No Shred of Evidence

 by Charles Todd (read by Simon Prebble) c. 2016

Series: Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries, Book 18

 

 

Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins    

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 02-16-16

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

ASIN: B0195E0W5E

Publisher's Summary

On  the north coast of Cornwall, an apparent act of mercy is repaid by an  arrest for murder. Four young women have been accused of the crime. A  shocked father calls in a favor at the Home Office. Scotland Yard is  asked to review the case. #

However, Inspector Ian Rutledge is not  the first inspector to reach the village. Following in the shoes of a  dead man, he is told the case is all but closed. Even as it takes an  unexpected personal turn, Rutledge will require all his skill to deal  with the incensed families of the accused, the grieving parents of the  victim, and local police eager to see these four women sent to the  infamous Bodmin Gaol. Then why hasn't the killing stopped? #

With  no shred of evidence to clear the accused, Rutledge must plunge deep  into the darkest secrets of a wild, beautiful, and dangerous place if he  is to find a killer who may - or may not - hold the key to their fate. #

Where have all the soldiers gone? Gone to graveyards everyone

Having now read not quite half of the series, I have yet to read a story in this series that I did not like, which makes these review particularly hard to write because how many times can you write, "I loved this book," and still make it sound fresh and inviting.  I love the fact that Rutledge is a flawed man; he carries a lot of baggage from the war, as did many men who fought in that war.  I love the way the authors get inside Rutledge's head. I love the way the readers are along for the ride as the detective slowly goes about solving the crime mostly by talking with people -- no cell phones, no fancy crime labs, just his "gray cells" and a lot of patience. I love the series so much that I am not rushing through it, so that it will last.

No Shred of Evidence is particularly well-done. It very cleverly weaves together two different stories that like, tangled skein of yarn, Rutledge must slowly pulled apart.  Narrator Simon Prebble is, as always, a superb narrator. He never missteps and he knows that "dour" does not rhyme with "sour."