Those of you who love a good historical murder mystery might enjoy two books I recently read at top speed, not wanting to put them down. A Case of Mice and Murder by Sally Smith is set in one of the Inns of Court in London, the Temple, and features barrister Sir Gabriel Ward, KC. He’s a reluctant sleuth, but when he finds the body of the Lord Chief Justice of England on his doorstep, he is forced to investigate. He is a reclusive man, happiest when reading vast law tomes in his chambers, and he rarely leaves the Temple, but Constable Wright is there to guide him. He is also busy trying to sort out a complex legal case connected with a children’s book called ‘Millie the Temple Church Mouse’, with intriguing results. The book is set in 1901 London and evokes the atmosphere extremely well. I have visited the Temple Church with its amazing graves of the Knights Templar, but I knew little of the workings of the whole legal process within its walls. The author is a lawyer and uses her historical knowledge well. The main character is most engaging, and you rapidly grow fond of his eccentricities. I didn’t want it to end!
The second book, A Case of Life and Limb, was equally good, and I have pre-ordered the third in the series, A Case of Fear and Favour, due out next January. I don’t want to have to wait that long to get the next instalment, and hope that Sally Smith is planning many volumes in this truly delightful new crime series.
Have you encountered Sally Smith’s books? What do you think? Tell me in a comment.
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