Who saw him die? By JM Gregson.
A very good read with some good characters. I liked the story. Good read. 4*.

What a strange interesting story with lots of characters that are hard to trust. This is the first Inspector Peach novel but we did not see a lot of him, we mostly got to know the characters and what they thought about. At different times of the book you suspect different characters of committing the murder. I enjoyed reading this book and if you want to read a good old detective story without any foresensic styff this is the one for you.

Thank you Endeavour Press and Netgalley for the copy.

om Harrison has been a widower for seven years now…

He still lives in his old family home along with his son, Trevor, daughter-in-law, Ros, and their two small children.

Of his four housemates, Tom only really gets on with his grandchildren; his relationship with Trevor is difficult, lacking the easy camaraderie and bantering nature of his relationship with his only daughter, who resides in New Zealand.

Despite this, it has never occurred to Tom to find other living arrangements — Trevor is still family, and after all the two of them own the house together.

But Trevor, a social worker, helps give ex-prisoners a new start in life by housing them at the large mansion, allowing them to do odd jobs around the house, and encouraging them to go out and build new careers.

This state of affairs is not one particularly pleasing to Tom, who is unsure whether he and his grandchildren ought to be living with a family that includes con men, armed robbers, and murderers.

When Trevor unfolds plans to extend the property create more rooms for additional ex-cons, Tom is furious — it’s bad enough with the men who are already there, but to add even more is, to him, entirely unacceptable.

Refusing to consider Trevor’s plans or modify his views, he declares his intention to sell the house…an action that threatens not only each person living there, but the entire programme Trevor is so proud of.

An untimely death disrupts the household far more immediately than Tom’s plans of selling — and when the CID arrive, they make no secret of their suspicions of the ex-prisoners in residence.

As their enquiries proceed, DI Peach begins to uncover secrets both surprising and shocking. Life will never again be the same for the Harrison family.

Anyone might be guilty of murder.

The real question: who saw him die?

One of the best crime writers ever!!!!!

Thank you Net Galley. An interesting read, especially as it was written before forensics became big. The book has an old fashioned feel and kept me turning the pages. Strongly recommended.

This mystery was first published in 1994, so there are no forensics to help solve crimes ... just plain old detecting and wearing out shoes.

Tom Harrison, the family patriarch, is found at the bottom of a staircase .. dead.

Still living in his home of 30-plus years, he shared his home with his son, Trevor, his wife and children. Also 4 ex-convicts due to his son's profession as a social worker. He has taken these men into the home, helped them find jobs, etc.

Trevor wants to expand the house so that he can take in more ex-cons. His father has other ideas .. he wants to sell the house. After an argument with his father, he shares the news with the 'guests'. That night is the night his father dies.

It seems like everyone in the house, except for the young children, have a reason to want Tom dead.

Enter Inspector Peach, who automatically suspects all the ex-prisoners. He must try to untangle all the lies to get to the truth.

And then there is another death ....

This is an okay mystery... not terribly suspenseful. Peach is rather droll which makes him such an interesting study in what cops did before CSI became a hit. All the characters are colorful in their own way.

I wish to thank the author / Endeavour Press / Netgalley for the digital copy of this book. The opinion expressed here is unbiased and entirely my own.