The Hand in the Dark

A violent death at an ageing country manor prompts a detective to question reluctant guests and servants while the estate's grim history and local superstitions complicate the inquiry. Interleaved episodes recount an adventurer's overseas search for precious stones and the risky expeditions that produced a tantalizing specimen, and these discoveries gradually prove relevant to the murder. The narrative combines atmospheric country-house detail, methodical investigation, and episodes of prospecting to trace motives, hidden evidence, and long-standing enmities until the circumstances behind the crime are progressively revealed.