kandcats's Full Review: Tim Cockey - Murder in the Hearse Degree
Hitchcock Sewell just can’t resist a woman in distress. Murder in the Hearse Degree is Tim Cockey’s fourth Hitchcock Sewell mystery. Hitchcock landed on the scene in The Hearse You Came In On, followed by Hearse of a Different Color and The Hearse Case Scenario.
Hitch is a bachelor undertaker and part time sleuth in Baltimore. He is in business with his Aunt Billie at Sewell and Sons Funeral Home. There are no sons but Hitch was raised by Billie and her late husband, Ugly Uncle Stu, after Hitch’s parents and sister died in a car crash when Hitch was 12. Hitch and Billie run the funeral home with help from Sam their driver. Hitch was married briefly to Julia, an artist that marches to the beat of her own drum. They are the best of friends now that they aren’t married to each other.
Hitch has a way with the ladies and there is always a new woman in his life and in Murder in the Hearse Degree an old flame is back in town and she needs Hitch’s help. Libby Gellman is married now with two children and has just left her high powered, politically ambitious DA husband. He also happens to be the man that Libby left Hitch for years earlier. She tells Hitch that her nanny, Sophie Potts, is missing. Libby is worried and Hitch volunteers to help find her. He doesn’t have to look far because Sophie’s body is soon being pulled out of the Severn River.
Sophie turns out to have been a quiet, shy girl. A Hungarian immigrant who lost her father at a young age. She was not a party girl but during the autopsy, it is discovered Sophie was pregnant. The police are convinced that it was a suicide but Sophie’s mother insists that her daughter would never do that. Libby doesn’t believe it either and Hitch sets out to see if he can find out what really happened to Sophie and why the police are so resistant to the idea that it might have been foul play.
Hitch enlists the help of Pete Munger, a PI in his 50’s going through a midlife crisis. It seems that Pete’s 25 year marriage is on the rocks and Pete may well be in love with Lee Cromwell, the sultry singer with the Edgar Jonz Experience. These are both characters from The Hearse Case Scenario and it is good to see them again along with the subplot of their story. Hitch also involves the help of his ex wife Julia, and her new flame, Nick Fallon, a tabloid reporter who is more interested in investigating Julia than the story.
Hitchcock follows his leads and finds himself investigating a radical religious group called the ARK (Alliance for Reason and Kindness), and their leader Crawford Larue. Hitch and his friends turn over lots of rocks and find stories of adultery, illegal adoptions, sterilization of young girls, statutory rape, extortion and murder.
There is never a dull moment in Hitch’s world. Cockey doesn’t disappoint with his blend of saucy dialogue and witty observations. There are laugh out loud moments in these pages and murder has never been so much fun. Expect the unexpected in the world of Hitchcock Sewell because things are never what they might seem, there is always a twist around the next corner.
I am a big fan of this series because these books are so well written. It is a fast paced read that is highly entertaining. These are characters you wouldn’t mind sitting down and having a beer with while trying to keep up with the fast, razor sharp dialogue. I highly recommend the Hearse series to fans of the comedic mysterious.
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