With apologies to Minister Chiswell, I always get quite happy upon reading of his demise, because I love the second half of
Lethal White. This time I loved it even more, having just returned from a UK trip where I had the opportunity to visit both the White Horse of Uffington and the eponymous pub.
“I don’t want you wasting time chasing shadows through the undergrowth in Oxfordshire. My problems are in London.”
Sorry, Minister, but your problem is in fact in Oxfordshire. Once Robin and Strike make the Land Rover journey to that area, the book starts to take on the tone of a cozy mystery, complete with country manor house, and a bickering upper class family.
Of course, there are a few details before we get to Woolstone. I love the overnight trip Strike makes to Lucy's to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremonies with Jack. This is certainly the most pleasant time Strike has had with Lucy's family in the series so far. We learn about the super-injunction from Ilsa, and details of the case from Oliver. They are really lucky to have so many friends in the right places.
Then, we get to the first of two Land Rover trips to Woolstone. Interestingly, both car rides feature nasty communications from Geraint Winn: the first the condolence letter-cum-threat that Strike reads out to Robin, the second the phone call that triggers her panic attack. We also see the first indicator that the Flobberworm is cheating on Robin, with his text message.
I must admit some curiosity about where exactly Strike and Robin stopped to get the amazing view of the horse, because in my experience there is really no good place to see the whole thing. This is the best view I got.
We did the hike up to the chalk figure, while I imagined Little Raff and Billy being toted up on piggyback. It's a steep climb to carry two little kids. The figure itself was roped off, so I couldn't actually stand in the eye and make a wish, and parts of it, particularly around the head, were pretty thin, almost overgrown with grass. Apparently, the
annual re-chalkings were cancelled for a couple of years because of the pandemic. Never fear, the National Trust has a day set up for weeding this July and for re-chalking in August. I'm sure it will be looking its best soon.
The eye was smaller than I thought, about the size of a manhole cover. The most visible part was the ear.
If you walk to the top of nearby Dragon Hill, you can get a decent view of the hindquarters.
Speaking of horse's asses, let's get back to the family interview at the Chiswell estate, the worst family fracas until we meet the Phipps in
Troubled Blood. Torquil ranks right up there with Tempest and Yasmin for annoying characters. But here is where the theme of the White Horses starts repeating itself. We have the horse itself lending credence to Billy's story, the white foal of the painting that first draws our attention to that important element, and finally the pub. Also, we have the first appearance of
Rattenbury the Wonder Dog.
After Strike and Robin visit the Knight's old cottage, and Robin finds the mysterious wooden cross in the dell, they head for the White Horse Pub, which is described perfectly:
The country inn they reached five minutes later was the very image of picture-postcard England, a white, timbered building with leaded bay windows, moss-covered slates on the roof and climbing red roses around the door. A beer garden with parasols completed the picture.
It was a pretty hot day, so we ate inside, and had easily the best pub food of the trip. I didn't see blue cheese burgers or chili on the menu, but I will be trying to find a recipe to duplicate the wonderful lamb pot pie I had.
Like Strike and Robin, I found it a perfect end to a long day.
Strike lit another cigarette and as the nicotine hit his brain, felt a wave of something close to euphoria. A pint, a hot day in August, a well-paid job, food on the way and Robin, sitting across from him, their friendship restored, if not entirely to what it had been before her honeymoon, then perhaps as close as was possible, now that she was married. Right now, in this sunny beer garden, and in spite of the pain in his leg, his tiredness and the unresolved mess that was his relationship with Lorelei, life felt simple and hopeful.
My only disappointment was that there was no handy souvenir shop to purchase a hand-carved wooden horse pendant.
This section closes with a relatively normal paperwork day for Strike, punctuated in the end by Lorelei's lengthy email detailing his faults and her ultimatum. As we shall see, she forgot the first rule of ultimatums: you have to be willing to accept either choice graciously.
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