Another Dave Slater mystery from P. F. Ford. I’m working my way through the series, but I can’t read too many in a row because they make for same-same reviews. The Wrong Man is fast-food literature, enjoyable but without great substance.

Diana Woods was a beautiful housewife. All her friends and neighbors praise her as a wonderful friend. But her ex-husband and a few others tell a different story – that she was devious, two-faced, greedy, and sexually promiscuous. In any case, she’s dead now, stabbed with a knife in her kitchen.

Detective Sergeants Slater and Norman, of the fictional small English town of Tinton, quickly find evidence that points to the ex-husband. But he seems genuinely distraught by Diana’s death. DS Slater is uncomfortable with charging him, even in spite of pressure from his commander.

P. F. Ford’s forte is in fooling the reader. There are surprises and counter-surprises right to the end. I was baffled and thoroughly taken in (though I’ll admit I’m not the cleverest mystery reader). The writing, as always, is average, and the characterizations uneven, but the puzzle was highly enjoyable.

Recommended with mild cautions for adult themes.