The Jewel That Was Ours(1991)

Colin Dexter

"Superbly clue-laden...A complex and satisfying puzzle."
THE BOSTON SUNDAY GLOBE
The case seems so simple, Inspector Morse deemed it beneath his notice. A wealthy, elderly American tourist has a heart attack in her room at Oxford's luxurious Randolph Hotel. Missing from the scene is the lady's handbag, which contained the Wolvercote Tongue, a priceless jewel that her late husband had bequeathed to the Ashmolean Museum just across the street. Morse proceeds to spend a great deal of time thinking--and drinking--in the hotel's bar, certain the solution is close at hand--until conflicting stories, suspicious doings, and a real murder convince him otherwise....
"It is a delight to watch this brilliant, quirky man [Morse] deduce."
MINNEAPOLIS STAR & TRIBUNE