The Broken Token by Chris Nickson

The Broken Token  is the first in a series by Nickson featuring Richard Nottingham, the constable of Leeds in the 1730s.

An early morning knock on his door calls Nottingham to the scene of a double murder with the victims posed in a sexual manner.  If this were not shocking enough, the female victim is a young woman who once worked in Nottingham's home.

The murder is itself appalling, but as it turns out, it is only the first in a series.  Each new outrage puts more pressure on Nottingham.  The pressure to catch the killer is personal for the constable, whose family treasured the young woman.  In addition to this, his job is endangered;  if he doesn't make an arrest soon, he could be dismissed from his position.

Nottingham, a devoted husband and father, is a likable protagonist, as is John Sedgwick, his devoted deputy, whose family life is not as successful as Nottingham's, but whose dedication to finding the murderer is almost as strong as that of his superior-- despite their different views concerning the case.

An interesting and entertaining historical mystery.

Library book.

Fiction.  Historical Mystery.  2010.  269 pages.