Set in the 1930s, the murder of a prominent judge's wife sees DCI Reardon and DS Tom Jago investigate a world of upper class privilege amid a tense political environment. They must solve not only the murder of the enigmatic Emilie Waring, the second wife of Judge Waring, but also unravel the mystery of her past.

This is the sixth book in the Herbert Reardon series, and a new series (and author) to me. Despite not knowing any of the backstory it worked well as a standalone story and I didn't feel I was missing out by not having read the previous books. The book grabbed my attention quickly and I couldn't put it down until I'd finished it - the setting, characters and writing style all drew me in.

It combines golden age mystery, pre-WWII political drama, and even has a bit of an I Capture the Castle vibe with the sections from the point of view of Sophy, youngest daughter of the Waring family who is intelligent and just wants to write (but is also slightly naïve to the currents around her).

The mystery was solved at the end and loose ends tied up, but I still want to know more about what happens to the characters and how everyone deals with the outbreak of war. I'll definitely be seeking out more books by the author in the future.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

What an amazing book. The mystery is honestly so good. I love how the book was written, and it was interesting to see why and what happened as well as who did it. I also enjoyed the characters; I had several that I thought were guilty and none of them ended up being the right one.