Q. I am executor of a deceased bachelor whose will is clear that I should distribute his estate to his long-standing friends. There is no mention of what to do with family photos and heirlooms, which have little market value, but he hung on to them for sentimental reasons. I had thought to offer them to his two surviving blood relatives who are second cousins (and siblings to one another) and who, apart from a small pecuniary legacy, get nothing. Unfortunately, these relatives don’t talk to each other and cannot agree to fair shares each. What should I do?

– D.L., Newcastle-under-Lyme

A. Issue a photographic inventory of the sentimental items. Send a copy to each sibling and ask them to put their preferences in a long league table. Allocate accordingly. Where there is an obvious clash because both sibling A and sibling B crave the same first item, then the elder wins the first time, the younger the second time, and so on.

Q. My publisher has given me 12 free copies of my own first book. I would like to send a few personally inscribed copies out to close friends but I’m worried these loyal supporters may have already bought a copy from a bookshop, in which case I should inscribe those copies rather than lumbering them with a second one. But how can I tactfully find out? – Name and address withheld

A. Send the books out anyway, with your inscription on a separate sheet of good-quality writing paper, clipped to the jacket front. If the recipient has already bought a copy, they can glue the inscribed sheet into that, and give away your pristine extra copy as a present.

Q. I have just read the letter (30 November 2023) regarding the father who now wafts in the aroma of fabric conditioner because his new wife is ‘common’ and has married into a world where fabric conditioner is not used. I was shocked at such vulgar snobbery. Please let me enlighten. The reason why the disdained echelons utilise such a product is not for the aroma. Anyone who wears ‘sexy lingerie’ but who cannot afford silk and so has items such as peephole bras and babydoll nighties in manmade fabrics will tell you that the conditioner prevents static building up. Clearly what the man is up to with his new wife is much more exciting than the boring world his daughter and other snobs live in. The stepmother could merely be being thoughtful in protecting her husband from static while they engage in matters d’amour.

– Dr L.R., by email

A. Thank you for shedding more light on this mystery.