A Fine Summer's Day (Inspector Ian Rutledge #17) by Charles Todd

Ian has made up his mind.  He's in love and he's asked Jean to marry him.  He's not sure why the women in life (sister, aunts and friends) aren't as enthused about as he is, but he's sure she's the one he wants.  She has a father who has been in the military and thinks he ought to leave Scotland Yard and immerse himself in a job that would keep him more at home.  That doesn't sound like something Ian would willing to do to me.

William Morrow & Company and Edelweiss allowed me the opportunity to read this book for review (thank you).  It's being published January 6th, so you can find a copy now at your local bookstore.

Ian finds himself investigating cases where an usual death has been reported.  There appears to be no reason for these men to commit suicide.  Yet each of them appears to have drank poisoned milk willingly.  They have nothing in common except the mode of death.  Even more discouraging is the fact that his boss wants him to forget pursuing one of the deaths because the constable has arrested another man.  It's the wrong man, but his boss doesn't want to hear that.

There's a lot of information in this book.  It talks about the start of WWI and how the English lads thought it'd be a short war and they would be home by Christmas.  You learn about how Ian started as a young policeman and how he uses his own contacts to get more information.  You wonder how his future marriage will work out.  And you especially wonder about who is killing these men.

The real kicker is even when the killer is identified, there is nothing they can do to him.  The men drank the milk willingly.  The last murder wasn't successful but the killer is going into the service to skip the country.  No one can reach him.  Or can they?