Death at the Seaside

When Kate Shackleton arrives in Whitby for a holiday and a visit with an old school friend Alma Turner, she doesn't think she will be a suspect in a murder. In Death at the Seaside by Frances Brody, Kate takes a leisurely stroll through town and notices the jeweler where she and her late husband bought their engagement and wedding rings.

Startled and sentimental by the memories she conjures up, she is drawn to the display in the window and notices a bracelet set in jet beads and pearls - perfect for Felicity. She waits patiently at the jewelry counter, but no one appears to assist her.

Puzzled why the jewelry store would be open with no one actually attending it, she taps on the connecting door to the back room. Much to her surprise, she finds a body with jet beads strewn around him. Unwilling to leave the body in an unattended store, she finally realizes she must call the police.

When she reports the crime to Sgt. Garvin, he doesn't want to let her out of his sights so he follows

her back to the shop. With his accusatory questions, Kate is sure she will be arrested. He releases her with a caution not to leave town.

Kate seeks out her friend and discovers her in deep anxiety. It seems Felicity has disappears and before she left she pawned a watch at J. Phillips High Class Jewellers, the same place Kate found the body. Also missing is Mr. Phillips' boat, the Doram, and young Brendan Webb.

When Sgt. Garvin finds Kate on the hillside in the middle of the night whistling and using her flashlight, her arrests her for signaling to smugglers. She tries to explain she is searching for Alma, but winds up spending the night in jail.

The plot takes many twists and turns involving smuggling, a missing father, injured actor and unrequited love - all rolled into a carefully crafted mystery.