Death at the Sign of the Rook

What do you do when your house is too much for you to maintain? Everything needs repairs, and the taxes are more than you can pay. Still, it is home.

Obviously, you can sell the house, but it has been in the family forever. No, try something else. Make the house work for you. Burton Makepeace House is acknowledged as a masterpiece of a “country house,” and it can be a fabulous setting for a Murder Mystery Weekend. So begins Death at the Sign of the Rook.

The participants for this weekend event have gathered in the library and are ready for dinner and clues. Their comments about the events so far are not at all upbeat or exciting. Hope things improve.

Who are the participants in this L1250 weekend? There is, of course, a vicar, an Army major, an actor, a Slavic countess, a Swiss detective, the owner of the house, Lady Milton, a private inspector, and a female police officer. Why is the investigator at this event? Is the police officer a guest or on official business? Also, a cast of Murder Mystery actors joins the event as well.

We quickly learn that the investigator is Jackson Brodie, who was hired by twins Ian and Hazel to solve the mystery of the missing painting, “The Woman and the Weasel.” The painting had hung in the bedroom of the twins’ mother. When she died, it was discovered that the painting was gone, and so was her caregiver, a very kind and capable young woman named Melanie Hope. So far, Jackson had uncovered no clues as to the fate of the painting or Melanie.

The police officer, DC Reggie Chase, is also interested in a missing painting—this one, a Turner, was taken from Burton Makepeace. Lady Milton first thought her son Piers had sold it off to pay taxes but did admit that maybe Sophie, who had been her trusted companion/servant, may have taken it. She mourned the loss of Sophie’s companionship as much as the loss of the painting.

Neither Melanie nor Sophie can be found. The descriptions of each are very vague. Truly a mystery. At the manor house, the guests have a poor meal in a cold room. Then the snow begins to fall and keeps falling and falling. To add to the drama, Reggie Chase is notified that a convicted murderer has escaped and is roaming the moors around Burton Makepeace. Inside the house, there is a dead body in the pantry. Who will survive? What will be revealed?

Author Kate Atkinson offers detailed background information about her characters, often with humorous asides. There are enough plots in this book for three more novels. Luckily, in a harrowing and entertaining finale, all plots reach a conclusion!