The Red Door ( Ian Rutledge Mysteries 12 ) by Charles Todd

" Some mysteries are just "who done it"; others are a story that happens to involve a murder or a crime.. Charles Todd writes books that are the latter. The Red Door has several story lines, and a story within a story. I came to know his characters; liked some, disliked others. They were real people to me. Ian Rutledge is a flawed person who functions perfectly at the inspector level, but cannot accomplish much on a personal level. His alter-ego Hamish makes some interesting comments on situations and I often found myself thinking that he was a good companion rather than a disturbing influence. We are not told much about how Hamish tortures Rutledge, only that he does. Learning the circumstances of Hamish's death one can see how his death would haunt Rutledge. Rutledge is very afraid that someone will detect the fact that he was shell-shocked in the war and is suffering consequences. Seems to me he would be better off admitting his problem than leaving people wondering at his behavior. Anyhow, the plot is about the Teller family and their history and how they deal with the disappearance of a brother, the death of another brother and a sister-in-law. There are unexpected twists. I think you will enjoy the book...."

Ian Rutledge 시리즈 중 가장 빨리 읽은 작품이다. 아마 이 작가의 스타일이 익숙해져서 그런 거 같다. 문장의 구조나 표현등이 반복적으로 사용되기 때문에 익숙해지는 장점이 있다. 실종, 복수, 질투, 희생, 탐욕, 결혼, 사랑, 열차사고, 추적, 연쇄 살인사건, 의심스러운 죽음들, 이기적인 사랑, 시기, 경쟁심, 앵무새, 유산 등이 작품을 이해하는데 중요한 단어들이다. 1차 대전 전후의 역사에 대한 작가의 전문적 지식들이 돋보이는 작품들이다.