I can always count on Aline Templeton to write an intelligent, compelling mystery, and her DI Marjory Fleming series has long been a favorite-- so much so that I only tend to pick one up when I need what I call a guaranteed good read. Evil for Evil is a bit slow at times, but once it builds up a good head of steam, time flies by.

The mystery itself is a strong one, as well as being surprising and quite disturbing. The village setting is atmospheric... claustrophobic... and so well drawn that most city folk could point to it as convincing proof that no one should step one single toe out in the country. When secret after secret is exposed to the light, one character describes it as "omertà Scottish style," which I think is a perfect description.

But this series isn't all about the mystery. The major reason why I keep coming back for more is due to the excellent cast. I always like watching "Big Marge" Fleming's mind work as she pieces things together. Her personal life plays a role in each book, too. In Evil for Evil, both of her children show us what parents must deal with when youngsters think with their emotions instead of their brains. Fleming's second-in-command, Tam MacNee, has to deal with a secret or two in his own life, and we get to watch newcomer Detective Constable Louise Hepburn try to apply her classroom knowledge to real-world situations in order to make a big impression on the boss.

There are always things to learn in Templeton's books, whether it's raising deer as a commercial business or finding out what a Croydon facelift is. I like learning things. I like trying to solve mysteries. I like feeling a part of the family with a multi-faceted cast of characters. There's just no way around it: I like the way Aline Templeton writes, and I'll always go back for more (especially when Big Marge Fleming is involved). ( )

This series just keeps getting better. The theme and plot were excellent in this one, very dramatic ending, suspenseful, hard to put it down. Great handling of the emotional dynamics both within and between characters. Totally convincing and compelling. The ultimate villain and motive were completely unexpected, by me at least. I was sure I knew who it was until the surprise twist near the end. I also liked the way the author worked in a review of events at the end. So many books are disappointing in the way they end abruptly as soon as the mystery is solved. Set, as usual, near the west coast of Scotland. I have read all of the books in this series. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is that I found it hard to follow for the first 25% because of the number of characters you have to remember. If I hadn't read and liked the previous books in the series, I may have given up at this point. However, this is an issue for all of the books in the series, so this one was just a bit worse due to the extra number of characters, many of whom seemed totally unconnected with each other. The other thing I didn't care for was the subplot involving the main detective's daughter. This was interesting in its own right but with so much else to keep track of, I found it an unnecessary diversion. ( )

"Evil for Evil" (E4E) is the 7th in this series by Aline Templeton (AT) about DI Margery Fleming. Marge is responsible for a small force of detectives covering a large region of towns and villages west of Glasgow, much of which is coastal. Early in the story a chained skeleton is found in an island cave. There are no clothes, no ID, just a watch. Before the story is finished there are a number of additional bodies, and a few decades old mysteries cleared up. There are many things to like about this book, and I have given it a relatively rare five star (less than 10% of what I read) rating. The prose is excellent as is the pace of the story which moved along at a brisk clip and jumped from one interesting set of characters to another, many of whom are likable and many of whom are not. You may want to maintain a small card of all the characters names with a few notes - you are going to meet a lot of interesting, well defined people. You get to hear the pov of many of them, including the killer, but you don't who the killer(s) is until the very end. And while the guilt of some becomes clearly established, the judgment on others and the extent of their accountability is left to each reader. While there is an extended explanation of all the interlocking pieces at the end, there are a few pieces left to the side and their relevance is intentionally obscure. I want to share one other observation, one that is not at all important to me, but I understand it is an issue for many readers - at the halfway point of the book, I noticed that not one objectionable word had been uttered by any of the characters, and this was ultimately so for the entire book. But don't be mistaken - there is violence, there is historical child abuse, and after all the book is titled "E4E" This is my first Templeton and I have looked at the plots of her other six books to see which I'll jump into next - tough decision but "Cradle to Grave" will be next for me. Based on the number of reviews of her books on Amazon AT is not widely read in the USA, and that is a loss for many, many readers. ( )