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Watchers of Time: An Inspector Ian Rutledge…
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Watchers of Time: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Novel (Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery) (original 2001; edition 2002)

by Charles Todd

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
6911532,910 (3.84)41
Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:“If anyone can turn a simple village mystery into a brooding Greek tragedy, it’s Charles Todd. . . . Todd handles grave issues with great compassion”The New York Times Book Review 

 In a marshy Norfolk backwater, a priest is brutally murdered after giving a dying man last rites. For Scotland Yard’s Ian Rutledge, an ex-officer still recovering from the trauma of war, it looks to be a simple case. Yet the Inspector finds himself uncovering secrets that the local authorities would prefer not to see explored. Rutledge pares away layers of deception to piece together a chain of events that stretches from the brooding marshes to one of the greatest sea disasters in history—the sinking of the Titanic. Who is the mysterious woman who may have boarded that ship—and who is the secretive woman who survived it? Only Rutledge can answer those questions . . . and prevent a killer who’ll stop at nothing from striking again. 

Praise for Watchers of Time

“One of the best historical series being written today . . . In the grand tradition of English murder mysteries.”The Washington Post Book World

“With his tortured detective Ian Rutledge and the ghost who inhabits his mind . . . Charles Todd has swiftly become one of the most respected writers in the mystery genre. . . . The pair is unique among sleuths.”The Denver Post 

“Outstanding. Todd’s portrait of Rutledge and postwar England remains powerful.”—Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.
… (more)
Member:auntieknickers
Title:Watchers of Time: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Novel (Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery)
Authors:Charles Todd
Info:Bantam (2002), Mass Market Paperback, 448 pages
Collections:Your library, Deaccessioned, Currently reading (inactive), To read (inactive), Read but unowned
Rating:****
Tags:None

Work Information

Watchers of Time by Charles Todd (2001)

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» See also 41 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 15 (next | show all)
(2007) Scotland Yard is asked to assist on the apparent murder of a local priest which appears to be connected to a petty theft of church funds. It quickly is determined that a strong man from a side show is the culprit and he is quickly arrested. Ian Rutledge doesn't think everything adds up and pursues the case beyond his superiors' wishes, as usual. He and Hamish discover that the priest had an obsession with the recent Titanic sinking and its survivors. A local gentry is drawn into it when it is determined that the wife of one of his sons was on the ship when it went down, but Rutledge finds that she may not have even been on the ship. Turns out the the gentry's sons and he had murdered the wife and covered it up by making it appear she was one of the disaster's victims. The priest was murdered as it appeared he was getting too close to the truth. KIRKUS: Two weeks after the fete at St. Anne's in the Norfolk village of Osterley, Father James lies dead in the rectory. Although Inspector Blivens thinks robbery was the motive¥the fete proceeds are goneÂ¥Father James's bishop, not so sure, asks Scotland Yard to pop around. The Yard sends off Ian Rutledge, recovering from a shoulder wound in the line of duty and still deviled by his memories of service in the Great War and the apparition of dead soldier Hamish MacLeod. Blivens quickly takes into custody Matthew Walsh, the fete's strong man, but further inquiries lead Rutledge to Lord Sedgewick, the local squire; his sons Arthur and Edwin; Priscilla Connaught, the only villager who truly hated Father James; May Trent, a survivor of the Titanic, to whom Father James bequeathed a picture of Arthur's late wife Virginia; and the squire's former chauffeur, Herbert Baker, a parishioner of Mr. Sims at Holy Trinity, who nevertheless insisted on talking with Father James on his deathbed. There'll be another homicide, a trek around the countryside, the revelation of an old murder, and endless cups of tea before Rutledge, exhausted and aching, painstakingly assigns blame for all three deaths, cranks up his automobile, and heads back to London with the ever-present Hamish haunting him from the back seat.A spot-on recreation of the 1919 period, some wily use of the Titanic tragedy and villagers' xenophobia, and the most persistent plaguing by a ghost since Macbeth. Todd fans (Legacy of the Dead, 2000, etc.) will queue up for this one.Pub Date: Oct. 30, 2001ISBN: 0-553-80179-1Page Count: 339Publisher: Bantam
  derailer | Jan 25, 2024 |
recommended by Jon Katz...Bedlam Farm Journal
British mystery, post WWI
  pollycallahan | Jul 1, 2023 |
death of priest leads to scandal and murder previously unsuspected
  ritaer | Jun 26, 2021 |
I seems I should have read the one before this first. I let too much time pass and didn't realize that the series builds on itself. A lot of talk about something that happened in Scotland that I didn't know about. I enjoyed the reader, though he didn't differentiate between characters with his voice, so I sometimes was confused. I'll look for the missing title. A good series. ( )
  njcur | Apr 16, 2021 |
As these books go on, I'm enjoying time spent with Rutledge more and more. I can even tolerate Hamish more now then I could in the beginning. The mystery here was fair, but it felt a little drawn out, and the books are beginning to feel too formulaic. ( )
  duchessjlh | Sep 9, 2019 |
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» Add other authors (2 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Charles Toddprimary authorall editionscalculated
Ascoli, JordanitTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Beauchamp, ThierryTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Gillies, SamuelNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Gnade, UschiTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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For Elayne K. McCullough--

For whom traveling the world was a joyous adventure
And whose friendship was a treasured gift.

And for Bill and her family, who brought her so much happiness.

Bon voyage...
First words
September 1919
Osterley

Dr. Stephenson turned away from the bed where the dying man lay breathing so lightly the blanket over his thin chest barely stirred.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:“If anyone can turn a simple village mystery into a brooding Greek tragedy, it’s Charles Todd. . . . Todd handles grave issues with great compassion”The New York Times Book Review 

 In a marshy Norfolk backwater, a priest is brutally murdered after giving a dying man last rites. For Scotland Yard’s Ian Rutledge, an ex-officer still recovering from the trauma of war, it looks to be a simple case. Yet the Inspector finds himself uncovering secrets that the local authorities would prefer not to see explored. Rutledge pares away layers of deception to piece together a chain of events that stretches from the brooding marshes to one of the greatest sea disasters in history—the sinking of the Titanic. Who is the mysterious woman who may have boarded that ship—and who is the secretive woman who survived it? Only Rutledge can answer those questions . . . and prevent a killer who’ll stop at nothing from striking again. 

Praise for Watchers of Time

“One of the best historical series being written today . . . In the grand tradition of English murder mysteries.”The Washington Post Book World

“With his tortured detective Ian Rutledge and the ghost who inhabits his mind . . . Charles Todd has swiftly become one of the most respected writers in the mystery genre. . . . The pair is unique among sleuths.”The Denver Post 

“Outstanding. Todd’s portrait of Rutledge and postwar England remains powerful.”—Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.

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