A Case of Mice and Murder

Smith (Marshall Hall) delivers an affable if verbose series launch set in 1901 London’s Inner Temple, home to distinguished judges and barristers. Sir Gabriel Ward KC, a neurodivergent barrister, strictly adheres to his daily routine—so much so that he barely notices a barefoot corpse lying at the front entrance of his chambers. The victim is Lord Chief Justice Norman Dunning, who was stabbed with a carving knife. Sir William Waring, master treasurer and head of the Inner Temple, is wary of outside police probing their community, so he assigns the investigation to Ward. Though Ward would rather focus on defending publisher Herbert Moore in a dispute over the true authorship of children’s bestseller Millie the Temple Church Mouse, he reluctantly launches his inquiry. Alongside London police constable Maurice Wright, Ward interviews a wide array of people: servants, an ex-convict, the Temple Church’s minister, Dunning’s family, and potential candidates for the new Lord Chief Justice. Though at times the large cast and Smith’s fondness for the language of the period saps the plot of momentum, readers will admire Sir Gabriel’s wit and the tender partnership he develops with Constable Wright. This series is off to a promising start. Agent: Anne-Marie Doulton, Ampersand. (June)