Proof of Guilt: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery

Late on a quiet Chelsea street, an unidentified man in gentleman’s clothing is found dead, seemingly struck down by a motorcar. The lack of tracks in the dust suggests he was brought there after dying elsewhere. Could a discarded corpse be a warning to someone living nearby?

A valuable gold pocket watch leads Rutledge to the wine import business of French, French & Traynor, whose head has vanished from Essex. Will the discovery of the missing merchant’s damaged motorcar unmask the killer before another life is taken? In Stratford St. Hilary, family secrets run deep.

Can Rutledge solve the apparent murder of a top wine merchant while dealing with interference from his superior, the new Acting Chief Superintendent?

Readers of Charles Todd’s Bess Crawford books and London-based Ian Rutledge mysteries will be thrilled with Proof of Guilt, clue by clue.

• Police Procedural: From an apparent drowning near Dungeness Light to a violent assault on a village tutor, Rutledge must piece together fragmented clues before an innocent man faces the gallows.
• Psychological Suspense: Haunted by the memory of the Somme and the unrelenting inner voice of Corporal Hamish MacLeod, Rutledge battles his own wartime trauma while pursuing a cunning adversary.
• Post-WWI England: The investigation weaves from the backstreets of London to the deceptive quiet of an Essex hamlet, exposing the bitter rivalries and concealed scars of a post-war society.
• Also by This Author: A Test of Wills, A Game of Fear and The Gate Keeper.