The man from the river : A Wilson Story

Michael Prendergast, a Harley‑Street consultant, wakes to a July sunrise dreaming of solitude in the sleepy Essex village of Steeple Tollesbury. Yet his longing for quiet quickly turns into anticipation when he learns that Henry Wilson, the unflappable superintendent of the CID, will be staying at the centuries‑old Old Malting House. The inn, wrapped in climbing roses and warmed by log fires, offers the perfect escape from London’s relentless pace, and Michael imagines days of peaceful conversation over pints of Guinness.

The market‑square, still echoing the ghost of a once‑busy port, is a tapestry of stone churches, a massive tithe‑barn, and narrow bridges that seem to hold stories of bygone traders. Michael’s friend Mark Warden, a former cricketer turned junior partner in a family stockbroking firm, adds a lively, if sometimes blustery, counterpoint to the quietude. Their banter and the village’s lingering charm set the stage for an unexpected investigation that will test Michael’s clinical detachment.