Thursday 27 October 2022

Unnatural Death by DL Sayers Part I

 Been re reading a favourite Sayers book Unnatural Death.  It starts with Peter and his friend Inspector Parker discussing murders at a restaurant and falling into conversation with a doctor, dining at another table.  He tells them that he had to leave his practice in a small town, because he asked for an autopsy on a cancer patient who had died unexpectedly.  He had believed that the old lady would live another 6 months, but she had died.  The local gossips took exception to his "practically accusing the old lady's niece of murder". 

However, the examination had showed natural death. Peter becomes interested in the case and decides to investigate further.  He uses Miss Climpson, a middle aged lady who has become an enquiry agent for him, because being a little old lady, she can ask things and gossip, whereas a policeman or male detective would be suspected. 

Miss Climpson goes to the little town and becomes friendly with Mary Whitaker who was the great niece of Miss Dawson, the old lady who died.  Then, a former servant of Miss Dawson's is killed, and Peter becomes scared that his investigations are setting off the crimes again. He meets Evelyn Cropper, the sister of the murdered servant, who has married and gone to Canada, and finds out that she and Bertha, her sister were asked by Mary Whitaker to witness a will signing by old Miss Dawson, but that the old lady had refused to sign the will as she had an aversion to the idea of making a will, believing that her property would go to her great niece anyway. 

No comments:

Post a Comment