The dead aristocrat

Lord Francis Powerscourt, private investigator, seeks the murderer of the 15th earl of Candlesby, but everyone in Lincolnshire has a motive. The earl wasn’t exactly the kind of guy you would want to have tea and crumpets with; just ask his five sons, who seem more concerned with inheriting his wealth than with his brutal death. The novel contains two parallel stories, which eventually intersect when detective Lord Powerscourt meets a doctor who confessed that the earl’s eldest son threatened him into lying on the death certificate. The significance of the scarlet-colored coat is not immediately apparent, so readers must do a little detective work of their own to discover its meaning. While betrayal, jealousy and revenge are well-known themes in the mystery genre, David Dickinson’s 10th Lord Powerscourt mystery proves that a classic—set in 1909—whodunit filled with deceit and suspects will continue to attract and stump readers every time.