Sir Rudri Hopkinson, an eccentric amateur archaeologist, is determined to recreate ancient rituals at the temple of Eleusis in Greece in the hope of summoning the goddess Demeter. He gathers together a motley collection of people to assist in the experiment, including a rival scholar, a handsome but cruel photographer and a trio of mischievous children. But when one of the groups disappears, and a severed head turns up in a box of snakes, Mrs Bradley is called upon to investigate.
©1937 Estate of Gladys Mitchell (P)2012 Soundings
"Great book, but you have to pay attention!"
If you liked other Mrs Bradley mysteries, you should like this one. But if you don't pay careful attention to everything going on, you might think that it is a travel log with a little mystery at the end. Gladys Mitchell includes the necessary information to solve the mystery, but she has hidden it in a wealth of detail. I enjoyed it very much, especially Patience Tomlinson's reading of it.