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While some of the activities in this latest in the Gabriel Ash series by Jo Bannister follow on from earlier events (most notably the kidnapping of Ash's wife and children), most of the story in PERFECT SINS focuses on the discovery by a local archaeologist in the English countryside. Ash's friend, Constable Hazel Best, has brought Ash and his dog, Patience, to the country house of the Byrfield family, where her father serves as a groundskeeper.
"Pete" Byrfield, the most recent earl, has commissioned a friend, a local archaeologist, to survey the estate. When a particularly promising mound is chosen to be excavated, it turns out that what lies buried there is not some ancient artefact but the bones of a child killed just a few decades ago. How did the child end up there, and what connection (if any) does it have to the family that owns the estate or to other locals?
There are layers of secrets surrounding the grave, and things even begin to get dangerous when Ash and Best begin to explore the possible connection to an Irish traveler (Gypsy) who was once married to a local artist now living in one of the cottages on the estate. It turns out, however, that this red herring relates to the earlier Ash search for his own missing family, and the story ends with a promising lead in that regard...and what will surely be the beginning to the next book in the series.
For those unfamiliar with the Gabriel Ash character or earlier books in the series, PERFECT SINS can still be enjoyed as a stand-alone mystery. However, the experience is much richer for those who have followed this former British intelligence agent and his most recent adventures tracking Somali pirates, with which the novel begins and ends.
§ Christine Zibas is a freelance writer and former director of publications for a Chicago nonprofit.
Reviewed by Christine Zibas, November 2014
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