Appleby and the Ospreys

In this particular Appleby mystery, Sir John, lately retired from Scotland Yard, is lunching at Clusters, the neighboring Osprey estate. Most of the luncheon chit-chat concerns bats in the church belfry, and the reader is gently introduced to the people who will soon be suspects in the murder of Lord Osprey.As always with Michael Innes's mysteries, you can enjoy "Appleby and the Ospreys" for its sophisticated, veddy upper-class British dialogue, as well as for the fiendish commission and solution of the murderH.R.F. Keating in his 1987 book, "Crime & Mystery: the 100 Best Books," says this about our literate ex-Commissioner of New Scotland Yard:"To Appleby one could well apply the words which Michael Innes, writing under his own name in the novella "The Man Who Wrote Detective Stories," employs to describe that hero: 'He loved tumbling out scraps of poetry from a ragbag collection in his mind - and particularly in absurd and extravagant contexts.' " Since this is a vintage British manor house mystery, the guests and family of Sir Osprey are in the library drinking sherry when a mysterious shadow is seen on the balcony over the moat. Upon investigation, no one is seen, but the mysterious intruder is remembered when Sir Osprey is found, stabbed to death in his library later that evening.Appleby soon discovers that many people had a motive for killing the late, unlamented lord. The local publican bursts into the manor and threatens to murder an already-dead Sir Osprey, who he claims had been fooling around with his daughter. There is also a valuable coin collection hidden somewhere within the vast architectural pile of Clusters. Supposedly only Sir Osprey knew its whereabouts, but many of his guests are avid numismatists. Did one of them gain access to the coins, then murder his or her host?Appleby solves the mystery with his usual wit, ingenuity, and aplomb. The bats come to his aid in a very startling manner upon the discovery of the murderer.