Each one of Tim Sullivan’s DS Cross mysteries seem to get better as the series progresses. The Teacher, the sixth one, is the best one I’ve read so far. It combines the usual police procedural story with a behind-the-scene examination of life in the Avon and Somerset Major Crime Unit as it continues the developments in George Cross’ personal life.
Cross’ partner, Josie Ottey, has time off to move, so DCI Ben Carson accompanies George to the crime scene, a cottage in the village of Crockerne. Carson is willing to say the eighty-year-old victim fell down the stairs and died. George isn’t convinced, and, since the responding officer thought it was a murder scene, Cross will treat it that way, until he learns differently. In fact, Alistair Moreton, a retired teacher, was murdered. But, with Ottey gone, DI Bobby Warner is assigned the case. He outranks Cross, and disparages George constantly, calling him the Oddball. When Warner moves a desk into George’s office, he indicates he’s the boss, and won’t listen to Cross. In response, George finds an isolated space to work.
The victim, Moreton, was disliked in the village, and he feuded with his neighbors before they even moved in. It was easy for DI Warner to jump to conclusions and make an arrest because he’s known for closing cases quickly. But, because George and the police staff, Alice Mackenzie, along with Dr. Michael Swith, continued to dig into Moreton’s past as a headmaster, they weren’t convinced Warner had arrested the right person. Warner may have sidelined Cross, but that doesn’t mean George has forgotten the case.
The mystery itself, along with the fascinating step-by-step procedure, is always intriguing. In this book, though, it’s the office politics and events that take the story to a higher level. Warner instigates trouble throughout the office. However, it’s DCI Carson who is the biggest surprise in this story. While Carson has always tolerated Cross while misunderstanding him, the Detective Chief Inspector comes through in this case, amazing Ottey after she returns to work.
It’s the personal relationships, and the small team working together that raises this series to a higher level than some series. This book has some surprises.
NOTE: Don’t read the Acknowledgements before reading the book, but read them to see where Sullivan’s idea came from for this story.
The Teacher by Tim Sullivan. Head of Zeus, 2024. 375p.
FTC Full Disclosure – I bought a copy of the book.
