Mr. Campion’s Wings

British gentleman sleuth Albert Campion has a deeply personal mystery to solve in Ripley’s impressive ninth continuation of Margery Allingham’s relished series (after 2021’s Mr. Campion’s Coven). In 1965, Campion is anticipating a triumphant day for his wife, Amanda, who’s slated to receive an honorary doctorate of science from Cambridge University for her work in aeronautical engineering. The occasion is marred when Amanda’s nabbed at the postceremony reception by the Special Branch and taken into custody on suspicion that she violated the Official Secrets Act. The charges stem from her role in a secret program to design a new military aircraft, the Goshawk Project, and Campion sets about probing who actually leaked sensitive information about it, possibly to Soviet military intelligence, at a time when the Kim Philby defection to Moscow is still an open sore. The puzzle deepens after one of the other people working on Goshawk dies in a suspicious accident at the project’s base. Ripley again marries a crafty plotline with a persuasive evocation of Allingham’s style and characterizations. Fans of the originals will be delighted. (Jan.)