The Body in the Dumb River: A Yorkshire Mystery (Chief Inspector Littlejohn #35)

The Body in the Dumb River is a well crafted murder mystery by George Bellairs. Originally published in 1961, this reprint and reformat in the British Library Crime Classics series includes an introduction by Martin Edwards. Due out 1st Dec 2019 by Poisoned Pen Press, it's 224 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.

This is a well written mystery, the 35th in the series to feature Inspector Littlejohn. I've really enjoyed these new (beautifully presented) classic British mysteries, many of which have been long out of print. This particular volume was well plotted and written with a satisfyingly twisty denouement which managed to surprise me on a couple of points. The epilogue was especially ironic and well played on the author's part. This is a solidly entertaining mystery and it wears its age (58+ years) surprisingly well.

Mr. Edwards' introductions are always erudite, full of interesting tidbits, and worth the price of admission. I enjoyed the commentary and the mystery itself very much.

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.