Property of a Lady

 Property of a Lady (1983) by Anthony Oliver

Margaret Garland came into a fair inheritance when her mother died. She'd spent her time taking care of her mother and hadn't really had much of a life outside the home. She opts to stay in the cottage in Flaxfield rather than the flat in London. One evening when driving home, she spies a young man hitchhiking along the road. Everything she's been taught tells her she shouldn't stop--but seeing his pale face in the rearview mirror, she finds herself braking and giving him a lift. He's in such a bad way that she takes him in and her doctor tells her that it would be best if he weren't moved, but it could be arranged if Margaret would prefer not to have a stranger in the house.

Lizzie Thomas is the nosey parker older woman in the village. Her binoculars (a gift from her friend, retired police inspector John Webber, sees Mark Carter helped into Margaret's house. All her inquisitive instincts are on the alert, but she has a difficult job finding out anything about him at first. It's revealed, however, that he was on his way to visit his mother who is a resident at Henworth Hall--a health spa for wealthy ladies in need of dieting, relaxation, or just some time out of the spotlight. He's also the son of  the (now deceased) well-known antiques dealer who was half of Carter & Monmouth...and he has quite the flair for antiques himself. It soon becomes apparent that Margaret is quite smitten. 

Lizzie on the other hand is bothered by the young man and an incident involving her cat Bunter makes her even more uneasy. Then Mark just up and disappears--and so does his mother. Lizzie can't leave that alone and, so, with the help of Webber and her son-in-law Jimmy "Betsey" Trottwood, a local antiques dealer she sets out to find out everything she can about Mark Carter. Some of it is unsettling indeed, but, as Webber points out, none of it is actionable. They are left in a wait-and-see mode until an explosive grand finale which takes place in the middle of a very tense round of bidding at a local auction.

As I've mentioned in reviews of other titles by Oliver, his strong suit is his characters.  John and Lizzie are well-defined, interesting, and, most importantly, believable people. As are most of the supporting characters. Lizzie is the queen of the art of gossip.  And we know this because Oliver makes it plain in her interactions with the other characters. She manages to find just the right tone to take with each person she talks to and succeeds where more official inquiries fail. I've read mysteries before where a certain character supposedly just had this "quality" that made others confide all sorts of secrets to them...but I never got a real feel for why that was.  I certainly never thought that I'd be spilling the beans to them myself.  With Lizzie, it's different.  I could see her plopping a cup of tea and some biscuits down if front of me and in no time at all she'd know everything I had to tell. I thoroughly enjoy the way Lizzie and John interact and form a team.

Several reviewers have mentioned how humorous Oliver's stories are. I don't think I could say that the mystery itself is humorous; it's really quite dark at times, especially in the finale. But the relationship between Lizzie & John--hysterical. Just the picture of her convincing him to sit in his underpants in front of the coal fire to soothe his arthritis is enough--let alone her running commentary on the matter. 

This really isn't a whodunnit. We know very early on who the suspect is. It is more of a what-exactly-has-he-done and are-we-going-to-be-able-to-prove-it? When it comes to the mystery, I much prefer that there be a definite crime to solve and trying to figure out who did it rather than knowing that somebody is up to something (or has been up to something) and can we figure out what and pin it on them when we do. But as a character study, it's brilliant. ★★★  primarily for the characters.

First line: Everyone said it was dangerous.

Last lines: I must find someone to look after my cat. Someone kind.
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Deaths = 6 (two natural; one drowned; one hit by train; one beheaded; one shot)