Inspector Gerald Witherspoon is a rather clueless, yet endearing Victorian detective who is, without his knowledge, aided in solving murders by a network of staff and friends led by his housekeeper, Mrs. Hepzibah Jeffries. During their nightly drinks session, Mrs. Jeffries subtly grills Witherspoon on the facts of whatever case he is attempting to solve, then in morning meeting, imparts this knowledge to household staff and friends, all of whom set out to gather clues and facts. They meet again later in the day to share what they have found during their various investigations and said knowledge is then passed on to Witherspoon's colleague, Barnes, who somehow manages to clue in Witherspoon while presrving the illusion that Witherspoon is actually solving the crime himself. With the help of this merry group of amateur detectives, Witherspoon has an enviable 100% record of solving murders.
His current case is a difficult one since the victim was killed 6 weeks ago. Thanks to a botched investigation, the crime has been treated as death due to a robbery instead of an outright murder, so finding clues and witnesses is difficult, to say the least.
Mrs. Jeffries and her crew are a resourceful and intelligent group of people who care deeply for Witherspoon, which makes this series doubly enjoyable. My mother has read all of them and reports that she enjoyed them immensely. If Victorian cozies, appealing characters, and expert amateur sleuthing are your thing, check this series out.
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