The Hidden Assassins

by: Robert Wilson

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The Mistress of Alderley

Those of you who enjoy murder mysteries in an English setting, and who are not already fans of Robert Barnard, perhaps should be! Robert Barnard is prolific with his mystery books (he's written thirty-four at this point). He's also a mystery writer who chose different characters and protagonists for each of his earlier books. If Robert Barnard has eventually succumbed to a series, it's only in later novels, when his two detective characters – Detective Sergeant Charlie Peace (a young black man) and his superior, Mike Oddie, finally appear on the scene. In The Mistress of Alderley this doesn't happen until Chapter Eight.

The Mistress of Alderley may have the ring of a Romance book title, but believe me, it's not. Alderly is the name given to a large estate; a house not quite large enough to bear the title of manor or stately home, but big enough to have grounds and garden which would support the local fete. The first third of the book lulls you into a belief in perfection: perfection of surroundings, of relationship, of family. Caroline Fawley, the main character, is a former actress. She's also mistress of the great house, plus being mistress in fact of the charming and influential business tycoon, Marius Fleetwood. Still married, Marius evidently has an 'understanding' with his wife Shelia – they go their separate ways. Caroline, already burned by two previous marriages, is content with weekend sex, her unmarried state, her house, and her two teen-age children, Alexander and Stella. She has no regrets at all about relinquishing the stage, or the usual roles where she's cast in drawing room comedies.

Caroline's oldest daughter by her first marriage doesn't live at home, although she visits. Her name is Olivia, and those of you who are opera aficionados will delight in the fact that at least two thirds of the book deal with the operatic scene, where Olivia is an upcoming star as a dramatic soprano (in spite of her amazing sexual appetite and adventures). Familiar also to the opera fan would be Verdi's La Forza del Destino, the vehicle which allows Olivia her musical triumph in the book.

The Mistress of Alderley is chock full of interesting characters, including a baronet who constantly farts, the baronet's racist sister, a rector and his wife who can barely hide their disapproval of Caroline's unwedded liaison, Marius' weak-willed son, a mysterious young hiker named Peter, Rick Radshaw, a mediocre talent who was Caroline's first husband, and a number of others related or unrelated to those in the main cast of the book.

The perfection of Caroline's world is shattered during Chapter Eight with discovery of a murder. It coincides with Olivia's highly successful first night in her operatic role of Leonora. The subsequent mayhem discloses a number of unsavory circumstances and involves most of the remaining characters as suspects, with the single exception of Caroline, who retains a perfect alibi, being at the opera when the murder was committed. No one suspects the actual murderer, of course, until a chance sighting reveals a whole block of time heretofore unconsidered (Robert Barnard never disappoints his readers or fails to surprise us with his denouement). At the close of the mystery book, Caroline returns to a world she thought to have left for good, albeit in a different (and more lucrative) position.

The murder mystery novels of Robert Barnard aren't without their touch of humor here and there, and his sense of fun is evident in The Mistress of Alderley as well. His Corpse in a Gilded Cage (first printing 1985) is also abundant proof of his gifts in that line. Along with Robert Barnard's other English suspense compatriot authors, his absolute and unfailing knowledge of the various types of personality which compose Britain's strict class system always comes to the fore. Characterizations in every one of his books is well defined and complete. His settings
range all over England, acknowledging a familiarity with both city and countryside, as well as the complex, varying milieus within them.

Every new Robert Barnard murder mystery may be welcomed with delight, and the comfortable assurance it will provide at least one or more evenings of pleasure. That assurance of pleasure can be guaranteed whether or not you're familiar with the setting he has chosen for each individual book. The Mistress of Alderley belongs in such a category, as well as belonging on your bookshelf.

Alan Paul Curtis

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The Hidden Assassins

The Mistress of Alderley

by Robert Barnard

Alan Paul Curtis