Debbie

It should have been a lovely English country-house weekend. But the unfortunate guest list is enough to exasperate a saint, and the host, Sir Arthur Billington-Smith, is an abusive wretch hated by everyone – from his disinherited son to his wife's stoic would-be lover. When Sir Arthur is found stabbed to death, no one is particularly grieved and no one has an alibi. The unhappy guests find themselves under the scrutiny of Scotland Yard's cool-headed Inspector Harding, who has solved tough cases before.

When Ella Longfield overhears two attractive young men flirting with teenage girls on a train, she thinks nothing of it - until she realises they are fresh out of prison and her maternal instinct is put on high alert. But just as she’s decided to call for help, something stops her. The next day, she wakes up to the news that one of the girls - beautiful, green-eyed Anna Ballard - has disappeared.

The citizens of Melling are perfectly ordinary—exactly the sort one finds in just about every cozy English village—and to a certain person they might even appear boring. But to Miss Silver, people are always interesting. It has been some years since she gave up work as a governess to become a detective, and her interest in people has served her well. She comes to Melling on vacation—a long postponed visit to an old school chum—but Miss Silver’s business is murder, and her vacations never last long.

Dazzling and devious Juliette was anything but popular with the upper class set she'd married in to. Her husband, Arthur, bought her off with a ruinously expensive divorce. But a few years later, Juliette turned up again - and days later she was dead. Almost everyone in the exclusive town had a motive for wanting Juliette dead. Now, it's up to skeptical Sheriff Russell Shand to pierce the wall of aristocratic silence, and find the ruthless killer.

Gregory Porlock’s party was a very successful one - from Gregory’s point of view. He was in the highest of spirits, and the fact that his guests were obviously not in a party mood only added to his enjoyment. He knew they all had good reason to fear and dislike him, and it amused him to play the part of the genial host, and to watch each of his visitors trying to act the part of a gay and carefree guest for the benefit of all the others. Gregory never knew that one of his visitors played two roles that evening, that someone doubled the part of guest and murderer, for in that drama Gregory Porlock was cast for a different role.