A Very Private Murder

the long version

Ghislaine Curzon, girlfriend of one of the royal princes, is in Heckley to open the Curzon Centre, but the opening ceremony reveals that the commemorative plaque has been defaced by an obscene word in foot high red letters. The chief constable insists on DI Charlie Priest taking the case, but Charlie would rather be investigating a series of burglaries committed with the aid of a pit bull terrier. When the mayor of Heckley, driving force behind the Curzon Centre, is found with a single shot through the head, the subsequent investigation finds Charlie among a rich cornucopia of East Yorkshire characters.