The Doctor Westlake Mysteries 1 - The Dogs Do Bark

Introducing country doctor Hugh Westlake in a Golden Age mystery of seduction and murder set among a small affluent town. As the town doctor for the village of Kenmore, Hugh Westlake spends most of his time making late-night house calls to overanxious patients and treating colds and the flu—until one bright winter morning. Riding with the hunt club, Hugh makes a grisly discovery: the headless, naked torso of a woman. The murder shocks the town and its upper crust society. Before long, the remains are identified as local woman Anne Grimshawe, who was notably missing from the hunt that morning, and who is pegged as a woman of loose morals by the local busybody. Deputized by the local inspector, Hugh is drawn into the comings-and-goings of the hunt club members. While investigating his own friends, neighbors, and patients, he follows scurrilous rumors to evidence of amorous assignations, jealousy, and greed. Someone in their midst has something to hide—and the chase is on before a killer goes to ground leaving more victims behind . . . "A nice fair play mystery that you can solve for yourself, and the story races along at an enjoyable clip with lots of variety and incident." — The Passing Tramp