Legacy of the Dead

An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery

De: Charles Todd

Narrado por: Samuel Gillies

The weathered remains of Eleanor Gray are found on a Scottish mountainside, and her mother, the domineering Lady Maude Gray, requires delicate treatment. This is a case that will lead Inspector Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard to Scotland, where his harrowing journey to find the truth will drag him back through the fires of his past into secrets that still have the power to kill.

©2000 Charles Todd (P)2002 W. F. Howes

My favorite so far in the series

From the first "page" this book captured my interest. Excellent. Best in the series so far.

Love this Series

Would you listen to Legacy of the Dead again? Why?

OH Yes!!

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoy the quips between Rutledge and Hamish

Which character – as performed by Samuel Gillies – was your favorite?

Hamish

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I did feel somewhat remorseful in knowing Hamish loss of the girl he was to marry

Any additional comments?

I have a need to hear more of the ending of this story.......will book five be on audible soon?

Favorite of the series so far

I’ve been enjoying this series but at times have found a few of the mysteries hard to follow. What I like most about this book is the interplay and connection of the main characters. The plot was twisty but understandable.

characters galore!

lovely complicated characters. interest constantly peaked as new developments in plot at every turning. haunting and bleak landscape are entwined beautifully with character development.

A very complex mystery - excellent narrator

If you could sum up Legacy of the Dead in three words, what would they be?

That is impossible - even after listening to the book the second time I had a hard time putting it all together - not that it wasn't well plotted by the author, but it was quite complicated.

What did you like best about this story?

The narration is perfect for this very intriguing story - Mr. Gillies conveys the nuance of the dialogue effectively. He is a true expert!

Which character – as performed by Samuel Gillies – was your favorite?

Of course Ian Rutledge, and Hamish along with him. Rutledge is unstoppable as a police inspector in spite of his residual psychological damage from the war.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The complex confrontation at the end was intense and thrilling.

Any additional comments?

I am re-listening to the entire series and find the books do not lose any of their power the second time through. The author sets up the mystery so the reader is very anxious to know what the solution is, but I can never figure it out before I finish.

slow start but then it rolled

I enjoyed this Inspector Rutledge more than I thought I would after the first hour. Story unbelievable even for a mystery, but as usual Todd entertained

odd ending

Left loose ends ; wondering if next book in series tie them up. We'll see.

Inspector Rutledge and Hamish on Impossible Hunt

This one made my heart race and my blood boil. Inspector Rutledge is sent to Scotland to the small town of Duncarrick, to investigate a murder. And along for the ride is his companion, Corporal Hamish MacLeod, long dead in the Great War, but ever present in Rutledge's mind, speaking to him, haunting him and second guessing him. Little did Rutledge know, he and Hamish were headed to the village where Hamish had grown up and where he had proposed to and left behind, Fiona. Now accused of murdering Eleanor Gray, the daughter of Lady Maude Gray, Fiona is soon taken into custody. To Hamish and Rutledge's surprise, Fiona has a young son, named Ian, whom she had claimed was her own. However, soon it was proven that the boy was not her biological son, and this seemed to point even more to her guilt. The search for the truth was a difficult one, with Fiona, herself being unwilling to divulge the circumstances of the boy's birth. Yet, Rutledge (and Hamish) felt certain that Fiona was innocent. The entire town, who had previously accepted and loved Fiona, had now turned against her. Excellent tale of secrets, coverups and a tenacious copper who never stops until he gets to the truth.

Compelling double mystery

I enjoyed the plotting in this Ian Rutledge story very much as well as dipping into Ian’s relationship with his godfather, which makes a nice foil for his war trauma. Despite the religious tone more fitting the American south than the Scottish Borders, the compulsion of a village to go with the flow of gossip rather than stand up for what is right is again used as a pervasive theme. I couldn’t help but wish this was explored with a bit more nuance. So, too, the feminist theme introducing a lawyer who doesn’t listen to women and a priest who projects his own issues with sexuality onto single women could have been more thoroughly fleshed out. Everyone insisting that nasty letters were clearly a woman’s crime got a bit tedious after a while. That being said, the cast of characters is interesting and the links in their backstories are plausible. I wish there had been one more chapter to savor the resolution, as it ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, but I hope the next novel will pick up where this one left off. There were a few holes in the authors’ geographic research in that one doesn’t simply nip down to Winchester from the Borders overnight, particularly in that era (arduous journey!) and I’m pretty sure hay is not a viable crop in Glencoe, nor are sheep traffic jams likely in that stretch of the glen that is so open and gorgeously barren. I also laughed at the notion of it being hot climbing up the side of the mountain (remotely possible perhaps, but unlikely, particularly in the context of severely cold and rainy weeks). But these errors don’t mar the story telling and as ever the visual descriptions are vivid and lush. Gilles’ performance is solid, though I know other reviewers dislike his reading style. My one complaint there is given Rutledge’s sister’s social status and that he went to a boarding school, and given the class tension with Boyles, I would have thought Rutledge’s accent would be a bit more posh? It doesn’t really matter to me as a reader but it doesn’t align with the class tension with his boss nor with the fact Rutledge is so often the one sent to sooth rich people.

good story good performance

The author once again weaves the tail worth reading and/or listening to. This is a great writing partnership. plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested and the typical false leads with ending up with some surprises.