First Line: My daily walk takes me to the site of the new model village; it always pleases me to see how fast the work is progressing, despite the shortness of the winter days.
With the mental health of Thorncroft House's owner failing, the management of his vast country estate has been assigned to a group of trustees, including land agent Matthew Rowsley and his wife Harriet. Unfortunately, the smooth running of the estate is interrupted by a series of unforeseen events.
Building on the estate workers' new cottages is stopped by the discovery of Roman ruins, and shortly afterwards the family butler is attacked and left for dead. Then Lord Croft's long-lost cousin and heir, Julius Trescothick, arrives from Australia, ready to claim his inheritance.
But is Trescothick who he claims to be, and what exactly are his intentions? And was the butler randomly attacked, or was he targeted? To preserve Thorncroft House, Matthew and Harriet Rowsley must uncover the truth-- and they have their work cut out for them.
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You can always count on author Judith Cutler for a strong mystery and engaging characters, and her second Matthew Rowsley mystery, Legacy of Death, is no exception. The discovery of DNA nailed the coffin lid down on one of my favorite mystery conventions (is the long-lost heir of a wealthy estate really who he says he is), but with this set in Victorian England, I can enjoy it once more. Trescothick is a piece of work, and it takes time for Matthew and Harriet to find the truth behind his claim to the Croft estate.
As intriguing as the mystery is, for me, the strongest part of the book is its Victorian setting. The finding of Roman ruins and how Rowsley deals with the discovery. How a large estate is run when its owner is ill and the heir has yet to be found. And, most important of all, how the trustees set about improving the lives of the estate workers when they'd been neglected by previous owners. One of the scenes I enjoyed the most is when a few of the more vocal workers tell Rowsley and another trustee that they want a say in these improvements to their lives instead of the trustees just stomping in and assuming they know what is best.
The point of view in Legacy of Death shifts between Matthew and Harriet, and sometimes the transitions are a bit confusing, but this is still an absorbing mystery set in Victorian England. Now I'm left wondering what Matthew and Harriet will be facing next.
Legacy of Death by Judith Cutler
eISBN: 9781448304875
Severn House Publishers © 2021
eBook, 240 pages
Historical Mystery, #2 Matthew Rowsley mystery
Rating: B
Source: Net Galley
