CRISIS AT THE CATHEDRAL (Jeanne M. Dams)

One of the wonderful things about Dorothy Martin is her ability to comment on almost anything in a thoughtful and unbiased manner.  Oh, I'm sure that many of her views come from her creator, Jeanne Dams, but I have a feeling that Dorothy also has a mind of her own.

Crisis in the Cathedral is set mainly close to Dorothy and Alan's home in the village of Sherebury, England.  They do some traveling here, back and forth to London, but primarily without planning or luggage.  Dams has written a very timely novel here.  The plot revolves around a humanitarian Muslim family who is visiting Sherebury and is interested in visiting the cathedral to attend a service.  Husam, Rana, Rahim, and little Aya are a family who believe that experiencing the customs of other faiths and cultures is the best way to understand them, so they greatly enjoy their visit.  Dorothy and Alan invite them to a concert at the cathedral later that week, so the parents arrange for Rahim and Aya to be cared for by their landlords at the local inn where they are staying.  Alerted to the activities of a young man that they fear is becoming involved in terrorist activities, Husam and Rana slip out of the cathedral during the performance, telling no one and leaving their cell phone behind.  Of course there is speculation about their possible involvement in terrorism, especially when a suitcase that they stored at the inn is discovered to be full of money in different denominations.

Fearing for their new friends' lives, Dorothy and Alan, who is working with MI5 on the case, go to London to try and track them down.  In the process they alienate faithful Jane, their neighbor and animal carer, and enlist the aid of, among others, the bishop and a chess player with Asperger's.  naturally, it is Dorothy who has a brainstorm that leads to the outcome of the novel.

I thoroughly enjoyed Dorothy's numerous references to current political concerns about the Islamic world and the political climate of the United States, her home country.  The mystery is fast-paced and current, and the relationship between Dorthy and Alan is just as comfortable and appealing as always.  This series never gets old!