The Dupayne is a unique private (and fictional!) museum located on the Hempstead Heath that is dedicated to the interwar years in Britain. Located in a formerly stately house, most of it is dedicated to archives and is dreadfully scholarly, but there is one room upstairs set aside to highlight the most sensational murders of the period, AKA, the Murder Room. Needless to mention, it is especially a hit on local field trips. Who wants to check out the box that a murder victim got stuffed into? Actual blood’s still there!
Control of the Dupayne is in the hands of the three Dupayne siblings, and all three must consent to keep the institution ongoing. Two of them are very much in favor of continuing, but the youngest is not. He ends up being burnt to death in his car. Seems fairly cut and dry whodunnit, no? It is not. Many family secrets are uncovered by Dalgliesh and his team, as are a multitude of motivations. Even though the murderer is always one of the cast of characters, in these Dalgliesh procedurals, I never even attempt to guess until close to the end.
And I’ve noticed there never is only one victim. Starts off that way, and then that chap you are giving the hairy eyeball turns up dead as well. And quite likely a third before all is said and done. I must say this lot may be posh and for the most part (but not always!) quite loaded, but they certainly are inventive. I believe this series is beginning to grow on me.
