I have done a lot of journaling over the past few weeks but most of it is depressive unfortunately.
I had a truly awful incident with my car and the fall out of that might have been enough to tip me over the edge all in. Anyway here is an image of Maggie Hambling’s seaside sculpture which is the sort of distraction I need.
It provides the initial focus and impetus for ‘The Leiston Riddle’ - the characters see a dismembered arm on a beach nearby and ludicrously think they have seen an art installation such as the above or it could have been an upended Anthony Gormley - who knows?! Realising their error they set about ‘doing the right thing’ which is involving the local police and reluctantly Mike Doggett realises he must get back to sleuthing even though he was hoping to enjoy his retirement with Biker gf Shirley. No such luck.
So of they go, via pals Terry and Carol, friends from the local sailing club who will surely be able to assist them in fathoming the ‘Leiston Riddle’. Of course there is so much more to this than meets the eye, namely the complicity of Sizewell Tea barista Maggie and her sweet heart Jake, whose gang are apparently the local n’er do wells but is there more to this than actually meets the eye? When a yoghurt making machine consignment has seemingly fallen off the back of a lorry en route for the local coop Maggie’s dad is forced to question what he took as reality on the Suffolk coast and his daughter’s future at the local high school is suddenly Leiston lore.
No one can escape the scrutiny as cops from three counties converge on this picturesque back water to get to the bottom of this sorry tale of gang warfare that makes Cold Comfort Farm seem like a cheery bit of slapstick. Mike again emerges with his professional credentials intact, older and just slightly wiser, Shirley wonders when the time and dedication put into passing her motor cycling test will ever pay off and as for the uncomplaining long time coop workers - they are speechless at the hoo har that has cropped up in this, the most unexpected of environments.