A Death in Chelsea

The Mayfair 100 squad has been idle for nearly a month and they are antsy for another case after the success of their last one. In A Death in Chelsea by Lynn Brittney, when Chief Inspector Beech is summoned to the Superintendent's office he anticipates a new case. (A Death in Chelsea will be published by Crooked Lane Books on March 10.)

The Duchess of Penhere's daughter, Lady Adeline Treborne, was found hanged in her apartment. The duchess wants the police to prove Lady Adeline did not kill herself and was murdered instead.

When Inspector Beech learns about Lady Adeline's scurrilous gossip column activities, there appear to be many suspects. Beech assembles his team and takes them to Lady Adeline's apartment. Although the duchess says she doesn't want the police surgeons to do an autopsy on her daughter, Beech asks Dr. Allardyce to perform one to discover whether Adeline killed herself or was murdered.

After the autopsy it is apparent Adeline was dead already when she was strung up. This

complicates the investigation but Beech has two excellent policeman in DS Arthur Tollman and Constable Billy Rigby, and the remainder of his squad includes pharmacist Mabel Summersby, Dr. Caroline Allardyce, Victoria Ellingham and her mother Lady Maud. They all have their own unique skills and make the Mayfair 100 squad most effective.

When Inspector Beech speaks to Adeline's maid, he discovers her mistress almost never had visitors, rarely went to social events and only went outside to shop, so how did she gather her malicious gossip? That's what the team intends to discover. 

The characters in this series make it most interesting. They are three society ladies working with two police officers, and in this book a stray relative or two set against World War I. Very insightful commentary about the war and highly entertaining interaction among all characters. A fine plot with many twists, turns and unpredictable connections.