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Rose McQuinn is a lady investigator in Scotland in 1897. This is the fourth in the series of books charting her life and career. Alanna Knight has also written 12 books featuring Rose's father, Inspector Faro of the Edinburgh Police. There are connections between the two series but they are fairly tenuous. Rose has been married but her husband disappeared while himself investigating a crime for Pinkertons in the USA. Rose returned from Arizona as a widow and has formed another relationship which is about to culminate in marriage when it is suggested that her husband may have survived. She is spending time prior to her second marriage in a visit to her future husband's parents who live just over the Border in a town with some association with her first husband Danny McQuinn. A mysterious deerhound has a part in the tale and seems to have been involved in Rose's previous adventures -- he has certain supernatural aspects. Rose becomes involved in with Eildon village while her fiance, Jack Macmerry, is forced to remain in Edinburgh testifying at a trial -- he is an Inspector in the Edinburgh police like her father. There is considerable scope during the portrayal of events to show the position of women in a Victorian country village -- for example, Rose has to shelter from rain in a pub where she must sit in a dismal tearoom and be served only tea. Tensions in her relationship with Jack are exacerbated by his infrequent visits, the attitude of his mother concerning her only son and Rose's secret fears that Danny is still alive. Other tragic happenings in the village lead Rose into searching for a sensible explanation for the sequence of events. She is the only person who finds these developments suspicious -- everyone else regards them as a series of accidents. Rose's determined pursuit of truth is an attractive part of her personality. The tangle of incidents, serious and trivial, is cleverly handled and the final denouement provides a satisfying interpretation.
Reviewed by Jennifer Palmer, January 2005
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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