The Wildcats of Exeter, by Edward Marston

This is the book I skipped somehow, and it's a little disconcerting to find that it hardly mattered.

Obviously, the commissioners have headed to Devon for this book, along with yet another additional head to help them sort things out. Of course, like Ensign Red-Shirt in the original Star Trek shows, this just means he's either going to end up dead or on the wrong team.

The 'case' they end up trying to solve surrounds a man killed as they arrive in Exeter. The dead man has land that is under their review too, and after his death two new people come forward saying they should have the title, making a total of five claimants. Solving his murder becomes important to figure out if he was killed so that the new claims are the result of his death. In the meantime, the new commissioner is killed, and Golde becomes involved in an attempt at blackmailing the wife of their host.

The plot was convuluted, with the dangling carrot of Gervase and Alys' imminent wedding being held out as reason to continue reading the series.