A False Mirror

Inspector Ian Rutledge, Book 9

By: Charles Todd

Narrated by: Samuel Gillies

Unhealed scars of the Great War still torment Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge. A haunted, damaged shell of a man, he has been sent to the small coastal town of Hampton Regis to solve a violent crime and to confront his own tragic past.

An officer who served with Rutledge in the trenches of France before being sent back to England under suspicious circumstances has now been accused of savagely beating the husband of the woman he still loves. The suspect has taken the wife hostage, threatening to kill her and her maid unless Rutledge takes charge of the investigation.

Although the case painfully mirrors Rutledge's own past and the love he lost to another man, he cannot refuse it. When the unconscious, brutalized victim vanishes without a trace, it's clear that this peaceful little town hides a vicious murderer and secrets powerful enough to kill for.

©2007 Charles Todd (P)2014 Recorded Books

Another great listen

Great story filled with well written characters and a fabulous performance, just as I have come to expect from Charles Todd.

 always fascinating

I look forward to the periods of time I have available to listen to the latest Charles Todd I have on my phone. The wonderful thing is you can listen to them out of order and be just as amazed and riveted as if you were following Ian Rutledge book by book. His books are way more than mysteries.

Good Despite The Improbable Plot

I'm a fan so I enjoyed this one, but rolled my eyes more than once at the author's choices for plot progression!!!
Not even close to The Red Door or A Fine Summer's Day.

Very good with surprise ending

Charles Tood does it again. Didn't see the ending coming. very surprising. I would recommend this book to everyone.

Reader Slow

It picked up in the ladt third of the book. Story took some patience with the hostage situation, but this was 1920s England.

Situation not plausible but still a great listen

A hostage situation with no effort to subdue the hostage taker in spite of countless opportunities? Maybe back in those days this would have not seemed absurd?

Nevertheless, the mystery kept me intrigued and I spent a lot of time just sitting and listening to find out what was going to happen, which is unusual for me - I usually just listen to audio books when driving, walking or doing chores.

The characters were well developed and interesting as was the plot if you are willing to overlook the unreasonable set up. This series is my favorite so I am willing to overlook the weakness in the stories.

I love the voice of Gillies - some have complained he doesn't differentiate the voices much, which is true but not really a problem, at least for me.

If you are a Charles Todd fan, do not skip this one. If you haven't read his books before, you should start earlier in the series, preferable the first book, A Test of Wills.

another good book in the series

An interesting story still bringing back connections from World war I and I'm sure that that horrific war will never leave the lives of all the characters. The authors as usual put together some twists and turns then making it interesting read in the performance that was given for the audiobook was good

Complex Mystery That Got Better and Better

I have to admit that during the first chapters of this one, I ALMOST quit listening. But I'm a huge fan of this series and I had to give it a chance. I was really put off by Mallory hitting a police officer with his vehicle, then running. But the behavior of the officer, hanging on to a moving vehicle, was not smart either. Then Mallory going to the house of his former fiancé, the wife of the missing man, was just ridiculous. But the crazy doesn't stop there. When the police come, Felicity Hamilton, Matthew Hamilton's wife, thrusts her husband's pistol into Mallory's hands, setting herself up as his hostage. Felicity says she loves both Mallory and her husband. 😕 It was at this point that I was utterly disgusted . . . and almost quit. I'm disappointed in the authors. This could've and should've set this one up better. As time went on in the house with Felicity and Mallory, its clear that they do not love one another, but they're stuck with the situation they are in . . . due to their own stupidity. Everyone believes that Matthew Hamilton, who was at the local surgery, in bad shape, is now dead. And that Mallory is the murderer. But Inspector Ian Rutledge, ever one to be beyond fair and seeking the absolute truth, cannot get the dots to connect, making Mallory the killer. Then more incidents happen, making it even more unlikely that Mallory could have done it. As the story progressed, the intrigue built up and I was glad that I stuck with it. Don't miss this one. You'll be glad you stuck it out, too.

Typical Ian Rutledge Mystery: Very Good

Others have complained about the plot, pace, and performance - If you enjoy Charles Todd & his characters you will enjoy this story. The reader alters his inflection and cadence subtly to indicate a variety of characters, and several characters are referred to by name in some places and title in others, so it can be challenging to determine whose dialog is being represented as the story moves to the conclusion. It is still entertaining, well written, and well performed. As for the reader’s Scottish brogue being extreme - yes, but not difficult to understand. I expect it is being read as it is written as opposed to the reader being creative on his own.

As usual, very unusual story with lots of twists and turns.

This story may have had too many twists and turns and subplots. At times it was hard to understand how the parts would tie together. Lots of characters. The hostage situation seemed far fetched.