Her first crime novel, The Ice House, was published in 1992, winning the Crime Writers' Association John Creasey Memorial Dagger, and this was followed by four further novels: The Sculptress (1993); The Scold's Bridle (1994); The Dark Room (1995); and The Echo (1997). These first five books have all been adapted for television by the BBC.
Mr Campion’s Mosaic is the tenth in Ripley’s series of novels which pay homage to Margery Allingham’s engaging protagonist, Albert Campion, and the Golden Age of detective fiction. The book is also a tribute to Evadne Childe, another popular writer from the Golden Age and an obvious favourite of Ripley’s because she features in an earlier novel, Mr Campion’s Séance.
Set in 1972, Mr Campion’s Mosaic centres around a BBC remake of a twenty-year-old film adaptation of an Evadne Childe novel, The Moving Mosaic. Campion becomes involved when attempts are made on the lives of the director and the actor in line for the leading part. Someone is clearly trying to derail the production, and the mystery is why… until two successful murders set Campion on the search for ‘whodunnit’. Ably assisted by his long-time factotum and sidekick Magersfontein Lugg, his son Rupert and Charlie Luke of the Met, Campion’s investigation takes him into the mean streets of London, the bowels of the BBC and a charming, though somewhat sinister, village in Dorset called Kingswalter.
Ripley has a wonderful talent for capturing the voices, mannerisms and wit of Margery Allingham’s original creations. Despite his advancing years, Campion retains his impeccable manners and dry humour, and picks his way unerringly through the many red herrings thrown in his path. Mr Campion’s Mosaic will appeal to old and new fans of Albert Campion and all those who still enjoy the ‘game’ element of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. The puzzle for the reader is who, amongst a colourful and well-drawn cast of characters, is the culprit, and Ripley (in fine Allingham tradition) plays to win!
