Tumultuous Events..
Book four in the Teifi Valley Coroner series finds Harry Probert-Lloyd amidst deep struggles on many levels which, unintentionally, give rise to a catalogue of tumultuous events. With a cast of well crafted characters, and an intriguing mystery at it’s heart, this is another immersive and well depicted historical tale in this enjoyable series.

Set in the 1850s in the Teifi Valley, south Wales, this series revolves around the lives of Harry Probert-Lloyd, coroner, almost blind, land owner and former lawyer, his assistant John Davies and secretary Lydia Howell. Although it can be read as a stand alone it would be much better to have read the previous three stories in order to see the development and relationship between the main characters. This time a young woman is found dead in her bed and initially this is judged 'natural causes'; her mother is not convinced and a second opinion sought. Harry and colleagues investigate and uncover local traditions, jealousies, revenge before they can close the case. Interwoven with this is the story of Harry's estate, his neglect of it, leaving the running to the old manager but with the instruction to 'make it pay'. and the consequences. The writing is rich in social history of the times and all the better for that. It feels true to the times as a result. The three main characters have a well-developed relationship and this is where I have missed out, not having read previous stories in the series. I shall go back and read them as well as looking forward to the next chapter . Thanks to NetGalley and Canelo for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review

Not One Of Us is the fourth book in The Teifi Valley Coroner series by Alis Hawkins.

This series of historical murder-mysteries is set in the 1850s in west Wales, and centres around Harry Probert-Lloyd, twenty-seven years old, coroner for the Teifi Valley. The other main recurring characters are John Davies, his young assistant, who had first worked with Harry investigating the murder of Harry’s one-time sweetheart; and Lydia Howell, his private secretary. It’s not necessary to have read the earlier books in the series to enjoy this new instalment, as the author sparingly and skilfully paints pen-pictures of each characters’ back story; though anyone who has read the earlier books will no doubt derive more from the continuing character development.

Harry’s latest case arises when the local doctor, Benton Reckitt, is asked to give a second opinion on what appears to be the natural death of a young girl, Lizzie Rees, by Lizzie’s mother, as Harry relates: “Esther Rees had barely seen her daughter’s body and heard her husband’s account of what had happened before she had taken to her heels and walked the seven or eight miles to Cilgerran to speak to Reckitt. Her suspicions must have been aroused instantly, and I wondered what it was that had made her so determined that Lizzie had not died a natural death.”

Though the doctor’s initial declaration is that “The young woman concerned was nineteen years old, and until she was, apparently, found dead in her bed yesterday morning was in perfect health but for a slight cold a few days ago,", he soon suspects foul play – and Harry is involved in an ever-deepening mystery as he tries to uncover the truth behind Lizzie’s death.

Harry becomes embroiled in local rumours and in Esther Rees’s search for the truth behind her daughter’s sudden death. Why is Lizzie’s father Mic so secretive and unwilling to tell the whole truth? Was Lizzie ‘courting in bed’ (a pre-wedding tradition between young men and women), and if so with whom? What had happened to Nathaniel Stockton, who was sweet on Lizzie and whose body had been pulled out of the river at Cilgerran, and are the two unexplained deaths connected? ("Had Nathaniel Stockton confronted the man he believed to be responsible for Lizzie’s death, and died himself as a result?", Harry wonders.) Harry starts to believe that “secrets had killed Nathaniel as surely as prejudice”.

Part of the plot development revolves around the arrival of a new textile mill in the Teifi Valley, which John accidentally helps facilitate during a visit to the Great Exhibition which opens the novel. The arrival disturbs the timeless rural lifestyle of many of the locals, though as Harry observes, "if local landowners don’t seize the day and support new projects that’ll bring modern industry to the west, we’ll always be seen as the poor relations, country bumpkins who haven’t realised that it’s the nineteenth century."

Harry is also going through his own personal troubles. Aged just twenty-seven, he is the squire of Glanteifi as well as being the local coroner. He was a barrister in London, until his eyesight started deteriorating and he returned home to take over from his father as the local squire. But Harry cannot hide his regrets: "I had failed to apply myself adequately to the task of being squire because what I really wanted was my old life, the life that had been mine in London before my sight put a stop to it … The life that I had chosen and clung to in desperation - even as my blindness tore me away from it - now felt as if it had belonged to another man. A happier, more carefree man. I wanted to be him again, but I did not know how to find him here." His assistant, John, can see the truth: "Harry was out of his depth with Glanteifi. I think he knew that but couldn’t admit it, so he’d just found ways to avoid his responsibilities. Ever since he’d been elected, he’d gone out to every sudden death that was brought to him, because being coroner gave him a cast-iron excuse not to think about being squire.”

The narrative is skilfully handled, with alternating first-person chapters from Harry and John’s point of view. There is much absorbing detail about rural ways of life, and customs and traditions, without it overwhelming the narrative flow. The characterisations and motivations are outlined to a tee.

All in all, an absorbing and satisfying read.

Not One of Us is the fourth book in Alis Hawkins’ Teifi Valley Coroner series, and it’s an excellent addition to the series. The story is absorbing and truly feels rooted in mid-nineteenth century west Wales, meaning that I’ve painlessly learned quite a bit of Welsh history along the way.

Over the four books I’ve really enjoyed the character development of Harry Probert-Lloyd the coroner, his assistant John Davies, and now Lydia Howell who brings her strength and intelligence to help the pair in their work running the Glanteifi estate and investigating local suspicious deaths. Although I think the story in this book would stand alone, much of my pleasure in the series is to do with the relationships between the characters, so I think it’s important to read the books in order to get the best out of them.

A thoroughly recommended series, long may they continue!

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing a review copy in exchange for honest feedback.

Not One of Us is the fourth instalment in the Teifi Valley Coroner series in which blind Coroner Harry Probert-Lloyd and his assistant, John Davies, ply their trade in a corner of the three counties that make up West Wales, in the 1850s. Harry Probert-Lloyd, is struggling. With the blindness that drove him home from London, with his combative relationship with the county magistrates and with an estate teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. He needs an escape, so when Dr Benton Reckitt is asked to give a second opinion on the apparently natural death of young Lizzie Rees, Harry willingly goes with him. But Harry’s assistant, John Davies, is in London at the Great Exhibition and, without him, mistakes are made. Harry becomes embroiled in Esther Rees’s search for the truth behind her daughter’s sudden death and rumours set the whole community ablaze. Poor judgements both as coroner and as squire soon have tragic consequences and, less than a week after Lizzie Rees’s death, Harry has two more deaths to deal with. Harry and John find themselves at loggerheads and a rift threatens to derail not only Harry’s investigation but their partnership at Glanteifi.

And questions raised by Harry’s investigation still need answers. What is Lizzie Rees’s father hiding? Was somebody else in the farmhouse on the night she died? And did Harry’s eagerness to leave Glanteifi in pursuit of a questionable investigation lead to a tragedy? As Harry struggles to answer these questions, he must also reconcile his view of Glanteifi’s future and John’s if they are to continue working together. This is another compelling and intriguing historical mystery in the Wales-based series, and Hawkins creates an authentic and rich atmosphere accurate to the time and place. The rural police forces of the mid-Victorian period were much more about peacekeeping and preventing crime; they didn’t investigate much. And that included deaths. The real nineteenth-century investigators were the coroners, but of course, Harry needs help now that he is facing the challenge of coming to terms with losing his eyesight. The Teifi Valley is replete with descriptions of the misty mountains and verdant valleys and the story reflects the attitudes of the time period; you can tell it has been extensively researched and includes representations of what people wore, ate, the gender politics of the era and what people did for fun.

A sense of community and shared history looms large in the book and while Hawkins goes to great pains to reiterate that she is not a historian, her novels are rich in social history – in the time, place, customs and events that shaped the people of West Wales in the early days of Queen Victoria’s reign. Torn between idealism and pragmatism, the reality of the present and memories of his own idealised past, Harry is both outsider looking in and insider looking out as he seeks to bring justice to a world struggling to come to terms with massive social and industrial upheaval in a nation he barely recognises yet remembers all too well. A captivating and absorbing slow-burn mystery from first page to last this is a story well told. I enjoyed getting to know characters who draw you into their world, of feeling a sense of connection with another time and place. The time in which we live moulds us and makes us. We might like to think we’re rebellious and non-conformist – Harry Probert-Lloyd certainly does – but you can only rebel against what’s around you, so his rebellion is shaped by the times in which he lives. Morals and worldviews may change but emotions do not. Highly recommended.

Another installment in the Teifi Valley Coroner series, “Not One Of Us”, by Alis Hawkins (Canelo), is a well researched historical mystery, set in nineteenth century Wales, with an amazing, comprehensive and full of rich details insight into the period.
The characters and their struggles are so relatable; the way the author wrote the friendship and dynamics between Harry Probert-Lloyd, the coroner and John Davies, his assistant, is wonderful. Lydia Howell’s active role in the unusual, tight relationship between the trio is great, too. The honesty and affection between these three people, despite their differences, divergences and opposite backgrounds is one of my favorite aspects of the novel
I also liked how Alis Hawkins depicted the challenges Harry faces because of his blindness and the strategies to cope with it. I loved having access to how the character experiences the almost total blindness and how he tries to see with the remaining vision. The fact his two friends are constantly aware of this and try to help him deal with it is admirable.
Sometimes it felt Harry’s movements – walking or riding – were too easy for an almost blind person.
The mystery is interesting and complex and not devoid of some sadness. The pace of the story is slow at times but everything happens for a reason.