Death at Thorburn Hall – the Sixth Drew Farthering Mystery

Drew Farthering and his beautiful bride head out to Scotland with his right-hand man, Nick Dennison, and Nick's beloved, Carrie Holland to enjoy the 1935 British Open (which, for those who don't know, is a golf tournament that's been around, like, forever...). The last thing any of them want or expect is to become involved in yet another murder mystery - particularly after the not-so-long-ago loss of Carrie's family to such horrific circumstances. Plus, Drew is looking forward to getting to know his relatives a bit more, and Nick is hoping to finally have the chance (and the courage) to pop the question! But, of course, this is a mystery series after all, so it is only a matter of time before a dead body turns up ... then another one ... and then yet one more ...

Death at Thorburn Hall is Julianna Deering's sixth installment in the Drew Farthering mystery series, and I hope it is not the last! I have thoroughly enjoyed these mysteries, with their Christian views, engaging characters, and challenging mysteries. I have had loved reading as Drew's romance with Madeline eventually blossomed into true love and marriage, and how Drew and Nick's friendship has evolved and grown stronger, to the point where Nick has become to Drew what Watson was to Holmes.  I will admit, the character of Carrie Holland is probably the weakest point for the series, but in this book, as she faces another murderous household (and so soon after the death of her own family under similar circumstances!), I could almost feel some sympathy for the poor girl.  And poor Nick, he is torn between his loyalty to Drew and desire to solve the crimes and his wanting to protect the woman he loves.

The mystery is one filled with plenty of twists and turns. The Farthering's host, Lord Rainsby, asks Drew upon his arrival to keep an eye on his business partner, who Rainsby believes is acting suspicious.  No sooner does he share his suspicions with Drew than the next day, he winds up dead from an apparent riding accident. Only, it wasn't an accident. Drew discovers that the saddle was tampered with, and when the police are reluctant to believe it was anything more than an accident, Drew feels compelled to uncover the truth. The suspects are numerous - his business partner, who seems to be way too supporting of Hitler's antics in Germany; one of his houseguests,, who is not who he appears to be and is helping himself to valuables from around the house; the mysterious young woman who has been seen having clandestine meetings with Rainsby's business partner as well as the ne'er-do-well boyfriend of Rainsby's daughter; or quite possibly Lady Rainsby herself, who gets arrested when it is revealed that Rainsby was about to change his well, leaving his wife absolutely nothing!  Rainsby's young daughter, Joan, is so distraught, she begs Drew to find out the truth - but the more Drew, Nick, and Madeline look into things, the more complicated it becomes!

Deering weaves a very wicked tale of deceit and treachery and, quite frankly, pure evil, with a mix of Nazis and undercover agents to keep the reader guessing up until the very end. Normally, I am able to figure out the culprit pretty early on in these stories, but even I have to admit that this one had me stumped. When the killer's identity was revealed, well, it definitely came as a shock - not at all the person I was suspecting. The climax to this mystery provides some very surprising twists, including a major one involving Drew's own mother, for whom he has been searching ever since he discovered the truth about her.  (I just hope that the resolution of that story thread does not signal the end of this series, as I have not seen any further books in this series solicited on Amazon or anywhere else, for that matter!)

This is definitely a series I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery.

RATING:  10 highly valuable silver place settings out of 10 for murder, mayhem, and madness, with a lot of misdirection and mirth to keep the story from being overly dark!