The Shadow of Memory: A Kate Hamilton Mystery

In Berry’s intriguing fourth mystery featuring antiques expert Kate Hamilton (after 2021’s The Art of Betrayal), Kate and two older friends, including Vivian Bunn, find Will Parker, a retired police inspector and a sweetheart of Vivian’s from many years ago, dead in a graveyard in the Suffolk village of Long Barton. Will was investigating a cold case that he, Vivian, and some friends had first encountered as teenagers when they discovered the abandoned home of a physician and his wife who had been poisoned. When Kate learns that Will was murdered, that the physician may have been embroiled in dubious activities connected to a local mental health facility and a priceless painting, and that suspicious circumstances have arisen with other members of Vivian’s teenage group, she begins to fear for her friend’s safety. New and faithful fans alike will appreciate the tying together of present and past, as well as the poignancy in the long effects of unfortunate choices. As usual, Kate and her fellow villagers provide congenial company for readers. Agent: Paula Munier, Talcott Notch Literary Services. (May)