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Peppered with the author’s signature dry (and often laugh-out-loud) humour, this is PI Jackson Brodie, former cop and always wise guy, at his most unflappable. Hired to track a stolen painting, lifted from a country estate by a mysterious woman who just may have many more crimes up her sleeve, Brodie is hot on the trail and not above calling in a favor or two from his not-really-so-unwilling and sometimes unofficial partner DC Reggie Chase.

The petite Reggie loves words, order, and following rules – all of which fall by the wayside as Jackson’s hands-on approach takes the pair into this swirling, complex, and yes, zany, cast of characters (as crazily textured as the best you will find in PG Wodehouse). Here we will meet, to name but a few: the Reverend Simon Cate, a long-time atheist hiding under his dog-collar, “almost handsome” with his “leonine hair” and love for furry animals; Major Ben Jennings, a sweetly vulnerable war-ravaged combat veteran suffering from PTSD, doing his best to keep a stiff upper lip, as per his savagely stoic mom, who is both hearty and heartless; and Lady Honoria Milton, lover of jigsaws, afternoon tea, and decorum, who remains surprisingly clear-eyed about her eccentric and (likely sociopathic) closest family members.

As the plot escalates, murder and mayhem (times two) are not far behind, as Jackson and Reggie work their way to closure on the actual crimes at hand, and also unexpectedly find themselves participating in a (fictional) murder-mystery weekend in Lady Milton’s stately manor.

A terrific read, which represents a more-than-welcome revisit with PI Jackson Brodie and DC Reggie Case, from an author, and a series, that absolutely never disappoints.

A great big thank you to the publishers, the author, and #Netgalley for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.