Criminal Damage — Margaret Yorke

Something murderous is about to happen in Middle Bardolph. The sunny village seems as neat and proper as the orderly life of Mrs. Newton, the grey-haired widow in an impeccably kept house. Yet a trifle more scrutiny will soon reveal a darker picture of this picture-postcard existence ... one where acts of greed and obsession are about to turn Mrs. Newton's prim life upside-down. Unknown to Mrs. Newton, an ex-convict and some unsavory associates are as near as next door, her recently jilted grown daughter is going murderously mad with grief, and her middle-aged son is so desperate for his inheritance he just may try to collect it prematurely. Any of the above could endanger an elderly lady's life, but there is something more. A most sinister secret belongs to Mrs. Newton herself - and the truth will come out with perhaps deadly results ...