Gift Wrapped (A Hennessey and Yellich Mystery)
Stately pacing, an erudite if rather formal writing style, and unusual plots distinguish Turnbull’s British police procedurals and offer the patient reader a richly rewarding experience. This outing has DCI George Hennessey and his sidekick, the oddly named Somerled Yellich, facing one of the most peculiar cases of their careers. The story commences when a woman brings a set of postcards to Micklegate Bar police station, stating that the numbers on the backs of the cards indicate a site outside of York where she believes a body may be buried. But that’s only the beginning of the bizarre case, which ultimately involves three missing persons, a dead teenager, blackmail, murder, and two evil sisters who will stop at nothing to acquire their husbands’ wealth and property. A cleverly plotted, absorbing yarn that crime-fiction readers will savor. --Emily Melton