No Vacation from Murder

  No Vacation from Murder (1973) by Elizabeth Lemarchand

Life is busier than usual at St. Julitta's School in Kittitoe during the summer holidays. Normally, they lease the grounds for just one session, but this year the board of governors have been convinced to let the school to Horner's Holidays for one of the company's Horner Discovery Fortnights. Previous visits to the area had found the Discovery retreat at a hotel in nearby Biddle Bay, but a fire had caused enough damage to the hotel to prevent its use. The board was unsure at first, but the fee that Horner's was willing to pay was definitely a deciding factor. The naysayers were afraid that there might be unwanted publicity associated with the venture. After all, Horner's is "so commercial." But the educational aspects of the Discovery Fortnights also helped win the day. The retreat provides an opportunity for adults to engage in outdoor and recreational interests, such as amateur archaeology, botanical exploration, and British architecture.

So, late summer finds 80-90 visitors descending upon St. Julitta's. Marcia Makepeace, Domestic Bursar for the school, is fully prepared--accommodations ready, meals planned, staff on duty (extra pay packets!). Horner's guiding lights and instructors arrive first: Michael Jay, Paul and Janice King, Susan Crump, and Geoffrey Boothby. Nearby, is Eddy Horner, founder and owner of the firm. He has recently become a grandfather and his daughter Penny Townsend and new grandson are staying with him in "Uncharted Seas," his bungalow on the coast. His son-in-law works in London and comes down on weekends and a relation of his first wife's Wendy Shaw, is on hand to provide nursing support for Penny and the baby. Wendy is training to be a nursery nurse and is a quiet and serious girl.

On the first evening of the Fortnight Horner invites the Discovery staff and Marcia to his bungalow for a small reception. Everyone gets a tour of the made-to-order bungalow and the women are all invited to admire the new grandson. The Discovery Fortnight is off to a swinging start. Everything goes well until the last evening. There is a massive rainstorm. There is a huge glitch in the timing of the final bus tour which puts the entire farewell program behind. After a lavish final dinner, there is a showing of the Discovery Fortnight film. Paul King always takes video of all of the lectures and outings during the Fortnight and shows an edited final version that is a big hit. Due to the late return from the bus tour, he's not sure he'll get the final edits made in time...but after filling in with a previously-made film on birds in the area, the big show is ready. 

As things are wrapping up, Marcia is called to the phone. Eddy Horner is a bit upset. He and his daughter had gone to the train station to meet his son-in-law leaving Wendy in charge of the baby at home. The train was late (what a day for lateness!) and when they got back to the bungalow, there was no sign of Wendy. Her coat and purse are gone as well and Eddy wants to know, "Was young Wendy Shaw at your place this evening?" Even though both Eddy and Marcia (who talked with the quiet young girl that evening at the bungalow) don't believe she would have abandoned the baby, the police believe she must have taken off with a man. But then...her strangled body is found at the seaside end of a blowhole near the school and Superintendent Tom Pollard and Sergeant Toye arrive from Scotland Yard to take up the investigation. The more they learn about Wendy, the more they realize that Eddy and Marcia were right--the young woman wouldn't normally have abandoned a baby in her charge. So, what could have happened to cause her to do so? And why would anyone have needed to kill her? Motives are pretty thin on the ground, but Pollard doesn't believe this was a random killing or a theft gone wrong. Proving that and finding the evidence to convict is going to be pretty tricky, though.

The Pollard and Toye books are good, solid police procedurals with fully realized characters. Even those characters, like Wendy's mother, who appear briefly come to life during their short appearance. Pollard and Toye have a nice dynamic and work well together and Pollard is an intuitive investigator who adapts his questioning style to fit the person he's interviewing. He's able to handle the neurotic Mrs. Shaw and the intense, in-charge Eddy Horner with equal ease. 

I did spot the culprit, though I didn't pick up on the various instances of emphasis that should have told me the motive. That's all I lacked to complete the case. I was very suspicious of the apparent alibi and was not surprised when Pollard saw how to get round it. Those who are swifter on the uptake than me might figure out what the culprit was really after and why Wendy had to die. ★★★★

*I do have one random question though. What on earth does the cover have to do with anything? I mean, considering that a high percentage of British mysteries take place in England and having tea is kind of a big thing in England, this could, quite honestly, be a scene from any British mystery ever. It certainly doesn't represent this book in any meaningful way.

First lines: "Those in favour?" From the Chair Philip Cary ran a practised eye round the library table.

Last line: "Really," Marcia said, "aren't our policemen wonderful?"
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Deaths = 2 (one car accident; one strangled)