A country-house murder mystery set in 1920s Norfolk, where a poisoned nightcap turns a charity treasure hunt into a deadly game of manners, motives and misdirection. Golden-age crime fiction with manor-house intrigue, fair-play clues and a guest list hiding more than polite conversation.
A charity treasure hunt becomes a murder inquiry at Thorpe Manor.
June, 1923. The Dowager Duchess of Drakeford has gathered eight guests for her annual treasure hunt in aid of her London charity for destitute children. The clues are prepared, the house is full, and the weekend promises rivalry, refinement, and a little harmless competition.
By Saturday morning, Sir Henry Walker-Foulks is dead.
The local doctor calls it natural causes, helped along by brandy and bad habits. HG is not convinced, and when his verdict is overturned, Detective Inspector Whipple finds himself with a murder investigation instead of a peaceful weekend's fishing.
Nearly everyone under the Thorpe Manor roof had a reason to want Sir Henry gone. Rex watches the guests. Whipple follows the evidence. HG reads the silences no one else notices.
At Thorpe Manor, good manners may be the neatest disguise of all.
A Select Murder is Book 5 in the Rex and the Dowager series, perfect for readers who love Agatha Christie, Rhys Bowen, Deanna Raybourn, country-house mysteries, historical cosy crime, and Golden Age whodunits.
