Murder strikes the law firm of fford Croft and Gibson!

Death with a Double Edge (Daniel Pitt #4) by Anne Perry            

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1911 and King George V is England’s monarch. The violent death of a senior lawyer in the law firm where Daniel Pitt works, fford Croft and Gibson, rocks the firm and opens up chaos and danger for Daniel, Thomas and Charlotte.

A man Daniel believes to be Kitteridge is discovered brutally murdered in a seedy part of London, an alley in Mile End, a “pretty bad part of the East end.” Heart in mouth Daniel goes to identify the body. It turns out the dead man is Jonah Drake. “Drake had been a very clever man, had won most of his cases, even when they seemed impossible.” A man who “knew the law as Daniel knew the alphabet.” The question is, what was it that took Drake to this area?

Daniel and Kitteridge need to investigate whether Drake’s murder has anything to do with his previous cases. Drake’s main area of expertise has been with cases around embezzlement. Concerns for the firm’s reputation drive Daniel and Kitteridge along as one murder soon turns to three.

Meanwhile one of Drake’s cases is to do with the murder of a woman. The man, Evan Faber was accused of beating a woman to death. Drake had successfully defended Fabre and he had been acquitted. 

However the more Daniel digs the uglier things could become.

It seems Faber’s father is a noted ship builder, owner of the biggest shipyards in the UK. An essential business in these days of rising European tensions. Apparently Thomas has been told by the Home Secretary to leave the father alone. Daniel’s investigations look like leading him not only into danger but into conflict with the Home Office.

Meanwhile the shadow of corruption, a slight stain over the firm of fford Croft and Gibson, is waiting to burst forth into a full blown scandal. As events turn even more suspect, both Thomas and Daniel find themselves facing and making hard choices. Marcus’s daughter, Miriam, is away in Holland studying forensic science. Daniel is reluctant to call her back, even as he worries about Marcus’ memory and his ability to handle the current situation.

Another clever and suspenseful read from Perry featuring some of my favorite personalities.

A Random House - Ballantine ARC via NetGalley 

Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change