Christmas Eve 1901: Sir William Waring, head of the Inner Temple in London, receives a parcel left on the doorstep of his office. He lifts the lid and looks in. ‘He stares as though paralysed … staggers to his chair with a shudder of horror.’

More parcels with human body parts are delivered to other lawyers.

The Inner Temple is within the City of London. Many barristers have chambers in this gated community and some reside there. It is self-governing; the police can only enter with the consent of The Inner Temple’s governing body.

Sir William is loath to invite the police in. He asks Sir Gabriel Ward, a barrister, to investigate and gives permission for Maurice Wright, a constable with the City of London Police, to assist.

As a break from horror and revulsion, we are introduced to Arthur Brindle, a solicitor, who requests Sir Gabriel to accept Miss Tabitha Mary ‘Topsy’ Tillotson as a client. She is determined to sue the Nation’s Voice, a shameless daily newspaper, for defamation.

I became entranced as the investigation continued and the court case starring Topsy Tillotson, a popular music hall belle, was prepared. A Case of Life and Limb is a brilliant cosy crime mystery. It is entertaining, commendably plotted and well paced with occasional dashes of humour.

Reviewed by Clive Hodges

Read our review of A Case of Mice and Murder here.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sally Smith spent all her working life as a barrister and later King’s Counsel in the Inner Temple. After writing a biography of the famous Edwardian barrister, Sir Edward Marshall Hall KC, she retired from the bar to write full time.

A Case of Mice and Murder, her first novel, was inspired by the historic surroundings of the Inner Temple in which she still lives and works and by the rich history contained in the Inner Temple archives. A Case of Mice and Murder is the first in a series starring the reluctant sleuth Sir Gabriel Ward KC, followed by A Case of Life and Limb.

Read an interview with Sally Smith about A Case of Mice and Murder here.

Read more about her books on the publisher’s website here.