Read The Black Ascot Audible Audio Edition Charles Todd Simon Prebble HarperAudio Books

Product details Audible Audiobook Listening Length 10 hours and 50 minutes Program Type Audiobook Version Unabridged Publisher HarperAudio Audible.com Release Date February 5, 2019 Whispersync for Voice Ready Language English, English ASIN B07J1TM3QR

The Black Ascot Audible Audio Edition Charles Todd Simon Prebble HarperAudio Books Reviews

• I'd rather gone off the Charles Todd's novels. They have the "Bess Crawford" series and the "Inspector Rutledge" series, and both seemed to lose their ooopth a few books back. It was as if the authors had lost interest in their characters and the books were basically written by rote and published on a yearly basis. However, I decided to read this year's new book, "The Black Ascot Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries Book 21", and I was quite pleased.
  
  The book takes place in a dual time period; 1910 and 1921. King Edward died in 1910. . He had ruled since the death of his mother, Queen Victoria, in 1901. The Ascot Races that year were called "The Black Ascot" as the mourning for the King;s death dictated the wearing of black to the races. Another death, in an automobile accident also occurred that year. Blanche Fletcher-Munro was killed, her husband was badly injured, Was the death an accident or a murder, with the Fletcher-Munro's car having been tampered with? And if it was murder, who was the intended victim? A second man, Alan Barrington, was sought for questioning, but he went on the lam. (Think a bit of the Lord Lucan case in the 1970's). "Where is Alan Barrington?" is the hue and cry throughout England.
  
  Eleven years - as well as The Great War - have passed and the Alan Barrington case was moved to the Scotland Yard "cold case" file. In 1921, Ian Rutledge, in his return from war service, has rejoined the Yard and is assigned to review the case. He had met a man who claims to have seen Alan Barrington, both in England...and of late.
  
  The Todds - mother and son - seem to have regained their interest in Ian Rutledge (and the ever present Hamish MacLeod). The book is well written and is evocative of the post-war years. He's still haunted by his war years and how that worry has affected his official duties. He still hasn't met a partner and I'm holding out hope that he meets Bess Crawford through her cousin Melinda and they elope together into the combined Charles Todd series world. Now, that would be a great book to read!
• This is the 21st story in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series and I've been right there for each of them. Even though I liked this story (because I'm inclined to like the work of this writing team and I especially like this main character) there were a lot of times when Rutledge "imagined" that some circumstance might have happened and from there on it became an established piece of evidence. When the plot is a little thin for one of these Rutledge novels that kind of thing seems to happen often. This is another story where Rutledge drives f.o.r.e.v.e.r between one town, city or village and another picking up minute clues before he's on the road again to find the next totally obscure fact that miraculously presents itself. That formula is used more often than I like.
  
  Having read the first paragraph of this review you probably wonder why I continue to read the series and then criticize this book. Well, because with twenty-one stories in the series there are going to be plots that are better than others - that's just a fact. I found this one weak as to plotting but strong as to character growth. Rutledge suffers from shell shock from his time in France during the war. At this time shell shock was synonymous with cowardice so Rutledge must keep his condition hidden from everyone. If his condition were to become known he would not be allowed to continue his career with Scotland Yard. His career with Scotland Yard is what is helping him cope with and heal from his shell shock. These novels are always about Rutledge performing his job with his high standards while continuing to heal from his condition. This is a fictional character I've come to care about so if a plot of a specific book is a little thin I will still find enjoyment in watching the interaction of Rutledge and Hamish and wonder how long this secret can remain hidden. I was worried that this story was going to be the time when it all fell apart. I had even begun to think about what work Rutledge and Hamish could do away from the Yard. Whew, this was a close one.
• I have read the Rutledge series with a great deal of enjoyment and some few disappointments. The recent addition of “The Black Ascot’ was one of the best in the series IMO. It had tight pacing, a logical premise once it was pasted back together and Malinda Crawford...I do enjoy her acerbic character and intelligence. A book of HER adventures would be a welcome addition to the Todds’ compilation.
  
  While I admit I had accurate suspicions about the suspect Rutledge discerned, the method getting to that conclusion involved plausible suspects along the way... I was sorry when I finished it in just one day (taking care of someone left time to read)—
  It was a compelling journey...
• I have read all the books in this series and was worried the authors (a mother and son duet) were getting tired of the character, but this book has breathed new life into the series. The main character, Inspector Ian Rutledge is given information about a 10 year old unsolved murder case and the main suspect has been seen in Britain recently. There are a number of twist, turns and false stories to keep you guessing until the end. As always there are false leads and people lying, as well as people trying to stop him from finding the truth. Along the way Ian starts to worry about his mental state, but must push forward to solve the case and keep his sanity. He is a WWI shell stock survivor who carries the memory of a dead soldier (Hamish) in his head like a living person as his coping system. There are a number of details and characters that are from other books in the series, but that won't stop you from enjoying this story if you are new to the series. I found the story very satisfying and am now looking forward to next year's book.