In and around a very English village, murder follows murder, and corpse is piled upon corpse. Fen, whom Crispin fans will remember well, is once again the man who finally sorts out the very intricate puzzle; but for much of the book he is an accessory after the fact, and in a peculiarly gruesome manner. The Rector, the Major, and even old Gobbo, take a hand at playing detective, much to the confusion of Detective-SuperintendentLing. And the lively yarn culminates in a chase to end all chases—involving the local hunt, hunt saboteurs, a herd of rampaging cows, a motorcycle scramble, a runaway burglar, a team of bloody-minded engineers, the major on horseback, and the police, variously motivated.

As for the solution, we defy anyone to reach it ahead of Fen. Mr. Crispin is magnificently back on form.