The Way Through the Woods
Encyclopedia
The Way Through the Woods is a crime
novel
by Colin Dexter
, the tenth novel in the Inspector Morse
series. It received the Gold Dagger
Award in 1992.
The plot deals with the search for a beautiful young Swedish
woman who went missing a year earlier. An anonymous riddle, in the form of a five-stanza poem, is sent to the police and the case is reopened. The police ask The Times
for help with the poem. Morse and Sergeant Lewis
are put in charge of the new investigation.
The novel was adapted for television in 1995: see The Way Through the Woods (TV)
, as an episode of the Inspector Morse series
.
Morse and Lewis talk to George Daley, who found Karin's bag. His wife Margaret gives them some photos developed from Karin's camera, showing a young man and a house, but tears up some more showing Karin naked. Morse identifies the house in the photo but the owner, McBryde, disappears before he can be questioned. Morse and Lewis find the house was being used to make pornographic films and the client list includes Daley and a local lecturer, Alan Hardinge. Daley is found dead in the woods. Michaels is suspected but was showing some RSPB representatives around at the time, since the gatewarden recalls when Daley entered the woods.
The first body turns out to be Doctor Myton, the man in the photographs. Hardinge admits that Myton was taking photographs of Karin in private at the house but when the others in the house checked on them they were both dead. He, McBryde, Daley and Michaels conspired to hide the bodies. Morse, however, realises this is a lie and Karin is still alive.
Daley's son Phillip commits suicide but has an alibi for his father's murder. Morse and Lewis speak to Michaels' wife Cathy and realise she is Karin. She killed Myton when he tried to rape her and was sheltered by Michaels, who persuaded the others to cover the matter up. Morse realises Michaels killed Daley and then had Cathy dress up as him and drive to the woods to hide the body, in order to give himself an alibi. Lewis learns Morse sent the cryptic clue in the first place.
as Michaels, Michelle Fairley
as Cathy and Christopher Fairbank
as Daley. Karin Eriksson became English girl Karen Andrews, a more unstable character who had been sexually abused by her father and served time in jail for murdering him. A subplot was added dealing with conflict between Morse and the original investigating officer, DCI Johnson (played by Malcolm Storry), who pinned Karen's murder on Steven Parnell, a serial killer responsible for four other deaths, and tried to beat a confession out of Phillip for his father's murder. Phillip's suicide was omitted but a more violent and dramatic ending added where Cathy kills both Daley and Michaels to protect her secret, finally perishing from a shot from her own gun when Morse knocks it out of her hands as she threatens him and Lewis.
Crime fiction
Crime fiction is the literary genre that fictionalizes crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Colin Dexter
Colin Dexter
Norman Colin Dexter, OBE, is an English crime writer, known for his Inspector Morse novels which were written between 1975 and 1999 and adapted as a television series from 1987 to 2000.-Early life and career:...
, the tenth novel in the Inspector Morse
Inspector Morse
Inspector Morse is a fictional character in the eponymous series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter, as well as the 33-episode 1987–2000 television adaptation of the same name, in which the character was portrayed by John Thaw. Morse is a senior CID officer with the Thames Valley...
series. It received the Gold Dagger
Gold Dagger
The Gold Dagger Award was an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association for the best crime novel of the year.For its first five years, the organization's top honor was known as the Crossed Red Herring Award....
Award in 1992.
The plot deals with the search for a beautiful young Swedish
Swedes
Swedes are a Scandinavian nation and ethnic group native to Sweden, mostly inhabiting Sweden and the other Nordic countries, with descendants living in a number of countries.-Etymology:...
woman who went missing a year earlier. An anonymous riddle, in the form of a five-stanza poem, is sent to the police and the case is reopened. The police ask The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
for help with the poem. Morse and Sergeant Lewis
Inspector Lewis
Robert "Robbie" Lewis is a fictional character in the Inspector Morse crime novels by Colin Dexter. The "sidekick" to Morse, Lewis is a Detective Sergeant in the Thames Valley Police, and appears in all 13 Morse novels. In the television adaptation, Inspector Morse, he is played by Kevin Whately...
are put in charge of the new investigation.
The novel was adapted for television in 1995: see The Way Through the Woods (TV)
The Way Through the Woods (TV)
"The Way Through the Woods" is an episode of the British television detective mystery show Inspector Morse dramatized on ITV. It was first broadcast in 1995.-Set-up:...
, as an episode of the Inspector Morse series
Inspector Morse (TV series)
Inspector Morse is a detective drama based on Colin Dexter's series of Chief Inspector Morse novels. The series starred John Thaw as Chief Inspector Morse and Kevin Whately as Sergeant Lewis. Dexter makes a cameo appearance in all but three of the episodes....
.
Plot summary
Morse is intrigued by a cryptic clue relating to missing Karin Eriksson, which is taken to mean she has been murdered. He is given the case and notes that the clue seems to include a reference to Wytham Woods, where he believed the police should have searched in the first place. The police search the area with help from head forester David Michaels and a body is found but it's a man.Morse and Lewis talk to George Daley, who found Karin's bag. His wife Margaret gives them some photos developed from Karin's camera, showing a young man and a house, but tears up some more showing Karin naked. Morse identifies the house in the photo but the owner, McBryde, disappears before he can be questioned. Morse and Lewis find the house was being used to make pornographic films and the client list includes Daley and a local lecturer, Alan Hardinge. Daley is found dead in the woods. Michaels is suspected but was showing some RSPB representatives around at the time, since the gatewarden recalls when Daley entered the woods.
The first body turns out to be Doctor Myton, the man in the photographs. Hardinge admits that Myton was taking photographs of Karin in private at the house but when the others in the house checked on them they were both dead. He, McBryde, Daley and Michaels conspired to hide the bodies. Morse, however, realises this is a lie and Karin is still alive.
Daley's son Phillip commits suicide but has an alibi for his father's murder. Morse and Lewis speak to Michaels' wife Cathy and realise she is Karin. She killed Myton when he tried to rape her and was sheltered by Michaels, who persuaded the others to cover the matter up. Morse realises Michaels killed Daley and then had Cathy dress up as him and drive to the woods to hide the body, in order to give himself an alibi. Lewis learns Morse sent the cryptic clue in the first place.
Continuity
- This book marks the death from natural causes of Morse's pathologist friend Max, whose full name is revealed as Maximillian de Bryn.
Adaptation
The television adaptation guest starred Nicholas Le Provost as Hardinge, Neil DudgeonNeil Dudgeon
Neil Dudgeon is a British actor best known for his many television appearances, most often in crime drama.-Early Life:Dudgeon was born 1 January 1961 in Doncaster, Yorkshire, and attended Danum Grammar School among others. He established himself as an actor in school plays and went on to study...
as Michaels, Michelle Fairley
Michelle Fairley
Michelle Fairley is an Northern Irish actress of film, stage and television.-Life and career:Born in Coleraine, Northern Ireland to well known publicans Teresa and Brian Fairley, she grew up in Ballycastle, Northern Ireland she appeared in a range of British television shows including The Bill,...
as Cathy and Christopher Fairbank
Christopher Fairbank
Christopher Fairbank is an English actor best known for his role as Albert Arthur Moxey in the hit comedy-drama series Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.-Career:...
as Daley. Karin Eriksson became English girl Karen Andrews, a more unstable character who had been sexually abused by her father and served time in jail for murdering him. A subplot was added dealing with conflict between Morse and the original investigating officer, DCI Johnson (played by Malcolm Storry), who pinned Karen's murder on Steven Parnell, a serial killer responsible for four other deaths, and tried to beat a confession out of Phillip for his father's murder. Phillip's suicide was omitted but a more violent and dramatic ending added where Cathy kills both Daley and Michaels to protect her secret, finally perishing from a shot from her own gun when Morse knocks it out of her hands as she threatens him and Lewis.
Sources, references, external links
- Bishop, David, The Complete Inspector Morse: From the Original Novels to the TV Series London: Reynolds & Hearn (2006) ISBN 1905287135