Through the Wall by Patricia Wentworth (Lippincott, 1950) is the 17th (according to www.stopyourekillingme.com and Wikipedia) or 19th (Amazon and GoodReads) mystery featuring Miss Maud Silver, former governess and current successful private investigator. While each book references her former profession, I have yet to find the book, if one exists, that explains exactly how she made that transition. It would be a story well worth reading.
In this outing Martin Brand takes his revenge on the relatives that have lived off his generosity for years by leaving his substantial estate to an unknown niece. Marion Brand has been working in a real estate office, quietly supporting herself and a sickly sister, along with the sister’s layabout husband, and had no notion that she had a wealthy relative until a solicitor contacts her.
She is stunned to learn about her inheritance. While she comes to terms with just how considerably her circumstances have changed, the layabout husband makes plans for the expenditure of the fortune she’s inherited, confident that Marion will divide the money with her sister. The enraged relatives are left without the proverbial shilling, including a home. Marion has also inherited Uncle Martin’s house near the sea, which is actually two homes with connecting doors. He advises her in his will to re-establish the division between the two houses, as evicting the relatives will cause more trouble than she is likely prepared for.
While living next door to antagonistic people will be awkward, Marion loses no time in packing up and moving into her half of the house, where she hopes her sister will grow stronger. One of the people in the other half of the house when she arrives is a visiting actress and singer who is being blackmailed. She consults Miss Silver but declines to take her advice to go to the police. When the actress is found murdered a few days later, wearing Marion’s coat, the police ask themselves if the actress was killed because of something in her life or if she was killed because her murderer thought she was Marion Brand?
Fortunately Miss Silver and her favorite Scotland Yard detectives are on the case. I usually have some idea of the culprit in these books but this story had several unpleasant people and I would have been happy to see any of them led away in handcuffs. This series is my current comfort read. I have read and re-read Agatha Christie’s novels so often that I can quote from my favorites, so there is little point in visiting them yet again. This title filled the need for an enjoyable way to spend a few hours. Recommended for fans of Golden Age detection.