Now May You Weep
A Kincaid and James mystery

By Deborah Crombie

     Gemma James, now a detective inspector, is recovering from a long period of depression. She accepts an invitation from her friend Hazel Cavendish to attend a cooking weekend in Innesfer, Scotland. She thinks this may speed her recovery. When she arrives in the Scottish Highlands she learns that Hazel has come here to meet her former lover, Donald Brodie, handsome distillery owner. They had been separated in their youth by their feuding families. Donald is now determined to break up Hazel's marriage and win her back.

     When Donald is shot, Hazel becomes the prime suspect. Gemma attempts to prove Hazel's innocence while she tries to avoid interfering with the local police. She finds connections to the present with a story of feuds from earlier centuries. To try to unravel all the threads she calls upon the person she trusts most, Scotland Yard Superintendent Duncan Kincaid.

     The story is rich in history. The settings of the Scottish Highlands are vivid and breathtaking. The characters are well developed with the tales of passion and secrets. The present story is interspersed in short sections of a story that took place 100 years ago in the same area as Hazel and Donald. It tells the story of the family conflict from the past, which explains the tensions of the present day. Gemma and Duncan are likeable characters and are well suited to each other. There is much detail about how Scottish whiskey is made....perhaps more detail than the reader really wants.

Reviews of other titles in this series

Share in Death #1
Leave the Grave Green #3
Mourn Not Your Dead #4
Dreaming of the Bones #5
Now May You Weep #9
In a Dark House #10
Water Like a Stone #11
Where Memories Lie #12
The Sound of Broken Glass #15