Edwin Hoole is apparently the victim of a mugging gone wrong in the City of York, only none of his valuables are taken and he is, when found, actually still alive. DCI Hennessey and his team are called in when the victim dies in hospital, and they start by tracing the man and his associates. They soon find that his brother had died some time earlier, ostensibly of natural causes but the family is suspicious and Edwin was investigating on his own at the time of his attack, and this in turn leads the team farther and farther into a convoluted plot involving home-owners, their equity and intimidation…. At this, the 19th book in the Hennessey and Yellich series, we see that DCI Hennessey is indeed taking a step back; he coordinates the activities of his team and keeps the overall picture of the criminal events in his head, but he is only active in the investigation when he visits a long-time informant in hopes of uncovering hidden information. As ever, I enjoy the plain writing style and nice pacing of Mr. Turnbull’s work; I think this is a series that the new reader can jump into at any point; recommended! ( )