Thank you for the chance to review this book, however, unfortunately, I was unable to read and review this title before it was archived.

Graham Ison sends Detective Inspector Hardcastle in pursuit of the missing daughter of a British member of parlliament in the raffish London society after the end of World War I. The daughter turns out to be involved with a revolving number of young gentlemen; then she turns up dead. Whodunit?

3rd March 1919 and DI Hardcastle is assigned the task of locating the missing daughter of a M.P. Once she goes missing again, this time finding her may not be as easy.
But the impatient, irritable Hardcastle and his poor Sergeant Charles Marriott are determined to solve the crime.
The story had just enough interest to keep going and was a fairly easy read. It can certainly be read as a stand-alone book in the series.

I received an e-ARC of this novel through NetGalley and Severn House. Thank you.

I've read several other Hardcastle mysteries, but this one is a little bit of a departure from those. Yes, Divisional Detective Inspector Ernest Hardcastle is his usual ascerbic, terse, impatient self and Detective Sergeant Charles Marriott is his same long suffering assistant so if you like those characters you can be assured they haven't changed. What is a little bit different in this story is that Hardcastle is detailed by the Commissioner himself to spend a huge amount of time looking for the missing daughter of a member of parliament. Hardcastle deeply resents being assigned to a case like this and yet the more prolonged the search for this spoiled, rich girl becomes the more he learns about how morals are cutting all the bindings for the roaring twenties to come. Alongside this example of all Hardcastle dislikes about rich young women we have the plans being made for the wedding of the youngest Hardcastle daughter; a very different type of young woman.

It took me a long time for this book to truly catch my full attention. I seemed to be constantly asking myself when something was actually going to happen. An awful lot of time was spent laying the groundwork for what eventually turned into a simple to solve crime. All of that to show the results of having served in the war. This is not one of my favorites in this series and I wondered quite a few times why Hardcastle and Marriott didn't have a good old fashioned fist fight to sort of clear the air. But then, Hardcastle is oblivious to how much he irritates people so I suppose Marriott will have to either transfer away from him or suck it up and seethe silently.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Severn House for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

It is always a pleasure when DDI Hardcastle and DS Marriott return with a new case. In this latest, Hardcastle's Runaway, he is charged with finding Lily Musgrove, daughter of a member of parliament. His search reveals that the 17 year old has been claiming to be older and has been "entertaining" a group of military officers recently returned from WWI. When she returns on her own, Hardcastle continues looking into this group and her activities. After she disappears a second time, he fears that her lifestyle may have brought her to harm.

The end of WWI has brought an increase in the crime rate and Hardcastle is irritated at having to spend his time chasing down an errant teenager. He is also under pressure to arrange his daughter's wedding. He is a proud man who takes the time to explain even the most obvious things to Marriott. However, he is not happy when Marriott displays superior knowledge of a subject. They have worked together for some time and Marriott knows his moods, his family and what to expect from him. On the other hand, HRdcastle knows little about Marriott outside of work. They are an odd pair that work well together.

Graham Ison has taken his detectives through the war years and now they are seeing the changes to society that the war has brought. Reading his mysteries is like taking a trip back in time and they leave you wanting to visit again and again.

I found this book to be a banal tale of the aftermath of WW1. It covered the shortages, people's feelings about the returning soldiers, jobs, and PTSD . The story line concerning the runaway girl had some twists and turns but they weren't anything surprising. Despite its' shortcomings, it is a book that one could take along to doctor's or other appointments or when one has to wait. It is an easy read.