroused by seeing the effects of the war on other veterans.
September 25, 2020
"Eppure le vittime costrette al silenzio non erano rimaste inascoltate in quell'aula di tribunale..."
Ancora una volta Todd racconta in modo accorato e profondo il tormento dei reduci di guerra. E costruisce un giallo avvincente, ben congegnato, con indizi e sorprese.
L'ispettore Rutledge si rivela sempre piu` tormentato e disturbato. Si liberera` mai di Hamish?
Ancora una volta Todd racconta in modo accorato e profondo il tormento dei reduci di guerra. E costruisce un giallo avvincente, ben congegnato, con indizi e sorprese.
L'ispettore Rutledge si rivela sempre piu` tormentato e disturbato. Si liberera` mai di Hamish?
March 18, 2018
Didn't like this one as much as the others in the series, because it was so filled with Rutledge's self doubt. While it does give some insight into his character, it also caused quite a few things that just went nowhere. <><
January 2, 2023
Following reading To End All Wars I was more tuned in to the next installment of Inspector Rutledge set in the aftermath of post WW1. It took the whole book to tie things up then it came together very quickly at the end.
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