The Rev. John Avery, rector of the village church, was famous for the eloquence and scholarly nature of his sermons. No one in attendance at the Sunday service was surprised then, when the rector, having evidently exchanged his notes for some other document, after a moment's hesitation, delivered one of his most moving sermons extempore. They were, however, much surprised, when the rector was found dead the next morning the victim of an apparent accidental poisoning. Coming on the heels of the death of one of the leading young men of the village by a shooting, also ruled an accident, it seemed to all an unfortunate coincidence. To all, that is, except for Chief Inspector Pointer, who, by a much more fortunate coincidence, happened to be visiting the County Chief Constable for a spot of fishing. It falls to the Scotland Yard detective to unravel the web of secrets that form the . . . Mystery at the Rectory

They made a handsome wedding present; two exquisite strands of pearls rumored to have belonged to Queen Charlotte. And the couple, Arthur Walsh and Violet Finch, seemed destined for happiness, despite the differences in family and background. But all was not as it seemed. One of the necklaces was to prove a fake when put up as security to cover gambling debts. Then, within hours, the bride is found brutally murdered. But by whom? There were a number of people who had disapproved of the match. Had one of them murdered the young girl? There were also those involved who found them short of cash. Had one of them substituted the fakes for the real pearls and murdered Violet to conceal their crime? And behind it all, the whiff of dark secrets and blackmail fluttered in the air. Why had Violet been murdered and where were the real pearls? Only Chief Inspector Pointer can unravel the mysteries behind . . . The Case of the Two Pearl Necklaces