Proof of Guilt audiobook

The typical Inspector Ian Rutledge mystery is so filled with details, as the Scotland Yard policeman ferrets out clues, that often the reader can become confused or engulfed with too much information or too many characters. This novel is no exception. It is a painstaking investigation begun when the body of a man, apparently a hit-and-run victim, is found lying in a London Street.A valuable watch is found on the body, linking him to a well-know wine merchant who was reported missing. Has he now been found? Or was the body that of someone else? Rutledge then begins a long, slow investigation, motoring back and forth from London to Dedham, St. Hilary and Sussex in an attempt to discover the facts, while fending off his new boss who is prodding him to accept incorrect conclusions to arrest innocent people. In fact, I found myself wondering whether, after all the miles he puts on his car in this novel, it might be time to trade it in for a new model.This mother-and-son writing team has two excellent series going: the Ian Rutledge and Bess Crawford mysteries. They are always enjoyable. This one, however, was overburdened with an iffy premise and too much verbiage. Nevertheless, it is worth reading, and is recommended.

Fifteenth in the Inspector Ian Rutledge historical mystery series revolving around a Scotland Yard inspector battling his own demons from World War I.My TakeFor the most part, I was dissatisfied with this story's events. The clues that Rutledge pulled together seemed bogus, as if invented to fit the story. And part of me wonders if I'm feeling this way simply because I can't stand the new character's, Markham's, approach. Otherwise, I enjoyed Todd's usual descriptive expertise in setting the manners and scenery of a 1920s England.I don't understand the point of chapter one in this. Okay, it introduces us to Matthew Traynor, but how does it relate to the story otherwise? Teasers about Meredith Channing with a quick encounter with former Chief Inspector Cummins. Bowles is still out from his heart attack; too bad, it wasn't fatal.For the artists, most of the story takes place in Constable country. Makes me want to visit...It's a lot of back-and-forth and twisty turns with no one---especially that sister!---wanting to give one scrap more information than necessary. Combine that with that tidy-up-by-yesterday attitude, and it's a disaster.I have to wonder why Rutledge didn't check out the new garden beds… I also wonder if Belford is part of Rutledge's future.Rutledge does a very fine balancing act of following Markham's orders and his own conscience; he kept me wondering at times.Oh, at last, a proper pedaling! I was beginning to wonder when I kept finding the curate peddling along.The StoryA body is dumped on a nice street in London. One for which no identification can be established, although he looks suspiciously like a missing person no one has yet missed.The CharactersInspector Ian Rutledge is with Scotland Yard and using the work to keep his own demons at bay. Hamish MacLeod is one of them. A ghost of the man Ian ordered shot on the battlefield. Frances Rutledge is the sister who worries over him. Peter Lockwood was an airman in the war and at school with Ian before that. She's considering saying yes to his marriage proposal. Dr. Fleming is the man who treated Ian when he got back from the war. Scotland YardSergeant Gibson used to connive with Rutledge, but now seems to be hunkering down under the rules. Sergeant Fielding is quite good at ferreting out information. Acting Chief Superintendent Joel Markham is an import from Yorkshire. Doesn't seem the right choice for so many reasons. Not the least of which is he's much too interested in closing cases, but not closing them with accuracy. He's the type of cop who gives people reason to not cooperate. Edgar Billings is hunting for someone. The French familyHoward French is the late grandfather and notable for the watches he gave his son, Laurence, and son-in-law, David Traynor, as well as his dipping his wick outside his marriage. Laurence's oldest, Michael, was killed in the war; Lewis, the younger son, now runs the London branch and switches between their country home in Essex and the London house. Agnes French is the bitchy sister and she lives at the house in Stratford St. Hilary in Essex. Nan is the maid who has been with her forever. Matthew Traynor, a grandson, runs the Madeira end of the firm.Frederick Gooding is the senior clerk at the London Branch of French, French, and Traynor, Exporters. Simmons is the junior clerk. Williams is the curate in Dedham. Mary Ellen Townsend is Lewis' fiancée;. Dr. Townsend is her pleased papa. Valerie Whitman is a previous fiancée...at secondhand; Gooding is her grandfather. Constable Brooks is the local man while retired Sergeant Terrill was on scene that night of the attack. Mr. Hayes---of Hayes and Hayes---is the French lawyer.Galloway is the jeweler who feels he owes Rutledge. Belford is a bit too quick to deduce; Rutledge thinks he's MI5. Mr. MacFarland was the French family tutor back when Afonso Diaz stormed the house, angry over being cheated. Billy Harden is a nearsighted witness. Gerald Standish is one of those missing. Mrs. Bennett and her husband believe they are doing ex-cons a favor by taking them in as servants on their estate. They can't afford staff anymore, and this is a much cheaper alternative. Dr. Burgess is a drunk, using alcohol to escape his own war demons, and no longer practices, except on the ex-cons. The ex-cons include Bob Rawlings working as a gardener with Diaz. Baxter and Benjamin R. Waggoner are men in London with whom Rawlings is communicating. The CoverThe cover is shades of brown, up close and underneath a wooden bridge with a stone tower at one end as the rain is pouring down. I'm guessing it's that confirming scene toward the end.The title is Rutledge's biggest problem, finding that Proof of Guilt.

Normally it's an automatic five stars for any Charles Todd book, but the first half of the book would have warranted 3 stars. Fortunately it gained speed over the last half and I'm happy to give it four stars. The problem? Too many characters, and I was lost. Truly lost. If there had been some minor identifiers along the way, I could have kept characters straight perhaps, but all those last names with no 'identifier' made them all run together. Inspector Rutledge is always aces as a character, and Hamish (unlike another review I read) is nicely present. It's a powerful combo, having Hamish at Rutledge's back ... and Ian's sister made a nice appearance. I'm glad things are rounding into shape for her, even at the cost of more loneliness for Rutledge. I care about the characters. I always will. And I look forward to the next story.I expected chapter one to have much more significance - almost as a prologue - and it's my fault I suppose that I just KNEW there'd be a clue there. So much so, that I went back and reread it a couple of times as the story progressed. It did definitely find its footing plot-wise, halfway through. And I sailed nicely along.If I'd taken the time to jot character names and occupations down, as I read, I'd have enjoyed it more. Maybe that was my failing.Looking forward to the next Charles Todd book - I wouldn't dream of not grabbing one as soon as it's available!

Ian Rutledge is back....solving another murder, and what a murder it is. Rutledge is left with nothing but a body in the middle of the street, questions about how the body got there, and no identification but a gold watch inside a coat pocket...a gold watch that could only belong to a gentleman.The gold watch did give Rutledge some leads, but he kept finding dead ends with each investigation....the criminal was quite clever. Who could this body be? Without any identification and only a gold watch that lead to the prominent French family, this was going to be a difficult case. Thankfully good old Hamish was there to help.And, of course, who could have done it? Was it self-staged, was it Lewis French 's jilted fiancée, was it Mr Belford a retired military man who gave his own ideas too perfectly of what he thought happened, or was it Lewis's sister who wasn't too happy with her brother? No answer could be found, and the search continued in London, St. Hilary, and Dedham. Scotland Yard only had small bits of evidence besides the body and a missing Lewis French and then a missing cousin, Matthew Traynor, along with a handkerchief with pansies, a picture, a piece of cloth that matched the jacket of the dead man, two women close to Lewis, and a family who kept released prisoners as its household staff. There wasn't enough evidence to convict anyone because there wasn't enough "proof of guilt" for any suspect, but the search and investigation moved on with increasing danger to Rutledge himself.PROOF OF GUILT is another marvelous mystery that Charles Todd always packs with splendid descriptions of landscapes and characters, appealing characters, and a thorny mystery to solve. Mr. Todd's books are habitually filled with twists and turns that make you ponder, that keep you guessing, and that are always perfectly planned mysteries featuring Mr. Todd's favorite Inspector who makes it all happen. 5/5This book was given to me free of charge without compensation in exchange for an honest review.

It took me a bit to get into it but when I was a third of the way through I managed to go through it quickly. I was rather disappointed with the ending. This being the only book I've read of the series I'm guessing what the author does is continue the story or the ending to the previous story in the next book but there was nothing conclusive for me to feel satisfied. Someone was still missing and then there was the household he suspected was involved. I guess that could be part of the next book but I don't feel compelled to complete the series or continue. I've read other books that are part of a series and they at least leave more of a conclusion in that book with the possibility of something more to happen. So a good read but rather disappointing ending.

For the sake of the business Another pleasing adventure with Inspector Ian Rutledge. A body left in the road, victim of a hit and run and a missing brother lead Rutledge on a merry chase. Throw in a current and an ex fiancé along with an accusing sister, plus an estate habited by ex-cons and a diabolical plan of revenge we end up with Rutledge having to watch his back as his investigation has sorely pissed someone off. Charles Todd always delivers a riveting tale and his Ian Rutledge is simply the best.

Book 15 in the Rutledge series leaves him with an unidentified dead body and a missing person and nothing to connect the two but a gold presentation watch and chain. As usual there’s little help from those one suspects know more than they’re telling and a new chief who is as impatient as the last one. This book was not properly edited.

So I'm just going to say it: I really love Charles Todd! Todd is the pseudonym for a mother-son writing duo. Recently, I reviewed the latest book in their Bess Crawford series, a thoughtful, entertaining, compelling work. And now, we have Proof of Guilt, the fifteenth in their Ian Rutledge series. I ask you, where has Charles Todd been hiding all my life?One of my very favorite reads is the murder mystery / period piece hybrid. I'm searching for a term for this very specific sub-genre. It works in the tradition of the cozy mystery but also is feels much like the costume drama of Masterpiece Theater. One acquaintance suggest I use the term "historical homicide," and maybe I'll go with that. Truly, I'm a sucker for Agatha Christie, but this is something else. Christie, for the most part, represents her own time period. I'm currently drawn to the contemporary writer who sets his detective character in an era of the past. In this case, Rutledge is working for Scotland Yard in 1920, in the wake of World War I, or simply "The War," for Rutledge.Proof of Guilt Indeed, one compelling thing about Rutledge as a character is the way that his psyche and even his abilities as an Inspector are directly affected by his experiences in the war. The male detective figure is almost required by the genre to be emotionally or psychologically troubled. Sherlock Holmes certainly serves as the archetype for this--he must resort to controlled substances when his mind is not occupied by a case; he seems incapable of healthy interpersonal relationships; he is oddly self-absorbed. These characteristics seem definitive of the archetype of the male detective figure--three of my favorites are Colin Dexter's Inspector Morse, P.D. Jame's Inspector Dalgleish and Iain Rankin's Rebus. And Rutledge seems to fit within the boundaries and expectations of the archetype: his mind is troubled by his experiences of the war, so much so that he too seems incapable of healthy emotional connections with other humans; further, Rutledge hears the voice of Hamish in his head, the voice of a man he was forced to kill during the war. In these ways, Rutledge as a psychological and character study is just as interesting, maybe even more so, than watching the mystery itself unfold.And this is the very thing that appeals to me about the world that Todd creates: we are given a picture into the person who has lived through the War and is very much shaped by these experiences. This, then, becomes, at least in part, a study of the effects of warfare on the human psyche and even on the entire culture of England. This is what makes this "historical homicide" work as a period piece, what makes it compelling and interesting and more than just a beach blanket read.I do find Todd's writing style to be elegantly spare in this work. While the style is not necessarily poetic in nature, it feels almost minimalist, as though each word is carefully selected and nothing goes to waste. This lends a kind of elegance to the work an elevates it towards something more than just popular fiction.I know that I will certainly pick up more of Todd's novels, and if you have an interest in the murder mystery, particularly when it's oriented towards the period piece, I cannot recommend Todd more highly!tlc logo Thank you to TLC Book Tours for inviting me to host a stop on the tour! Check out the rest of the tour here.NOTE: A free review copy of this work was provided by the publisher. No monetary or other compensation was received.This review originally posted at Speaking of Books, a site devoted to book reviews and conversations about literature and culture. Visit us online at www.drennanspitzer.com

Sometimes in any criminal case it often appears open and shut. Meaning all the clues point to all the right people and it's simply a matter of connecting the proverbial dots to solidify the case. However in some, no matter how simply it looks to solve, but burden of proof may often times prove difficult or in some cases completely misleading. If you love a great mystery with a bit of twist to it and not too easy to solve, than I might suggest Charles Todd's latest novel, Proof of Guilt. This is the 15th book in his Inspector Ian Rutledge series and regardless of where you pick up in this series, they can all be read as a stand alone. Ian Rutledge works for Scotland Yard in the 1920's and once again finds himself with a body without any identification. A proper gentlemen's clothing attires the body along with a gold pocket watch. The body appears to have been the unfortunate victim of a car accident, as the body appears to have been dragged to the location is now has been found in. Simple open and shut case right? Or does it merely appear that this is what the murderer wants the body of the man to look like. What is really going on? Who is this well dressed man? Why has his body been found in the street with no apparent markings around him that would show he has been dragged by a car? If he was the victim of a robbery, why does he still carry a gold pocket watch but missing his identification? Why hasn't anyone reported this man missing?Ian Rutledge is a bit like your traditional Sherlock Holmes but with a modern flair. He finds himself bucking against the politics of Scotland Yard and his current supervisor while trying to solve this murder. The clues will lead our Inspector into a vast enterprise that begins just as the World War 1 is ending and businesses are still struggling to find a way to make money. It seems some of the wealthy business merchants would like to see this case simply go away and offer very little in the way of help for Inspector Rutledge. But just like Sherlock Holmes, he will not rest until he solves this crime. It truly is another page turner from beginning to end. Go ahead and try to solve this one before the end. Be warned however the evidence doesn't always point to the murderer. I received Proof of Guilt by Charles Todd compliments of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins for my honest review. This is my third Inspector Rutledge novel and was super excited to once again lose myself in a mystery and ride along as Dr. Watson, trying to solve the case. In every single instance, you are completely caught off guard by the end, and realize that sometimes that path of clues you think are linked are merely clues to keep you guessing til the end. Another award winning novel in my opinion and a must read for fans of historical murder/mysteryies! I give this one a 5 out of 5 stars and can't wait for the next one to hit the presses.

I was hooked the moment I started reading "Proof of Guilt," but disappointed at the conclusion, which left me shaking my head at the too-many left-open questions and really what Rutledge's solutions accomplished. But I'd read this book again.Ian Rutledge is the main character in more than a dozen mysteries by Charles Todd, an author who actually writes his books along with his mother. Rutledge is an inspector for Scotland Yard in the initial years after World War I. Rutledge is a still-suffering, shell-shocked military officer who, back at his pre-war job in London law enforcement, must deal with the voice in his head that belongs to a good friend he had ordered shot for disobedience on the front only moments before his unit was devastated by shells. A recurring theme, but undefined, is the concept of long-running post-traumatic injuries.In "Proof of Guilt," Rutledge is put on the case of two missing, and believed murdered, wine-industry leaders of a firm with offices in London and Portugal. Problem is that the bodies cannot be located, and the only body found is or is not directly related to the case because the man, run down by a vehicle, was carrying a valuable antique watch owned by one of the missing men.There are no shortage of suspects. Rutledge travels for miles, over and over, following leads while the interim head of Scotland Yard is pushing him for a solution with his own simple theory. As usual in these Rutledge books, the reader can become a bit lost and confused as new characters, often as suspects, are introduced. This confusion stymied me by the time I reached the end this time. And I was just left hanging on exactly why events had occurred and really who was responsible for what and whether some of guilty were even brought to justice.The intrigue of the Rutledge novels to me is that they represent the mindset so many readers of Sherlock Holmes books have recognized: Crime solutions by deductions during a time before forensic sciences made investigations more concrete. Rutledge must navigate the layers of humanity in which some people close to an investigation are great helpers while most have hidden agendas that keep them hesitant or completely unwilling to part with any helpful information. Are these agendas pertinent to the case, or are they just people protecting themselves from undeserved scrutiny.I love the Rutledge novels, and I highly recommend them (but read them in order) to lovers of mysteries and crime. You can explore them all at author Charles Todd's website (http://charlestodd.com/author/), where you also can find a listing of the order in which they have appeared.

Title: Proof of Guilt (Inspector Ian Rutledge #15)Author: Charles ToddPages: 343Year: 2013Publisher: William Morrow PublishingOn this case, Inspector Ian Rutledge has more bodies and suspects than he knows what to do with! He initially investigates what appears to be a car accident. A body is found in the middle of the road with signs of being dragged beneath a car. There is no identification on the body and no one steps forward, claiming to have accidentally struck someone on the road in the dark. A few outlying areas send in reports of missing persons, but nothing definitive is determined.In the meantime, Rutledge is sent to the small villages of Dedham and St. Hilary to try and track down a missing wine merchant. He learns the merchant heads up a very profitable business with a partner in Madeira. As he investigates, he begins to believe the businessman may have been murdered by his partner in Madeira. That is until the partner turns up missing as well! Now what? Ian has missing persons, dead bodies, and former criminals on the premise of being rehabilitated, living on the good will of a naïve lady who may or may not be connected to these two cases. Hamish is as always in Ian’s mind offering comments and criticism, some helpful while others not so much. Rutledge makes up his mind based on the evidence of who is the guilty party, but can find no hard proof. What follows is a race to see if Ian can catch a killer before the killer catches Ian.Lots of tension and suspense as this story races to its climactic end! There is one question that remained unanswered at the end of the story, but it still was a great ride from beginning to end. I first started this series with book #16, not realizing I was beginning at what at the time was the most current book. I enjoyed that book so much that I decided to start with book one to learn about Ian’s history and what made him tick as a policeman. I am looking forward to the next book in the series, A Fine Summer’s Day, when readers are taken back in Ian’s life to a time before WWI. This will only enrich the character and make him more human and three dimensional. Kudos to the writing team of Charles Todd for another fantastic story!My rating is 5 stars.Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility. Other reviews can be read at http://seekingwithallyurheart.blogspo.... Also follow me on Twitter @lcjohnson1988, FaceBook at https://www.facebook.com/lisa.johnson...

This one didn't quite capture me the way the others have. Probably because I am still not able to focus completely after husband's death. This plot seemed so labyrinthine that I could not keep track -- again probably my problem.I do love reading what I now call the "slower, non-tech" mystery. Things that might be settled in our time by a quick text or phone call or data search, can take days or weeks. And some questions are never asked because there isn't the context in which the question would occur. Only a few people had phones during the timeof this story. Rutledge was berated because of his use of the car, being only one of a few detectives with a car.The presence of the rehab center was key to helping to understand the cultural context, imo. But author did not fully explore death of owner's husband, which my have been a red herring.I missed having Rutledge's 'girlfriend' making at least one appearance. She was only mentioned in passing.Hamish is always contributory and such an interesting structure element by which the author manifests Rutledge's PTSD.

A man is apparently hit by a motorcar in a hit-and-run accident on a quiet street in Chelsea. He has no identification, and no one is able to identify him. Rutledge is lead to a respected firm of wine merchants where he discovers that the head of the firm has gone missing. Yet he is not the hit-and-run victim. The investigation eventually leads to a jilted fiancee, a unhappy sister, and a former convict with a history of violence. One of the things I liked about this installment in the series is that although Hamish is present, he's not as front and center as he's been in earlier volumes. Despite his occasional panic attacks, Rutledge seems to finally be getting his PTSD under control. It helps too that for the present at least, his supervising nemesis is out of the picture. I was surprised at Rutledge's powers of recuperation; he experienced physical injury on at least 3 occasions but seemed to bounce back rather quickly from bruises, knife wounds, and blows to his head!