Proof of Guilt: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery

Written by Charles Todd

Narrated by Simon Prebble

Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard must contend with two dangerous enemies in New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd's Proof of Guilt.

Can Rutledge solve the apparent murder of a top wine merchant while dealing with interference from his superior, the new Acting Chief Superintendent?

Readers of Charles Todd’s Bess Crawford books and London-based Ian Rutledge mysteries will be thrilled with Proof of Guilt, clue by clue.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Jan 29, 2013
• ISBN: 9780062211569

Charles Todd

Charles Todd is the New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries, the Bess Crawford mysteries, and two stand-alone novels. A mother-and-son writing team, Caroline passed away in August 2021 and Charles lives in Florida.

Reviews for Proof of Guilt

[Debra Lee · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I am a great fan of this period in history. The genteel ways of dealing with both the gentry and the village folk by the hero is reminiscent of a much better world. But, just who is Hamish? I am guessing his spirit is a hold over from the battlefield.

[jzdro · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the one with the family named French that lives in London and Madeira. On several occasions, some of them crucial to the plot, characters do nonsensical things. For our dear Ian, the new boss is as bad as the old boss, although in a different way. The consequences are similar, however, as as they include provision by the (Acting) Chief Superintendent of Scotland Yard of opportunities for Rutledge to take dangerous risks upon himself in order to solve a case despite obstruction by his boss. This novel was poorly edited. For example, at one point Rutledge parks his car a couple of blocks away, walks to the Rectory, gets out of his car, and approaches the Rector. Hamish is behaving pretty nicely these days, and good old Frances, kept ever in the dark by the brother who loves her, seems to have found love at last.

[newsieq · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Inspector Ian Rutledge’s latest case involves a hit-and-run death – and it starts rather simply. But that death soon gets intertwined with a missing man whose family owns a Madeira wine company with offices in Britain and Portugal. Rutledge, a shell-shocked World War I veteran with the voice of a man he executed on the battlefield in his head constantly, has a new boss who decides who’s guilty without knowing all the facts – and, in this case, even having a body. The boss insists Rutledge arrest a suspect the inspector doesn’t believe did the deed.All the Inspector Rutledge mysteries have a dark feel to them – and our hero seems to spend most of his time on the road between this English village and that … interrogating suspects and witnesses multiple times before nabbing the baddie. In Proof of Guilt, voice-in-the-head Hamish seems to crop up less frequently than in previous books. That is fortunate for our hero, who may be getting through his PTSD, but unfortunate for readers, as Hamish (believe it or not) can actually lighten the mood.I enjoyed this latest entry in the series – it is a nice change from the frothy cozies I usually read – and I will continue looking forward to the next.

[meadowmist_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Ian Rutledge is back....solving another murder, and what a murder it is. Rutledge is left with nothing but a body in the middle of the street, questions about how the body got there, and no identification but a gold watch inside a coat pocket...a gold watch that could only belong to a gentleman.The gold watch did give Rutledge some leads, but he kept finding dead ends with each investigation....the criminal was quite clever. Who could this body be? Without any identification and only a gold watch that lead to the prominent French family, this was going to be a difficult case. Thankfully good old Hamish was there to help.And, of course, who could have done it? Was it self-staged, was it Lewis French 's jilted fiancée, was it Mr Belford a retired military man who gave his own ideas too perfectly of what he thought happened, or was it Lewis's sister who wasn't too happy with her brother? No answer could be found, and the search continued in London, St. Hilary, and Dedham. Scotland Yard only had small bits of evidence besides the body and a missing Lewis French and then a missing cousin, Matthew Traynor, along with a handkerchief with pansies, a picture, a piece of cloth that matched the jacket of the dead man, two women close to Lewis, and a family who kept released prisoners as its household staff. There wasn't enough evidence to convict anyone because there wasn't enough "proof of guilt" for any suspect, but the search and investigation moved on with increasing danger to Rutledge himself.PROOF OF GUILT is another marvelous mystery that Charles Todd always packs with splendid descriptions of landscapes and characters, appealing characters, and a thorny mystery to solve. Mr. Todd's books are habitually filled with twists and turns that make you ponder, that keep you guessing, and that are always perfectly planned mysteries featuring Mr. Todd's favorite Inspector who makes it all happen. 5/5This book was given to me free of charge without compensation in exchange for an honest review.

[goorgoahead · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

See more reviews at Short & Sweet Reviews.

Proof of Guilt is the fifteenth book in the series of Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries; however, like most long-running mystery series, it's possible to jump right in without having much, or any, previous knowledge of the series. That held true for this book for the most part, although there were some confusing aspects and I think I overall would have been more satisfied with it had I been a long-time reader. Rutledge, who fought in WWI, is still living with the after-effects, most of which are easy to understand, save for the occasional voice in his head belonging to a dead soldier named Hamish. This isn't explained at first so I thought I'd missed out on Hamish's introduction; it takes a few mentions of Hamish before the narration explains it. Also, there's very little time given over to physical description of Rutledge or other returning characters, so I spent the entire book not actually having a clear mental picture of the main character -- not a big deal for all readers, but it threw me for a bit of a loop.

That said, Proof of Guilt is a pretty standard crime procedural, with the added bonus fact that it takes place in England in the 1920s. There are a lot of different social habits and rules that had to be observed back then, and it was neat to see those in a mystery rather than a romance. I'm used to modern crime stories, so it was a nice change of pace to read something unfamiliar, even if 2013-me was flailing on the inside because of how different investigative procedures were in the 20s. I did a lot of hand flapping over spoliation of evidence and confidentiality and looking for evidence that fits your theory instead of looking at evidence in an unbiased way.

But, never mind that. This is a book with a lot of twists and turns, and just as Rutledge (and the reader) starts to think that he's got a handle on the crime he's investigating, several more angles pop up to complicate the matter. There are a lot of characters to keep straight, a lot of backstory, a lot of motives. Many characters have similar names, too, which makes it harder to keep up. I could have used a list of characters, like fantasy books have, so I could remember at any given time what role a character played in the story.

The book started off slow, and the first few chapters were a bit of a chore to get through, but the pace definitely picked up by the end. I was left a little unsatisfied by the ending as I felt like all the loose ends were not tied up, but I'm guessing they were left open to be addressed in future books. I'd be interested in going back and checking out earlier books in the series, especially to get more context and background on Rutledge. For being a crime/mystery novel, the book is very clean - there was no bad language that I could recall, no romance/love side plots, and though there are deaths in the book, they are never described in great detail.

Check out the Rafflecopter below to win a copy of this book for yourself! Open to US readers (or international readers who have an address in the US where they can receive mail) only.

[mm_jones · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge works a murder case in summer of 1920. The corpse is unidentified, but not the obvious choices. People are missing, the Acting Inspector takes the expedient choice to settle the case, but Rutledge tries to find the true answer. I've read many in the series and this novel might be one of my favorites, so it was surprising to see how many of the reviewers didn't like it. It seems to have the right balance of personalities and locations to make a great read. The mystery part had plenty of red herrings, but the flow was straight-forward.

[jamespurcell · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Typical Rutledge; gadabout the countryside, angst about his life and gratuitous advice from Hamish as he tries to identify a hit and run death probably before they were called such. The corpse could be from a sort of dysfunctional family with the only visible member; the remnant female who frequently proclaims her "woe is me" life. A cast off fiance becomes a damsel in distress when her grandfather confesses to a crime that Rutledge's new boss wants cleared quickly.However, all this leads to an ending that was still confusing after several readings. Who done it and who was done as well as who is buried in the backyard are left like dangling participles with who is Baxter also to be determined.

[mommatracey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Enjoyed this book like nearly all of the other Rutledge books but I'd really like to know WHO Baxter is talking about on page 339. "He's in the roses. When the French woman went to London."

It's either Lewis French or Mr. Bennett but unfortunately the author didn't see fit to wrap up that loose thread.

I agree with other reviewers who disliked the rushed pace of this book. I haven't gone back and counted actual days but it feels like we went from start to finish in less than a month. Who solves a double murder with no victim bodies in less than a month?

I'm hoping that the author will get back on track with the next book.

[akmamma · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

How did they solve mysteries before we had the tool kits any good CSI agent had? Without DNA, Google, finger prints and fax machines? When no one was caught on a traffic cam dragging a body behind their car? Well apparently you had super stars like Inspector Ian Rutledge because after his fifteenth case documented in this wonderful mystery and all the evidence pointing in several different directions, including a signed confession, he is still able to catch the bad guy.Identifying one body is difficult enough in early 20th century England. But when it points to another persons disappearance and several other seemingly unrelated deaths? This mystery begins with just one unidentified body and the next thing you know, there is another which seems to be attached to another mystery which spans back generations. Proof of Guilt is a murder mystery set in post WWI England with our veteran Scotland Yard Inspector, Ian Rutledge leading the way and finding out just who really did it!

I adore mystery novels such as these. How I missed this series is beyond me. No. 15, Proof of Guilt, was the first exposure to the Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries. This was presented as a stand-alone however I really would have preferred having the experience and background of reading the prior books. Even if you are an avid reader of pre-scientific crime solving, this one takes paying very close attention. I had to start over again, with a notebook.

There were so many twists and turns I was lost several times. I kept thinking I knew who had done it, especially when I am given the obvious and suspicious freshly dug “flower bed” in the rose garden of a particularly cranky sister of a mysteriously missing man, smack in walks another character, clue or turn in the road and I could not have been more wrong. And than we have the very smarmy to smart for his own shirt former military inspector whose house the dead body, which started this crazy carnival ride, was found in front of.. our first person of interest.. wait than there was each of the fiancés, oh and the missing cousin… oh of course the lawyers, we can always count on the lawyers to be guilty of something right? Did I expect who it was to be who it was? Did I expect any of this? Oh god no I was so confused even with my scratched out list of names, my myriad of charts and arrows and clues .. and chewed on pencils (yes I was doing it old school.) And do not forget the watch, leave it to a bloody high-end time piece to make things go, excuse my stumble into pop-culture, wibbldy-wobbily and than some!

In the end I was un-knotting my fingers and uncrossing my eyes and drooling a bit… in other words I had a blast! I will be making time to read all of the prior 14 before because I believe knowing this inspector is going to be a reason to keep coming back for more.

I recommend this to anyone who likes a big mystery challenge, who thinks they cannot be beat? Oh bring it and try to figure this one out. The clues were there, it is making sure you can “weed” them out to find the answers!

[brianewilliams · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a suspenseful murder mystery set in 1920 England. There are several plot twists and switchbacks leading to an exciting ending. It's the second of the Inspector Rutledge series that I've read (even though it's 15th in the series) and it's remarkable to me how the author has kept the stories fresh after 14 previous books.

[bookladychris · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Inspector Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard begins the investigation of a man found hit on the side of the road. Taking place in 1920 after England was involved in the first World War, many of the characters, including Rudledge, are fighting the ghosts of their past during the war. Although the characters proved to be interesting for this time period, I found the story moved slowly and had to push myself to finish it. Apparently, the English are much more for talking than action. The action did happen in the last five chapters though.

[pennykaplan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Ian Rutledge is again driving back and forth across southern England solving murders. Love the setting, writing and character, but I really lost the thread in this one. A body is found, but whose body and how is it related to the missing head of a family involved in the production and importing of Madeira wine. Maybe you'll have better luck sticking with Rutledge as he drives around the country.

[bookangel_a · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have enjoyed every mystery novel I have read by Charles Todd, both the Ian Rutledge series and the Bess Crawford series. This installment was just as interesting.Ian Rutledge is faced with a complicated mystery. A man is found dead and no one knows who he is. His expensive watch leads Rutledge to a wealthy family in the wine business. Neither of the partners in the business can be found. It's maddening for Rutledge, who keeps running into dead ends, and helps to keep the reader turning the pages, wanting to know just who this dead man really is. A lot of characters are introduced and there are quite a few plot threads which all manage to come together in the end.Of course, Hamish Macbeth frequently adds his input and warns Rutledge of danger when the murderer decides Rutledge is too dangerous and must die too. There's also a woman, and Rutledge develops some feelings for her even though she is under suspicion by the police.It's a complex yet compelling mystery, and like every Ian Rutledge novel, it is quite melancholy. I'm really hoping things start to improve for Rutledge in future novels so that he can begin to heal from the war, and so that he isn't quite so lonely.

[pinkozcat · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I found this book very disappointing because I have enjoyed all the other Inspector Rutledge books.In this book, Inspector Rutledge was investigating a hit and run accident which he concluded was murder of an unidentified man. From there things went a bit belly-up with Rutledge deciding who the murderer was with very little evidence and then setting out to find evidence to fit his case - which is exactly how the authors of murder mysteries write their books. It was no whodunnit - we knew who was going to be found guilty almost from the start and with no possible hope of working out the proof - it was handed to us on a plate and very contrived.The other disappointment was the slide into American figures of speech. I know that the authors are American but they are writing about English people in the 1920s and there were three glaring errors. Charles Todd needs to use an English editor to eliminate "in back", 'it fit the picture' and the use of 'lay' in the present tense instead of 'lie'. Only birds and reptiles lay in the present tense; they lay eggs.

[literaryrunner · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have greatly enjoyed Rutledge mystery series books and except for the first two chapters of this one, it is another winner. Rutledge is a shell-shocked World War I newly home vet back on the Scotland Yard team carrying his anxieties and fears into every case along with his self imposed conscience- a dead soldier he feels responsible for. The first chapter just doesn't seem to tell me any information I need to solve the mystery unless I am missing that connection. The second chapter didn't need to be in the book at all as the information contained was well woven into the rest of the book. The Todds have a wonderful sense of movement in their story line and never verge on sentimentality. I am a little tired of Hamish, however, at this point in the series yet he is not as prevalent as he was in the beginning. If you haven't read any of this series, start at the beginning and see how Rutledge's character keeps developing.

[delphimo_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I felt that the authors presented too many characters with similar names. I had a difficult time recognizing the various individuals. The plot and action took many twists and turns. Ian drove back and forth to the country and to London. Hamish was relatively quiet in this book, and I missed her observations on the investigation. I wonder if Hamish will be replaced by a wife for Ian, especially now that Ian's sister, Frances, will be getting married. Another area of interest is the interaction between the acting superintendent and Ian. Will Bowles return from medical leave? The story of revenge taken decades later is interesting, but the first chapter does not seem necessary to the story.

[cfk_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Proof of Guilt reminded me of just how much I enjoy reading Charles Todd's books. Rutledge is both interesting and appealing as a character burdened with guilt for his role in leading men to death in WWI and his struggles with the aftermath of shell shock.

[librarian1204 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really like the Ian Rutledge series more so than Bess Crawford. Rutledge is such a complex character and the setting and plots are so good.

[twink_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Yes, mysteries are one of my favourite genres. But, I only recently started reading Charles Todd's books - I have become quite fond of the Bess Crawford novels. This newest book, Proof of Guilt, is the latest (#15)entry in the Inspector Rutledge series.Inspector Rutledge of Scotland Yard is called in to investigate a body apparently hit and dragged by a car in a well to do neighbourhood. There is no identification on the victim, only a watch. But that watch yields enough clues to determine that the dead man isn't the owner. The rightful owner is the head of a world renowned winery - and he's gone missing.Rutledge is plunged into a complicated myriad of suspects, additional missing persons, and more bodies. Things are complicated by his new Acting Chief Superintendent who is determined to 'solve' the case from his desk and seems to thwart many of Rutledge's investigative avenues.WWI has ended, but the effects of that conflict still affect the present. Ian Rutledge is carrying around the guilt of a having to shoot a fellow soldier for dereliction of duty during the war. But that soldier hasn't left - Rutledge hears the voice of dead Hamish often - giving him further food for thought in his investigations or warning him of danger." As he turned toward London, Hamish was there, just behind his shoulder, as he always was. Just as they had watched the enemy, night after night at the Front. But now the young Scot was not the trusted corporal intent on keeping men alive and fighting as efficiently as possible. Now he was the voice of guilt and turmoil, the vivid reminder that Rutledge himself was not yet whole."I've really come to enjoy reading this time period lately - especially in the mystery vein. What I quite enjoy are the social niceties that must be observed, the tone, the sense of duty and loyalty that are as much a part of the story as the crime. And the crime, although horrific, is never blatantly described in full gory detail. Instead, investigation in undertaken in interviews, inquiries and possible conjectures until the pieces finally fall in place and Rutledge has his 'proof of guilt'.I enjoyed Proof of Guilt, but I did find the number of possibilities and characters a bit overwhelming. Late addition clues seemed a tad too precipitous in cases. There was an bit of business not dealt with in the final chapter that I would have liked to seen tied up. All in all, a good read, but I think I prefer Bess's stories.

[celticlady53 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Proof of Guilt by Charles Todd is the 15th in the Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery series. I found the writing to be excellent, the plot interesting and the descriptions of the circumstances regarding the murders and suspects very well thought out. With that said I think I would have understood more and liked the story more if I had read the rest of the series so I would have known some of the back story of Mr. Rutledge and why Hamish, the ghost of a man who served with Ian in the war, was always there in Ian's head with advice. Even though I was confused at times in the story, I did enjoy it. I think this series definitely appeals to all mystery fans, especially those that are fans of Ian Rutledge..I received a copy of this book for review and was not monetarily compensated for my review.

[gaby317 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Inspector Ian Rutledge was the only man in his army unit to have survived the World War I. One of the most traumatic moments of the war involved having to order the execution of his second in command, Hamish MacLeish, for disobedience when he refused to order them men on what proved to be a suicide mission. By the time that the series begins Rutledge has returned to his prewar occupation as a Detective Inspector at Scotland Yard. Having survived the horrors of the war, he carries much of the trauma with him but as PTSD or "shellshock" was seen as cowardly, Rutledge struggled to keep the effects of war hidden from everyone around him. He'd been able to repress the trauma although it would sometimes surface in the person of Hamish whose voice would sometimes speak out, much like an angry and resentful conscience or guide. Inspector Rutledge is dogged, reckless, and a brilliant detective although he's not popular with his superiors. Aside from the unusual and perplexing cases that he draws, Rutledge has the added challenge of his war baggage and the petty grievances and orders from his superior at Scotland Yard. All of these obstacles give Inspector Ian Rutledge novels an added texture and drama - so much so that I find them addictive.In Proof of Guilt, we find Inspector Ian Rutledge's with a new superior officer, Chief Superintendent Markham, as Inspector Bowles has been temporarily removed. We're not sure whether the new boss will be better or worse, for while he hasn't been overtly prejudiced against Rutledge, there are indications that he could be difficult, perhaps even more difficult than Bowles. A well dressed and unidentified man is found on a well kept street in London. Though his body has been dragged and all his papers have been taken, he carries a distinctive and expensive French pocket watch and the street is undisturbed - no trace of a body having been dragged. An unidentified body doesn't usually merit a visit from Scotland Yard, but Rutledge is assigned to the task. Careful detective work leads Rutledge to find the owner of the watch and to look into the secrets of a respectable and successful merchant family. He finds a family fortune made in Madeira, an attempted murder by the son of a business associate, a jilted lover, prominent business partners missing. As Rutledge sifts through the conflicting evidence, through interviews and testimonies, "weighing every expression and every word", he takes us with him to a complex investigation. The novel has the fluid and understated prose that I associate with the best of British mysteries (although the authors of this series are Americans!). I savored Proof of Guilt and am almost disappointed that I've finished reading it and it'll likely be another year until the next Inspector Ian Rutledge novel comes out. ISBN-10: 0062015680 - Hardcover $25.99Publisher: William Morrow; First Edition edition (January 29, 2013), 352 pages.Review copy provided by the publisher and Partners in Crime Tours.

[ronrose1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A gripping tale of murder that inexorably pulls you in and holds you in it's grip. Set in early 1920's England, soon after the end of WWI, the novel finds Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge called in to solve the mystery of a dead body found in the street of a quiet London suburb. The body appears to have been run over and dragged by a motor car. There are no marks in the street to indicate where the crime happened. Why was the victim left here and who is he? There is no identification on the body. The only personal item is an antique pocket watch. With no more to go on, Inspector Rutledge starts an investigation that will eventually lead him to more missing people and many unanswered questions concerning a decades old altercation. Some dogged police work will be needed to straighten out the many twists that are to be found in this entertaining book. Book provided for review by Amazon Vine and William Morrow publishers.

[readafew · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Proof of Guilt is the 15th book in the Inspector Rutledge series. I started the series with A Lonely Death which is the 13th book and I have to say I enjoy each one more than the last. I am hoping to get some time and read the earlier books in the series as well.This mystery starts with an apparent hit and run of a gentleman in a sleepy little community on the edge of London. However, things don’t seem to fit. The man had a fancy pocket watch and Inspector Rutledge was able to trace it to it’s owner. Who also wasn’t the dead man, but the owner is nowhere to be found to question. Where is the watches owner and who is the dead man and why does he have the watch? To add to his troubles the acting Superintendent of the Yard thinks he knows more about who is guilty or innocent and is trying to direct Rutledge to a fast closing of the case instead of actually trying to find or prove who is guilty. This leads Rutledge to use unconventional means to find information he considers vital for the case.Rutledge is a troubled man, he still has issues from his time in the trenches during the great war, but he is an excellent detective. He does his job and he cares about doing it right. Even when he is ordered to do things he thinks are wrong, he will perform it, all the while working without disobeying his orders to get to the bottom of the mystery. Excellent series I highly recommend them.