Death in the Highlands (A Cressida Fawcett Mystery)
In this series’ third mystery, set in the mid-1920s, Cressida, best friend Dotty, and Ruby, Cressida’s tartan-clad sleuth-extraordinaire pug, are invited to a grouse shoot by the Stirlings, the new owners of Ayrton Castle, in the highlands of Scotland. On the morning of the shoot, Hamish Glenkirk, the previous laird, is stabbed to death inside the locked turret study, the key still in the inside lock. True to form, Cressida just can’t help investigating, although she does report the death to her friend, Detective Andrews, who just happens to be holidaying nearby. And thank goodness for his kindly forbearance with the hot-headed Cressida. Two things incessantly occupy Cressida’s thoughts: murder and mayhem, and patterns, colour and fabrics. A veritable interior designer amateur sleuth. It doesn’t take long for her to root out multiple suspects, all of whom loathed the dear departed Hamish. Was it the gamekeeper who accused the laird of over-culling the land? The son, robbed of his inheritance? The daughter, robbed of the man she loved? Or someone else entirely? And in keeping with various tropes of the cosy mystery, there’s soon a second body.
This is a delightful, fast-paced, easily-read story, complete with tongue-in-cheek British humour and nods to eccentric aristocratic mores. Most of the nuances of character can be gleaned from this adventure, so no need to backtrack through the series, although they are recommended. Cressida and Dotty are quite a pair, especially with the addition of Dotty’s brother, Alfred, who Cressida is trying very hard not to become too fond of. Perhaps romance will blossom, and the determinedly independent, bloody-minded Cressida will morph into a sleuthing duo. A stand-out series in a much-loved genre.
