One of a series in a kind of classic crime type of read.

A young recently married couple move joyously into their first home. They did not expect
to find a body in their basement neatly cemented over. Chief Inspector Moresby and Roger
Sherringham are given the job of finding the woman, and how she got to be buried in this
basement

Unravelling clues after six years is going to be difficult. Missing Persons does not give any clues at all to fit the description of a young woman, a couple of months pregnant. Painstakingly
going one step at a time, tracing possible leads the story of a hard young woman emerges. Sherringham is totally convinced who the murderer is, but how to get the conviction to stick.
The murderer is slick, clever and very confident. the way it finally ends is a surprise. A bit
unexpected but a nice one at that.

Very descriptive, good characterization in this story.

1931, historical-novel, crime-fiction, classic-crime, British-crime-classics, consultant, due-diligence, law-enforcement, murder, murder-investigation, unidentified-corpse*****

It starts with a couple moving into their new digs and look to find treasure under the basement floor. Instead, they find the body of a pregnant young woman with nothing to identify her. Inspector Moseley catches a break when a possible identifier is found in her leg, and he is able to track her early days to a name change and employment at a boy's prep school. He consults with his novelist friend who happens to be somewhat aware of that school and has even written part of a novel about the people there. Excellent character development, fantastic plot twists, amazing red herrings. Great read!
I requested and received an EARC from Poisoned Pen Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

The beginning of this Golden Age mystery is a bit grisly, but it quickly moves on to matters of police procedure. Most interesting, however, is the framework about a quarter of the way into the story, which becomes a bit meta as it allows the reader to look at the situation through an additional layer of fiction, with the goal of identifying not just the culprit but also the victim.

I enjoyed the techniques on display in this novel. Ultimately, I didn't like the ending, though, which prevents me from giving it a higher rating.

This was a really good read! The plot was a good and original idea and gave a good idea how investigations were run then. I also found interesting to read about how psychology was taken account while investigating. I enjoyed the way the characters were drawn, a pleasant change from nowadays investigators! Only the conclusion was for me not as good as the rest of the book. Still, I warmly recommend this crime book!
I received a complimentary ARC of this novel from NetGalley and I am leaving voluntarily an honest review.

"When two newlyweds discover that a corpse has been buried in the basement of their new home, a grueling case begins to trace the identity of the victim. With all avenues of investigation approaching exhaustion, a tenuous piece of evidence offers a chance for Chief Inspector Moresby and leads him to the amateur sleuth Roger Sheringham, who has recently been providing cover work in a school south of London.

Desperate for evidence of any kind in the basement case, Moresby begins to sift through the manuscript of a satirical novel Sheringham has been writing about his colleagues at the school, convinced that amongst the colorful cast of teachers hides the victim - and perhaps their murderer.

A novel pairing dark humor and intelligent detection work, this 1932 mystery is an example of a celebrated Golden Age author's most inventive work. This edition includes an introduction by CWA Diamond Dagger Award–winning author Martin Edwards."

For Golden Age Detective enthusiasts many haven't heard of Roger Sheringham, and let me tell you, you are in for a treat. I was delighted when I first discovered Anthony Berkeley's creation almost a decade ago!