A Divided Loyalty: A Novel (Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries Book 22)
A Divided Loyalty: A Novel (Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries Book 22) book cover

A Divided Loyalty: A Novel (Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries Book 22)

Kindle Edition

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Price
$13.99
Publisher
William Morrow
Publication Date

Description

Charles Todd is the New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries, the Bess Crawford mysteries, and two stand-alone novels. A mother-and-son writing team, Caroline passed away in August 2021 and Charles lives in Florida. --This text refers to the paperback edition. "Todd's astute character studies... offer a fascinating cross section of postwar life.... While delivering a satisfying puzzle-mystery, the story also tasks us to think about the women who lost their lives during the war, too."xa0 -- The New York Times Book Review on A Divided Loyalty “Rutledge is one of the most complicated and finely drawn characters in contemporary crime fiction.... There’s not a weak episode to be found in Todd’s terrific series.” -- Bookpage (starred review) on A Divided Loyalty "This is a series, written by a mother-and-son team under the Charles Todd pseudonym, that shows no signs of slowing down. As always, this one combines crisp plotting with stylish prose. Ideal for historical-mystery devotees." -- Booklist on A Divided Loyalty “Each person dealt with the war differently, as Todd so poignantly shows with each character. Ian’s resilience and his complex persona continue to make him an endearing character. And Todd, the mother-and-son writing team of Caroline and Charles Todd, continue their superior storytelling with A Divided Loyalty .” -- Sun-Sentinel (Florida)xa0on A Divided Loyalty “A Divided Loyalty finds Rutledge at his most vulnerable and persistent, and it is this dichotomy that gives the book its character and tense atmosphere. It is an intense ride to take with him, but one that is well worth it.” -- Bookreporter.com on A Divided Loyalty "Nobody evokes long postwar shadows or overwhelming postwar grief better than Todd." -- Kirkus Reviews on A Divided Loyalty “Fans of historical fiction surrounding WW1 should rely on these books. . . . A poignant and engrossing story.” -- Military Press on A Divided Loyalty --This text refers to the paperback edition.

Features & Highlights

  • "Todd's astute character studies . . . offer a fascinating cross section of postwar life. . . . A satisfying puzzle-mystery." —
  • The New York Times Book Review
  • Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge is assigned one of the most baffling investigations of his career: an unsolved murder case with an unidentified victim and a cold trail with few clues to follow
  • A woman has been murdered at the foot of a megalith shaped like a great shrouded figure. Chief Inspector Brian Leslie, one of the Yard’s best men, is sent to investigate the site in Avebury, a village set inside a prehistoric stone circle not far from Stonehenge. In spite of his efforts, Leslie is not able to identify her, much less discover how she got to Avebury—or why she died there. Her killer has simply left no trace.
  • Several weeks later, when Ian Rutledge has returned from successfully concluding a similar case with an unidentified victim, he is asked to take a second look at Leslie’s inquiry. But Rutledge suspects Chief Superintendent Markham simply wants him to fail.
  • Leslie was right—Avebury refuses to yield its secrets. But Rutledge slowly widens his search, until he discovers an unexplained clue that seems to point toward an impossible solution. If he pursues it and he is wrong, he will draw the wrath of the Yard down on his head. But even if he is right, he can’t be certain what he can prove, and that will play right into Markham’s game. The easy answer is to let the first verdict stand:
  • Person or persons unknown.
  • But what about the victim? What does Rutledge owe this tragic young woman? Where must his loyalty lie?

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(1.2K)
★★★★
25%
(512)
★★★
15%
(307)
★★
7%
(143)
★
-7%
(-142)

Most Helpful Reviews

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I love this series, HOWEVER

Don’t get me wrong, I love this series. I think it’s well written and the mysteries are always masterful. HOWEVER, and this is a big however, I am finding Inspector Rutledge getting to be a bit “sad sackish”. He is excellent at his job, treats people fairly and respectfully but never gets any credit. His boss hates him ( I can’t even remember why, especially as his case clearance rate is so high), women dump him or he is found wanting by their mamas and so is warned off. I am not saying he should be turned into some jolly everything is coming up roses kind of guy but I would like to see him get some kind of break. Heck, even a small one. The way things are going for him, I find myself wondering why he even bothers. Maybe a small boost would give us hope that someday he might actually get a life to help mitigate the job he already has. Without even a tiny light at the end, why keep on in the tunnel. Hence the 3 stars on an otherwise 5 star book.
67 people found this helpful
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Remarkable

This book: Riveting. Poignant. Sad. Remarkable.........as it forces Rutledge to examine his principles & ethics while solving a murder that may not have a solution even as he deals with the powers that want him out at Scotland Yard. Without spoilers I can say the author makes a bold choice at the beginning of the book in terms of the info provided and still manages to keep things under wraps until fairly close to the end before readers have that "aha" moment. Once again the plight of the forgotten, almost disposable soldier is highlighted in a number of instances throughout the book. Makes us sad about their treatment in the past and reminds us we need to do better going forward. But Ian, goodness, "tortured hero" must have been coined for him. I find myself hoping there's relief for Ian somewhere, be it personal or professional. Seriously, the guy is educated, intelligent, hard working, compassionate, caring and survived the war, not to mention the PTSD and Hamish. The Todds have written a character we care about and because of that it might be time to see something positive happen in Ian's life. Back to this book; it's phenomenal and not to be missed.
25 people found this helpful
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Best of an Excellent Series!

This series is excellent, and I sincerely believe this was the best of the series. Ian Rutledge is one of the most fascinating characters in historical fiction, a Scotland Yard detective who has survived WW1 with "shell shock" and survivor's guilt. He is a brilliant detective whose superiors at the Yard never appreciate his talents. His previous boss, Bowles, hated him, and now Markham isn't too pleased with him either. He solves a seemingly unsolvable case in the countryside, so Markham sends him to another murder that a higher ranking, and also intelligent officer could not solve.

Rutledge is faced with a case that yields no clues. His creativity and expansive assumptions lead him to pursue seemingly tiny leads, and ultimately, he gets it right. A beautiful and memorable murder victim, bits of knowledge from far flung quarters, eventually point Rutledge into the resolution and an arrest.

The authors describe the locations so you can tell they traveled there. This is truly the pinnacle of the Ian Rutledge series. Kate Gordon makes a couple of appearances in this book, and the reader wonders if she and Ian will ever fully come together. Well, I do hope so, eventually.

This is a far better series than the Bess Crawford books, with this novel being the best of them all. I don't know how invested the Todds are with Bess, but I'd be perfectly happy if they focused entirely on Ian Rutledge's adventures. I loved this book!
15 people found this helpful
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Round and Round; Back and Forth

This Ian Rutledge novel follows the usual course of back and forth from London to rural England town where there was a murder, seeing Kate but never developing a further relationship, being on the blacklist at the Yard and ever dealing with Hamish's voices. It is slow going through the early days of the investigations, and there are two murder investigations in this novel that make it a little more intriguing. One of them involves another investigator from the Yard. Rutledge doggedly pursues facts out of no apparent clues and with some luck might just find his murderers. It is not a bad novel; it's just slow going.
14 people found this helpful
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Intriguing, difficult to solve, thoroughly satisfying.

Back up to a full five stars for this book and I'm so glad to be able to say that. I thoroughly enjoyed this book #22 in the series and it kept me focused on something other than what was happening to a friend in the real world. Every year I look forward to the latest Inspector Ian Rutledge novel from the mother and son team who write as Charles Todd. Rutledge is given a no-win assignment by Chief Superintendent Markham when he is sent out to find the identity of a murder victim which another Scotland Yard Inspector was unable to solve. Rutledge finds himself investigating a murder where the female victim was left dead beside one of the stones of Avebury.

Charles Todd is absolutely expert in describing atmosphere and building tension in the stories. Add to the cold, rain and fog the atmosphere of those huge, almost brooding, standing stones and I had prickles zipping along my arms for most of the time I was reading this very satisfying mystery. The authors have done a superlative job in this story of explaining the element of the story which lends it almost a mystical air; Hamish MacLeod, the Army corporal whose voice lingers in the mind of Rutledge since 1916 following the horrible incident in the trenches. There is a character, Dr. Mason, who was so well developed it makes me sad to think he has been left behind. This is a difficult to solve mystery beginning with the identity of the victim and continuing on through all of the actions which take place both in Wiltshire and London. A very well concealed murderer had me reading almost frantically trying to make sure I picked up all the clues. I could have just taken my time because I didn't get there until it was revealed. A lovely, engrossing reading experience.
12 people found this helpful
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Best Rutledge Yet

Chief Inspector Brian Leslie, a colleague of Ian Rutledge, is sent to Avebury, a village built inside a prehistoric stone circle much larger than Stonehenge. He is to investigate the murder of an unknown woman. The coroner’s inquest concludes that the still unidentified woman was murdered by person or persons unknown. Rutledge is uncomfortable when some time later, he is ordered to Avebury to work his magic of finding the murderer of unidentifiable women. He knows that his boss is setting him up to fail but can’t decline to go. He knows the trail of the killer has gone cold, the body is unavailable, and any evidence Leslie might have missed is no longer available to be found. He is intrigued, however, when the local doctor tells him that photographs were taken of the woman, but they hadn’t made their way into the official file on this icy cold case.

This book is so well written, it grips the reader from the first page to the last. There are enough twists and turns to keep any mystery lover reading into the wee hours of the morning. The characters are well-drawn, so much so, the new reader will come to like and admire Rutledge quickly while those who are familiar with him will feel the comfort of knowing Rutledge like an old, familiar friend.

While this is the twenty-second entry in the Ian Rutledge series, the first-time reader of the series need not worry about not being able to understand the characters at all. Todd has done an admirable job of giving the reader just enough back story to bring them current without boring the reader who has read the first twenty-one books to tears.

This outing is one of the best in recent years and should be read slowly to savor the joy of reading one of the best historical mystery writers writing today. This book should be at, or very near, the top of your to-be-read list.

My thanks to Morrow and Edelweiss for an eARC.
12 people found this helpful
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Best Rutledge Yet

Chief Inspector Brian Leslie, a colleague of Ian Rutledge, is sent to Avebury, a village built inside a prehistoric stone circle much larger than Stonehenge. He is to investigate the murder of an unknown woman. The coroner’s inquest concludes that the still unidentified woman was murdered by person or persons unknown. Rutledge is uncomfortable when some time later, he is ordered to Avebury to work his magic of finding the murderer of unidentifiable women. He knows that his boss is setting him up to fail but can’t decline to go. He knows the trail of the killer has gone cold, the body is unavailable, and any evidence Leslie might have missed is no longer available to be found. He is intrigued, however, when the local doctor tells him that photographs were taken of the woman, but they hadn’t made their way into the official file on this icy cold case.

This book is so well written, it grips the reader from the first page to the last. There are enough twists and turns to keep any mystery lover reading into the wee hours of the morning. The characters are well-drawn, so much so, the new reader will come to like and admire Rutledge quickly while those who are familiar with him will feel the comfort of knowing Rutledge like an old, familiar friend.

While this is the twenty-second entry in the Ian Rutledge series, the first-time reader of the series need not worry about not being able to understand the characters at all. Todd has done an admirable job of giving the reader just enough back story to bring them current without boring the reader who has read the first twenty-one books to tears.

This outing is one of the best in recent years and should be read slowly to savor the joy of reading one of the best historical mystery writers writing today. This book should be at, or very near, the top of your to-be-read list.

My thanks to Morrow and Edelweiss for an eARC.
12 people found this helpful
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Long anticipated Inspector Rutledge novel

This new installment in the Inspector Rutledge series was intense and dark in mood. Ian Rutledge is still struggling with his own demons following the first world war. He is also not a favorite at Scotland Yard due to circumstances out of his control from his previous investigation.

His superior sends him to investigate the death of a young woman, while a colleague is sent to investigate a similar crime in another part of the country. Ian is successful with his case but he ends up embroiled in the other case and things become very dangerous indeed. A very twisted mystery ensues.

I love the Inspector Rutledge books and his character never fails to touch my heart.
7 people found this helpful
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Heaven has no rage, like love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury, like a woman scorned.

Bloody good story.
A police procedural that takes place in 1923 London.
Trying to solve a murder without DNA, fingerprints, smart phones, or the internet.
Holy cow! How did they solve any crimes back then?
The big 'S' word. Ahhhh, follow the sex.

My first Charles Todd read and it wont be my last.
A young women has been murdered and her body dumped in an open grave. A second woman is found dead next to ancient stone ruins. Detective Ian Rutledge and his trusted companion Hamish are on the hunt for the killers.
A well written period piece. I'm not fluent in the queen's English so some of the dialogue was a bit awkward.
One interesting point about Ian, he fought in the trenches of World War I so he suffers from PTSD. Hamish is the voice he hears in his head as he goes about solving cases. So there's that.

Thanks to goodreads giveaway for the early copy
7 people found this helpful
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Repetitious and unimpressive

This has been one of my favorite series. Working my way through this latest book (and it did seem more like work than pleasure) I wondered why. It seemed like a large portion of the book described Ian driving in his car. The conclusion was not the surprise the authors perhaps intended. The theme of Everybody Hates Ian has gotten old and even I forget why there’s such enmity. The book refers to past events without really explaining them, and I don’t remember all the details from previous books. (Why again did he write a letter of resignation?) His investigation itself gets mixed reviews; Ian alternates between clever deductions and a baffling absence of imagination. The setting, both geographical and historical, is interesting, but nothing new for this series. Perhaps it’s run its course.
6 people found this helpful

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