A Divided Loyalty

A Novel

By: Charles Todd

Narrated by: Simon Prebble

Scotland Yard detective Ian Rutledge is assigned one of the most baffling investigations of his career—a cold murder case with an unidentified victim and a cold trail with few clues to follow.

Chief Inspector Brian Leslie, a respected colleague of Ian Rutledge’s, is sent to Avebury, a village set inside a great prehistoric stone circle not far from Stonehenge.

A young woman has been murdered next to a mysterious, hooded, figure-like stone, but no one recognizes her—or admits to it. And how did she get there? Despite a thorough investigation, it appears that her killer has simply vanished.

Rutledge, returning from the conclusion of a case involving another apparently unknown woman, is asked to take a second look at Leslie’s inquiry, to see if he can identify this victim. But Rutledge is convinced Chief Superintendent Jameson only hopes to tarnish his earlier success once he also fails.

Where to begin? He too finds very little to go on in Avebury, slowly widening his search beyond the village—only to discover that unlikely—possibly even unreliable—clues are pointing him toward an impossible solution, one that will draw the wrath of the Yard down on him, and very likely see him dismissed if he pursues it. But what about the victim—what does he owe this tragic woman? Where must his loyalty lie?

Good mystery, great characters, great atmosphere

A Divided Loyalty b Charles Todd takes place in early 1920s England. A place still spinning from WW I. The scars of that war, the mental anguish, follows Inspector Rutledge wherever he goes. This is a good mystery. Very atmospheric. The narration by Simon Prebble paints the scenes and brings the characters to live.

Excellent story & narration

Yet another engaging Ian Rutledge mystery that draws you into post WWI English life with excellent narration by Simon Prebble.

And the beat goes on

The newest and best in this series. You push to finish the story and then you are sorry it's over. I can't wait to see where Ian will take us.next.

Left All Alone in a Circle of Stone

Wow! Even after writing 22 books in this series, Charles Todd still has me hooked! Inspector Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard is sent to investigate in the small village of Avebury which has a huge prehistoric circle of stones much like Stonehenge. Coming in behind Chief Inspector Brian Leslie to take a second look at the case, Rutledge believes he's been sent there to fail, and his constant companion (in his head) since the war, Hamish MacLeod, the Army corporal he had shot in the war is second guessing him the whole time. Avebury is a superstitious place with some believing the stones hold special power, while others such as the rector and his wife, just want to let the young victim rest in peace. But Rutledge wants justice for the young murdered woman, and doggedly pursues it for her, leading himself into some dangerous spots. The case takes twists and turns that I would have never expected. Maybe the best in the series!

Nice twisty detective story

I haven’t read any of this series before but liked this one. The last few hours were definitely hard to stop listening.... made me think of different parts of my house to clean so I could keep going! :-). Recommend it as an interesting listen.