Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: The Salton Killings by Sally Spencer

The Salton Killings by Sally Spencer (Severn House, 1998) is the first Chief Inspector Woodend title in an impressive collection of 20 books that begin in the late 1950s, when the aftermath of World War II has receded but is still felt. (The Amazon subtitle for this book says it is set in the 1970s but the book makes the late 1950s timing clear in multiple places.) Woodend is a brusque guy from the north of England who has antagonized his superiors in Scotland Yard, earning every out-of-the-way case that comes along. So when the strangled body of a girl is found in a salt pile in a village in Cheshire, off he goes with his newest sergeant.

Woodend’s first act is to locate the nearest village pub, and then he identifies a police cadet who was born in the village and knows the history and gossip for generations back. The village still remembers vividly the murder of a local teenager during World War II, the killer believed to be her American military boyfriend who was not charged due to a lack of evidence. The discovery of two more teenage girls who died since then in what was thought to be accidents makes Woodend think he’s dealing with a serial killer who has been at work for 10 years or longer.

This story is a definitive British police procedural set in a village. The investigation is carefully worked out and logical in its steps, the suspects are everywhere, and misdirection abounds. The characters come into their own as they become accustomed to Woodend’s thought processes and as secrets unfold. The confrontation at the end and the identification of the culprit were as unexpected as could be. Not surprising to me at all that this turned into an extended series. The epilogue is great, worth the read of the book all in itself.

·         Hardcover: 224 pages

·         Publisher: Severn House Publishers; 1st World Ed edition (July 1, 1998)

·         Language: English

·         ISBN-10: 0727853449

·         ISBN-13: 978-0727853448

Aubrey Hamilton ©2019

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.