Death of an Innocent

Richard Patton #6

by Roger Ormerod

Richard Patton, an ex-Detective Inspector is enjoying early retirement.He is asked by his wife's old college friend, a successful novelist, to unofficially investigate a suspected burglary at her house overlooking the Norfolk Broads.Although the place is full of treasures, apparently there has been nothing stolen; no sign of fingerprints or footprints, just a broken roof tile and, Raffles-like, three telltale bags of Earl Grey tea.Yet Patton, digging deeper, soon discovers evidence of an apparent murder, a young woman's drowning which has been officially accepted as accidental.At this point, Richard finds his loyalties severely strained, and as his investigation progresses, he unearths a background of family strife that could have been enough to provoke violence.But it is still unclear how the dead young woman could have been the victim.As he starts to dig into the case, Richards tries to work out the motive for the crime, but he soon realises he faces conflicting loyalties.Reluctantly he withdraws, only to learn that another death has occurred.Realizing he might have prevented this second fatality, he returns to a final, angry and dramatic interrogation, which ultimately reveals the truth.‘Death of an Innocent’ is a gripping crime thriller from a master story-teller.Praise for Roger ‘Roger Ormerod is an accomplished writer of traditional murder mysteries who has earned himself not only popular success but also the respect and admiration of his colleagues...This is a strongly characterised, intellectually teasing story with a nail-biting climax, which any crime fiction buff ought to relish.’ James Melville, Hampstead & Highgate Express.Roger Ormerod is the author of over twenty novels. He was born in 1920 and left school at seventeen to join the Civil Service in which he spent most of his working life. He retired in 1970 and later worked as a postman and in the production control department of a heavy industry factory. He lives in Wolverhampton. His other novels include ‘A Shot At Nothing’, ‘Third Time Fatal’, ‘The Key to the Case’ and ‘The Night She Died’.Endeavour Press is the UK’s leading independent publisher of digital books.

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Roger Ormerod was born in Wolverhampton, Staffordshire. He worked as a county court officer, an executive officer in the Department of Social Security, a postman, and a shop loader in an engineering factory.

Reviews

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retired detective Richard Patton is asked by an old friend of his wife's to investigate a burglary in which it appears nothing has been taken. As he begins to look into the case he starts to uncover evidence of a much more serious crime.

The plot is very clever, in fact it sometimes seems a bit too clever for its own good. The pace of the book feels a bit pedestrian at times which, combined with the plot meant my interest waned in places.

Also there are a few too many errors that should have been spotted by a good proofreader.

[Sebastian Barrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

An okay read again following Richard while he investigates a burglary at the house of a friend of Amelia. Problem is, nothing appeared to be stolen. Then pictures of a body appear and a case is born.
Turns into a complex case again which means it is a bit of a wade to get to the truth. Or do we?

[Nancy H · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent British mystery with lots of plots twists and interesting characters.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An old friend of Amelie Patton asks if Richard would investigate a burglary at their home on the Norfolk Broads, but nothing was stolen.
While investigating he discovers a murder of a young women which had been recorded as an accidental death. The Pattons spend time untangling clues to find the truth