Murder by Multiples by Rachel Ford is a cozy mystery set in the culturally evolutionary years just after World War I.
Mr. Alec Thatch, born Alice, and her wife Merry live a quiet, comfortable life just outside Fenwood-on-Sea. They tend to be reclusive but one night over a pint at The Gunner’s Daughter, Alec punches locally despised landowner Kenneth Braun right in the nose, to the delight of all the men in the pub.
The action soon draws Alec and Merry into a murder investigation when a series of gruesome deaths draws the attention of Scotland Yard. Detective Inspector Beresford is under the gun to find the killer, but his investigation causes Merry and Alec some concern as he draws closer to discovering their secret.
Writing
The style has a strong Agatha Christie vibe, with careful, almost stilted language and use of now quaint terminology. You won’t find the word flibbertigibbets in many contemporary works. The language is mixed with a solid Edwardian Era culture hurtling toward a society most people today would more easily recognize. That may not be some people’s cuppa, but I enjoyed it.
To that end, the story moves languidly, especially toward the front, with a leisurely introduction to the many characters required in a cozy mystery. Well done red herrings had me convinced several times that I had figured out whodunit, and a large clue was beautifully ignored by the characters long enough to make me grit my teeth a few times. Because of the era there are few modern forensic heroics. Clues must be painstakingly gathered and logic used to find the killer. It’s a tricky formula well done by the author.
Pros And My Favourite Parts
I love when and where this novel is set. The early 1920s in England is fascinating, historically speaking, because while the country and the world was still reeling from the horrors of World War I, people had no idea as yet how quickly and radically the war would completely alter the world. The continuing effects of the war plays a large part in the lives of all the characters in some way, especially Merry. She gave up her elevated status to live with her love, and tries to give back to a fractured society by hosting a hospital for shell shocked and physically traumatized men in her family’s estate.
Alec and Merry are a sweet couple, and I was intrigued by how the author handles their gender roles and forced secrecy. The couple’s genders on the surface are completely accepted by everyone around them, but the prose continually mixed things up. Internally, the two refer to themselves as wives, and as she/her. Despite Alec’s acceptance as a man, the author narrates characters’ internal dialogue concerning Alec with she/her even while referring to her in the masculine in their dialogue. I found this to be intriguing and twisty fun.
Heads Up
There are gory murders because it’s a murder mystery, but not a lot of detail described. There are child deaths discussed but not described.
I was disappointed to not spend more time with Alec and Merry, and it takes quite a while before we do spend time with them.
It’s not readily apparent when the story is set, unless you notice the style of the dress on the cover and know it’s 1920s. I found it easy to discern from clues about the type of car they own and talking about the war and its aftermath, but it would not be as easy for someone who is not a history geek.
The Conclusion
Mr. Alec Thatch (born Alice) and her wife Merry live in a comfortable cottage near the large estate Merry grew up in. Their life is quiet and simple, the better to keep their secret, until a confrontation in the village pub draws suspicion on Alec. Some say he had as good a reason as any to perpetrate the heinous murder on another estate, and she comes under the scrutiny of a Scotland Yard Detective Inspector.
Though the novel begins in a leisurely manner, its early 20th century language and well-crafted cozy mystery is entertaining and twisty. Alec and Merry are both terrific characters who love each other deeply, and it’s a treat to get to know them. Hopefully there will be more of the women in future books of the promised series.
Excerpt from Murder by Multiples by Rachel Ford
Merry sat by the window, staring pensively outside, and she started at the sound of the door opening.
Alec had a knack for animals. She had a knack for plants. But people? People were another matter. She wasn’t good at subtlety or trying to pry things out of anyone. Much less someone she loved.
So she got right down to it. “I heard about Braun.” When Merry’s face flushed she added, “Don’t be angry with Mrs. Wentworth. She was concerned about you.”
“I’m quite alright,” Merry insisted. “Really.”
Alec crossed the space between them, taking her wife’s hands in hers. “Are you? She said he threatened the soldiers.”
Merry nodded. “He found footprints in his garden. He thinks it was one of the residents, but why would they be in his garden?”
“Hardly a capital offense either way. Listen, Merry, I think you should let me have a talk with him. I don’t like him coming here with threats.”
“No. No, Alec, I don’t trust him. If you could have seen how angry he was. I thought – I thought for a moment he might hit me.” She shook her head. “I don’t trust him. I don’t trust what he’ll do.”
“To a man, you mean?” Alec asked, and Merry nodded. Well, she thought, considering how hard they’d worked to maintain this pretense to keep them safe, that was a new twist. God, if there was a god, had a sense of humor.
“I phoned the hospital,” Merry went on. “I spoke to Graves.”
Alec nodded. William Graves had been the Lancaster family butler, and following the transition of the home to a hospital, stayed on as head of the enterprise.
“But Braun had already been up there, shouting at him too. Poor old Graves – he sounded quite ruffled. And you know how unrufflable he is.”
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Series: Meredith and Alec Thatch Mystery
Murder by Multiples
Bits and Bobs
ASIN number: B0C4M757NX
Publisher: Indie Author
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