Audiobook Review: Slightly Shady by Amanda Quick

Slightly Shady
Author: Amanda Quick
Narrator: Barbara Rosenblat
Series: Lavinia Lake & Tobias March Book 1
Publication: Recorded Books (October 24, 2013)
Length: 9 hours and 51 minutes

Description: Amanda Quick, best-selling author of Regency-era romances, has won many awards for her works, including the New York Times best-selling Wicked Widow. Each work transports fans into a richly detailed world of intrigue and desire. There are now over 25 million copies of her books in print.

Besieged by gambling debts, a desperate gentleman purchases a diary as a tool for blackmail. But he does not live to carry out his plans. He is murdered, and the diary is stolen. Now Tobias March, discrete private investigator, has been hired to find the incriminating diary. Tobias is familiar with danger, but when his inquiries lead him to the beautiful entrepreneur Lavinia Lake, his emotions are sidetracked.

The attraction that grows between Tobias and Lavinia is framed in the sparkling dialog and wit that have attracted millions of fans to Amanda Quick's novels. Superbly narrated by Audie Awardª-winner Barbara Rosenblat, Slighty Shady is a delicious tale filled with sophistication and suspense, humor and passion.

My Thoughts: Lavinia Lake and her niece Emaline are trying to survive in Italy after the Lady whose companions they were eloped with an Italian gentleman. They've opened a shop selling antiquities. But when Tobias March burst in searching for a message for a case he's working as a private inquiry agent, he manages to destroy the shop and sends them off to London to get out of the way of the villains. 

They meet again in London where Lavinia has decided to become a private inquiry agent herself and where she has decided to introduce her niece to Society. March is still pursuing the villains that almost killed him in Italy and left him with a limp while Lavinia is working with a woman who has received a blackmail threat. 

It seems their cases have intersected but that doesn't mean all things go smoothly. Both Tobias and Lavinia are headstrong and outspoken and not used to working with others. While they try to unravel the various plots which take them from ballrooms to wax museums, they manage to fall in love. 

I enjoyed the witty dialog, the humor, and the passion. My only complaint is that I thought the narrator's voice made Lavinia too old. The voice seemed to indicate a woman in late middle age while the internal clues made her much younger.

This is the first of a three book series starring Lavinia and Tobias. 

I bought this one August 19. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Murder on Threadneedle Street by Andrea Penrose

Murder on Threadneedle Street
Author: Andrea Penrose
Series: Wrexford & Sloane Mysteries (Book 10)
Publication: Kensington (September 29, 2026)

Description: Not all that glitters in Regency London is quite what it seems, as Charlotte and Lord Wrexford discover when a counterfeiting scheme draws them into a deadly web of murder and manipulation in USA Today bestselling author Andrea Penrose’s masterfully plotted mystery for readers of Victoria Thompson, C.S. Harris, Charles Finch, and Deanna Raybourn.

Lord Wrexford and Charlotte’s growing family ensures that life is a source of constant adventure. The addition of Wrexford’s half-sister to their household is proving an unexpected delight. But some surprises are less welcome—and trouble strikes when Hawk, one of the young boys in their care, arrives home distraught after learning that his new drawing teacher has been found murdered on Threadneedle Street.

Fletcher Campbell’s death could be dismissed as a random robbery turned violent. But as an artist herself, Charlotte suspects there’s more to the case than meets the eye. Closer examination reveals that a distinctive ring was taken from the victim’s finger. With Hawk pleading for the family to help solve the crime, Charlotte and Wrexford suddenly find themselves entangled in a fiendish mystery that harkens back to a decade-old scandal that nearly brought down the government.

It seems Campbell’s brother was the infamous leader of a counterfeiting gang that swindled the Bank of England. Most were apprehended, but forged banknotes remain a problem. Now, the Bank of England has offered £20,000 to anyone who can use the newly-invented engineering technologies to create the Inimitable Banknote—a complex design that cannot be counterfeited.

It’s a prize that could tempt anyone, and Wrexford and Sloane’s investigation turns even more fraught when one of their closest friends falls under suspicion. The deeper they probe, the more treachery comes to light. For when a lie so easily masquerades as truth, danger may be much closer than they think . . .

My Thoughts: The next Wrexford and Sloane mystery begins when Hawk, their youngest ward, comes home crying when he learns that his new drawing tutor has been murdered on Threadneedle Street. Despite all the signs leading to an ordinary street murder, they decide to look into the case for Hawk. 

Soon, some suspicious things come out. The simple pewter ring he wore was taken from his hand. As they look into his background, they also learn that he spent ten years in prison because of his connection to a plot to steal currency on its way to France. While most of the perpetrators were found and hanged, the mastermind eluded capture. 

Counterfeiting is a big business and growing worse. The Bank of England is sponsoring a competition with a massive cash prize to the inventor who can make an Inimitable Banknote. Somehow, it seems that the murder is related in some way to this competition. 

The story was full of the people who were competing for the prize both fictional and real including the son of the man in charge of the ten-year-old failed plot who was the artistic genius who almost made the plot succeed. There was also a lot of information about creating a reliable currency at a time when many banks made their own banknotes.

I enjoyed the family dynamics as Wrex's young sister is finding her place in the family. I also enjoyed the large circle of friends who were part of the investigation.

This was another great addition to this historical mystery series. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Velvet Knife by Maureen Johnson

The Velvet Knife
Author: Maureen Johnson
Series: Truly Devious (Book 6)
Publication: HarperCollins (September 29, 2026)

Description: Return to the world of Truly Devious as Stevie Bell and her friends travel to New York to solve a murder in the next standalone mystery from New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson.

Stevie might be the greatest teenage detective Ellingham Academy and the world has ever seen, but even she can’t figure out what happened with her boyfriend, David. What she needs is a distraction: a good old-fashioned murder. Stevie is much happier dealing with dead people. They’re a lot less confusing—they don’t send cryptic texts and make out with other girls in British pubs.

But then Stevie gets exactly what she wanted when a dead body turns up in the middle of a Manhattan apartment complex, and this one is . . . complicated. Caught in a web of messy alive-people feelings, Stevie finds herself questioning all human connection. Is magnetism only manipulation? Can you trust anyone? Does anyone realize that they’re joining a cult—before it’s too late? And are things with David really over?

My Thoughts: Stevie Bell is still reeling after her break-up with David. She's back at Ellingham Academy, blowing her exams, and wandering the twisting paths trying to figure out what went wrong. She is also celebrating her eighteenth birthday by breaking up with her parents who seem to care more about David than they do about her. 

Stevie tags along as Nate heads to New York City to stay in his editor's apartment to finally finish the novel he has been working on for years. He is under a deadline: finish it just after the new year or pay back the advance that he needs for college tuition. 

While Nate buries himself in his novel, Stevie gets to know the eccentric residents of the eighth floor of their apartment building. There's Helen who is an excellent baker and dying of heart failure and who has a very noisy cockatoo named Murph. There's Arthur who is the who is the social organizer. There's Elliot who is also writing a book and who gives Nate some very odd advice about finishing his. There's Benny who spends most of her time at an animal shelter. There are Lance and Mitzi. Lance channels Stanley Tucci and Mitzi snarks. There are Andy and Margo Lopez and their goth daughter Luna who wants to be a mortician. Finally, there are Imogen and her wife Sophie who are new residents from London who've come so that Sophie is on Broadway in Macbeth.

When Murph doesn't stop making lots of noise, Stevie and the doorman enter the apartment to find Helen dead. Stevie's first reaction is that dead people are following her around, but when the death is declared to be from natural causes, Stevie can go back to her brooding. But, when Benny who has custody of Murph after Helen's death, falls from her apartment window, Stevie is sure that death is murder. 

Going along with this story is a story that takes place in 1976 which tells about a young woman swept up into a cult led by the charismatic and controlling Dean. From her meeting the rest of the cult in New York City until she abruptly leaves it taking with her a large bag of money that has been amassed by pickpocketing and stealing and most of the cult dying in a fiery car crash, Helen who was renamed Blue by Dean has her life explored. Stevie discovers this older story as she tries to find out more about the very mysterious Helen. 

This was another excellent YA mystery starring the intriguing Stevie Bell who is trying to figure out her own life while solving mysteries. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Murder on the Sacred River by Tasha Alexander

Murder on the Sacred River
Author: Tasha Alexander
Series: Lady Emily Mysteries (Book 20)
Publication: Minotaur Books (September 22, 2026)

Description: In this next enthralling mystery in Tasha Alexander’s bestselling series, Lady Emily chases down a killer in India along the misty banks of the sacred river Narmada.

1908: Lady Emily and her husband Colin Hargreaves, along with an eccentric group of English tourists, are vacationing in India at Ahilya Fort, the old home to the Maharaja’s family, when a man is found shot along the Narmada River. Emily and Colin jump into action, but their suspect list is large, including a wonderful spinster and her not-so-wonderful companion; a local doctor; a widow who lives nearby; an English explorer; and an Englishman who now runs a tea plantation near Darjeeling.

1740: Fifteen-year-old Ahilyabai has been married to the son of Malharrao Holkar, the Lord of the Malwa territory, for seven years. Now the time has finally come to produce an heir. But though Ahilya’s in-laws have shown her nothing but kindness, her notoriously-drunken husband remains a mystery to her, having rarely spoken to Ahilya since their wedding as children. Faced with this tortured and distant man, Ahilya’s sense of loyalty is tested as she attempts to balance fulfilling her duty with forging her own destiny. Her decisions will have ripple effects across time―including Lady Emily’s investigation almost two hundred years later.

Lady Emily’s case takes a dramatic turn when a shocking new person arrives at the fort―and when the killer strikes again shortly afterwards, she and Colin must race to uncover the villain’s identity before it’s too late.

My Thoughts: Lady Amelia and her husband Colin Hargreaves are vacationing in India after Colin does a little something for the king. They find themselves invited to Ahilya's Fort on the banks of the Narmada River along with an assortment of other English travelers.

When the body of an Englishman is found in a boat with a gunshot wound to his head, their vacation becomes an investigation because the local police are more than willing to hand the case off to them. Once the man's identity becomes known after an initial misidentification, Amelia and Colin discover that many of their fellow travelers might have had reason to kill him. 

The eccentric lady and her bad-tempered companion, the visiting historian, a man named Mr. Ralston, a local doctor, and a local widowed lady are all suspects in this one. 

Woven into the mystery plot are flashbacks to 1740 and the woman for whom the fort is named. She was married at eight to the future maharajah and educated to be a helpmeet to him. The flashbacks tell of her life from childhood to old age. She did a lot of good as ruler after the deaths of her husband and in-laws and has become a figure of importance in the region. Rumor has it she left a treasure behind her which excites current (1908) day fortune hunters. 

This was an entertaining historical detail filled with wonderful scenes of India at the time period. Amelia greatly enjoys the food and drink and the culture while still investigating and solving the mystery. 

I did rather miss that their boys were left home in England but enjoyed Henry's letters pleading for an elephant.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: A Deadly Entanglement by Cathy Pegau

A Deadly Entanglement
Author: Cathy Pegau
Series: Harriman & Mancini Mysteries (Book 2)
Publication: Minotaur Books (September 15, 2026)

Description: In A Deadly Entanglement, two queer women in turn-of-the-century New York must work together to uncover the rotten truth.

The truth isn’t always easy…

Margot Baxter Harriman has just survived her deadliest scandal as President of B&H Foods, and now there’s nowhere to go but up. Which is why she’s organizing a fundraiser for the crowded, overworked city charity hospital, where she hopes to do good and give back–until a body falls past a second-floor window.

The nurse’s death is quickly ruled a suicide, but fellow nurse CeeCee Foxmoor, Margot’s friend and the live-in partner of investigator Rett Mancini, isn’t so sure: this isn’t the hospital's first suspicious death. CeeCee’s concerns draw both Margot and Rett into an undercover scheme to untangle the threads behind the deaths everyone else is ready to overlook.

Then another death catches their attention: Margot's old classmate checked into the Caspian, a luxury clinic catering to the New York elite, but never checked out. And the circumstances surrounding her death feel eerily familiar...

As both the secrets and bodies pile up, Rett and Margot realize that while money can buy anything, behind ward doors, everyone pays a price. This time, their search for the truth might cost the people they love.

Cathy Pegau’s A Deadly Entanglement is the captivating follow-up to A Murderous Business, where two women’s determination challenges the cost of greed–and the price of failure.

My Thoughts: Margot Baxter Harriman is meeting with the head doctor at the City Charity Hospital to plan the next major fundraising gala when she sees a body go by the window. The first conclusion is that the nurse committed suicide.

CeeCee Foxmoor is also a nurse at the CCH and she's sure that her friend didn't kill herself. She is just the next in line in a series of suspicious deaths. CeeCee is living with Rett Mancini who is a private detective. Rett, CeeCee, and Margot met in the first book in the series and became friends. In fact, Margot is a silent partner in Rett's detective agency. 

Rett goes undercover to try to find out what is going on at CCH. Meanwhile, Margot has questions of her own when a school friend of hers dies unexpectedly at the Caspian which is a hospital for New York City's Elite. She decides to go undercover herself to see if she can learn anything. 

The first thing she and Rett learn is that two of the doctors are associated with both hospitals. The charming Doctor Ewan Beales convinces Margot that she has a condition that can only be treated on an inpatient basis and has a wonderful new green pill named Tranquility for her to try. 

Rett and Margot's investigations overlap when they discover that each centers around the little green pills. There's money to be made by looking the other way and, if people die, it really is just an accident or so the villains say. 

I liked the NYC setting and the time period. I liked that the main characters were lesbians trying to deal with a society where that fact needs to be hidden. I like the relationship between CeeCee and Rett and have hopes for the relationship between Margot and Shiloh. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Those Who Are Gone by Laurie R. King

Those Who Are Gone
Author: Laurie R. King
Series: Raquel Laing (Book 2)
Publication: Bantam (September 8, 2026)

Description: Cold-case detective Raquel Laing faces new threats and long-buried secrets in this gripping novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series.

SFPD Homicide Inspector Raquel Laing had what might politely be termed a “difficult childhood,” until she was taken in by a loving family at the age of nine. She still lives with her adoptive sister, Dee, an online investigator for organizations all over the world.

Trouble arrives with an all-too-common case for Inspector Laing: the homicide of a drug dealer in a deserted corner of San Francisco. But the everyday rapidly spirals into complications—just as a simple search into the family’s ancestry is throwing Dee into her own world of turmoil.

Raquel’s case blows up far too close to home, thanks in part to the illicit shortcuts she took in the investigation, and while her unique skills are too valuable for the SFPD to suspend her entirely, she is removed from Homicide and put onto the Cold Case Unit.

On the one hand, Cold Case lets her work with her friend and mentor, Al Hawkin. On the other, it leaves her free to look at some disturbing facts about her past—and at the devastating news that Dee has uncovered in her own search for the truth.

Cold cases heat up, the distant past intrudes, and two sisters begin to suspect that they are tied together in ways they never imagined—ways that threaten attention from a powerful and vicious international cartel.

Because the truth is, those who are gone . . . have never truly left.

My Thoughts: The second Raquel Liang mystery brings Raquel's work home. While recovering from being shot, Raquel is working on cold cases with her mentor Al. The case she is assigned is a drive-by shooting in 1997. The two men were associates of her father who was also murdered in 1997. She is also working on a current homicide. Gilbert Gallegos was gunned down in an abandoned parking lot, and a video has shown up on YouTube of the killing. 

Raquel is good at seeing connections, but maybe this time she's too good. She sees a connection between Gallegos death and the death of her father. Both were killed the same way. Both were involved in the drug trade. And the guns used in the shootings were used in a number of other murders of people associated with the drug trade. 

While Raquel is working on her two cases, her sister Dee is doing some research of her own. She's sent her DNA to one of those online sites and the results throw her. She learns that Emma and Tom Liang were not her birth parents, that she, like Raquel was adopted. This hits her hard and her first reaction is anger at the Liangs for never telling her about the adoption. She also learns that she might be related to Delores Ortega and have other Ortega relatives. She begins trying to track down Delores and other family members and runs into roadblocks after roadblocks. 

While Raquel is helping Dee, she sees another possible connection. Dee's past might be connected to her two cases. 

There is a hidden actor who is also a viewpoint character who is connected to it all. But can Raquel unravel it all in time to save lives? Raquel is an intriguing character. She's neurodivergent and some the skills she uses as a homicide detective are those she honed as a foster child in some really bad homes. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury

The Oxford Guide to Scandal & Lies
Author: Kate Westbury
Series: The Oxford Guide Series (Book 1)
Publication: Minotaur (September 1, 2026)

Description: Set against the backdrop of post-WWII Oxford University, The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies is the irresistible debut from Kate Westbury that seamlessly layers mystery, romance, and a dash of academia to introduce the Crown’s newest undercover operatives.

Oxford, England, 1951 - The Honorable Ginevra Bishop likes red lipstick, clever retorts, and earning top marks in her tutorials. She’s following her mother’s footsteps by studying at Oxford, eager to prove she’s more than a debutante.

Sidney Braithwaite likes brooding, Latin, and ignoring his nightmares. He’s determined to forge a new life for himself at Oxford, far from his childhood mining village and free from memories of the war.

Though Gin and Sidney have little in common, the British Security Service is keen to unite her charm with his espionage experience: there’s a Soviet spy at the university, and the agent tracking them down was poisoned. MI5 wants Gin and Sidney to pick up the trail and identify the informant before more sensitive information is compromised. As a team, the pair of undergraduates clash in personality, upbringing, and taste––but have a connection neither can deny. Gin and Sidney must unite their respective talents to follow the clues before they’re caught in the traitor’s crosshairs…if the sparks flying between them don’t blow up the operation first.

My Thoughts: Ginevra Bishop is a student at Oxford in 1951. She's studying German since she's already fluent in some romance languages. She's an Honorable grieving the death of her mother and at odds with her father. Sidney Braithwaite is a former soldier from a small mining town in Wales. He worked in intelligence during World War II and still has the nightmares to go with it. 

Two people less likely to work together would be hard to find. But since they first met over a conflict of who has rights to a table in the library, they had been crossing paths. When Gin's favorite librarian dies at her feet at a gathering, she and Sidney are recruited by a branch of British Intelligence to look into who murdered him. Rumor has it that someone at the University is selling information to the Russians which might be a reason for the librarian's death by cyanide.

Sidney, who has been earning his way as a handyman to supplement his grant, isn't eager to get back into the intelligence game. Gin who wants to have a meaningful life and not marry the fribble her father has picked out for her is eager since she sees a positive future for herself in intelligence. 

The two clash as their varied experiences and personalities mean they look at their assignment in widely different ways. However, their varied skills do let them discover more than one secret buried at Oxford University but not before they find themselves in danger.

This was an engaging story with two well-drawn characters. I liked the Oxford setting and the 1951 time period. I enjoyed the mystery too.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Bravest Hour by Anna Lee Huber

The Bravest Hour
Author: Anna Lee Huber
Series: Verity Kent (Book 9)
Publication: Kensington (August 25, 2026)

Description: British Intelligence Agent Verity Kent managed to survive four years of The Great War, slipping in and out of German-occupied Belgium and northeastern France, dodging serious consequences or capture. But as she faces her most dangerous—and devastating—challenge yet, her luck may have run out. Hopefully, her resilience has not . . .

November 1920. Dublin, Ireland. Verity’s efforts to foil a contemptible plot by the traitorous Lord Ardmore and save countless lives—as well as the British government’s reputation—has exposed her to detrimental scrutiny, bringing her contact with the Irish rebels to light. Crushingly, she finds herself incarcerated in Dublin Castle, the “Dread Bastille,” where she must withstand interrogation from her own countrymen.

Despite her circumstances, Verity knows better than to talk—though decrying Ardmore to his face would be more than satisfying. For once again he has escaped culpability, scapegoating his associates. Her only hope is intervention from her shadowy superior. And yet, when rescue finally comes, Verity finds herself changed by what she has endured, perhaps for the worst.

Still, there’s no time for respite or healing. Ardmore’s latest nefarious objectives go beyond mere treason. Allegiances are shifting as the war between the Irish Republican

But just when victory seems assured, one shocking and vicious turn of events changes everything. Now Verity must decide where her loyalty lies. And it may not be on the same side as the man she’s loved to the grave and back.

My Thoughts: This is the third book in the Dublin story arc and begins with Verity arrested by the British who think she is working with the rebels. While she is being questioned and tortured, Sidney is pulling every string he can to get her released. Since Verity doesn't trust any of the British government in Ireland, she is determined not to tell them anything. And then there is the Official Secrets Act she signed while she was an intelligence agent during World War 1.

Sidney does manage to get Verity out of the clutches of those in Dublin Castle, but concessions have been made. She and Sidney need to help them find Michael Collins who is leading the Irish revolt against the British government, and they can't leave Dublin until they do. 

Meanwhile, their enemy Lord Ardmore is still hatching his nefarious plots and generally causing discord in Ireland. Sidney and Verity are determined to find the evidence to bring him to justice. The more Sidney and Verity get involved with finding proof of Ardmore's treason and the more they become invested in the Irish cause, Verity especially wonders if her loyalty to Britain has been misplaced. She suffers a real crisis on conscience in this story. 

I enjoyed the historical detail about events in Dublin during 1920. It was packed with intriguing detail and included of a cast of actual historical figures along with other characters to suit the needs of the story. 

I thought this one brought the three-book arc to a satisfying conclusion and left Verity and Sidney is a good place. Fans of the series will breathe a sigh of relief at the end. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: For Services Rendered by Will Thomas

For Services Rendered
Author: Will Thomas
Series: Barker and Llewelen (Book 17)
Publication: Minotaur (August 18, 2026)

Description: In London, 1896, private enquiry agent Cyrus Barker's world is upturned when his longtime nemesis, Sebastian Nightwine, previously believed dead, turns up with evil on his mind, launching devastating and secretive attacks against not just Barker, but his network of friends and close associates.

In 1896, Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, would be reformer and revolutionary, turns up in London, running away from China's Imperial Qing Secret Service, who has placed a substantial bounty on his head for his political activities. Captured by those agents, he's imprisoned in the Chinese Embassy until he can be smuggled back to China to face execution.

In the meantime, private enquiry agents Cyrus Barker and Thomas Llewelyn receive the unbelievable news that Sebastian Nightwine is both alive and in London. Not just that, it seems he's taking action against Barker and his close associates. At the same time, they've been hired to find this missing Sun Yat-Sen. With elements of the Chinese secret service, elements of the British government, and Nightwine himself all working against them, Barker & Llewelyn are at risk of being cornered by the deadliest set enemies they've yet faced.

My Thoughts: The intrepid Victorian detective duo of Barker and Llewellyn are hired to locate Dr. Sun Yat-Sen who has gone missing on a visit to London. He is on the run from the Imperial Qing Secret Service accused of treason against the emperor. Meanwhile, Sebastian Nightwine, long thought dead, is back in London determined to get revenge on Barker and his close associates from his days in China.

Thomas Llewellyn is the narrator and Barker the lead and very enigmatic senior partner. Things get exciting when Barker's associates begin to be kidnapped leaving Barker to find them before they too are returned to China for the prices on their heads. 

I liked the sections narrated by Sun Yat-Sen who has been captured and held prisoner in the Chinese Embassy. I also enjoyed the references to many of the duo's earlier cases. The story had an excellent Victorian setting. 

Fans who have been following along will be excited to read this seventeenth adventure. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Murder at Blackfriars by Jennifer Ashley

Murder in Blackfriars
Author: Jennifer Ashley
Series: A Below Stairs Mystery
Publication: Berkley (August 11, 2026)

Description: In Victorian London, valiant cook and amateur sleuth Kat Holloway must help the man she loves solve the murder that will finally uncover his mysterious past, from the New York Times bestselling author of A Silence in Belgrave Square.

Kat Holloway’s beau, Daniel McAdam, has always had a past shrouded in mystery. He knows nothing about his origins, only that he was rescued from the streets many years ago. So when someone claiming to know where Daniel came from turns up dead moments before meeting with him, Daniel goes on the hunt for the killer. It soon becomes clear that to see justice served, Daniel will have to figure out who he truly is. When he asks Kat for her assistance, she readily complies, knowing she’ll do whatever she must to protect the man she’s come to love.

The quest takes Kat and Daniel deep into the East End, where they face dangerous foes from Daniel’s rugged past who will stop at nothing to keep Kat and Daniel from uncovering their secrets. As Kat begins to learn things about Daniel’s history, she fears that the darkest secret—his true name and lineage—will tear apart the tender bonds they’ve begun to form.

My Thoughts: This episode of the Below Stairs mysteries is filled with changes for the main characters and two different mysteries to solve. 

Kat Holloway's fiancé Daniel McAdam has received a message from a man who might be able to shed some light on Daniel's past. However, the man is murdered while on his way to a meeting with Daniel and Kat. It is not at all clear if he was killed because of the information he had for Daniel or for some other reason. 

As Kat investigates the man's lodgings, she meets a friend who tells her that the murdered man had a lead to a house that took in abandoned children but was dissolved when the woman who ran it died with the children sent to a workhouse.

Kat calls on her friends and resources to investigate further while Daniel is concentrating his investigation on finding the man's killer. He is reluctant to hope that the mystery of his past can have a solution.

Kat also receives a blow when she learns that the family that has been caring for her daughter since she was born will be moving away for a job opportunity. Her twice weekly visits with her daughter won't be possible because of the distance to the family's new home. She and Daniel need to save up funds before they can marry and provide a home for her daughter. 

Kat has also begun a new business selling baked goods at a local market as a first step in starting her own business when she marries. 

A lot of things happen in this episode. It is certainly one of changes for both Kat and Daniel. I enjoyed the mysteries. I love the Victorian detail that permeates the story. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Death at King's Cross by Rosanne Limoncelli

Death at King's Cross
Author: Rosanne Limoncelli
Series: A Four Queens of Crime Mystery (Book 2)
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (July 21, 2026)

Description: DCI Lilian Wyles is confronted by a troubling case, one that only the four queens of crime can help solve—even amidst the ongoing war efforts.

Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham, and Ngaio Marsh are back in the follow-up novel to The Four Queens of Crime.

1941, London. When DCI Lilian Wyles finds a young woman murdered at King's Cross Station, she needs the help of someone she can trust, but Richard Davidson, her former Scotland Yard partner, has joined MI5 and is busy tracking black market routes outside of London, so for now, she is on her own.

After having met the four queens of crime during a murder investigation two years earlier, DCI Wyles has kept in touch. But Agatha, Dorothy, Margery, and Ngaio are all involved in the war effort and have problems of their own.

Agatha is volunteering at the University Hospital Pharmacy, where a dangerous anesthetic has been stolen. Dorothy has heard unsettling information from her connections at the BBC regarding members of the Royal Navy. Margery, who has been in the countryside helping families escape the city from the bombing, is worried about one of her charges whose older sister has gone missing. And Ngaio, who has relocated to New Zealand and is volunteering as an ambulance driver, has begun gathering secret intelligence from wounded soldiers and sailors that may put her in danger.

When the four queens contact DCI Wyles for help, the information they share makes the final pieces of the puzzle fall into place. DCI Wyles once again finds herself collaborating with her old partners in crime to solve the mystery and close the case in this thrilling sequel, perfect for fans of Nicola Upson and Anna Lee Huber.

My Thoughts: The second Queens of Crime mystery begins with the discovery of a body at King's Cross Station. The young woman in barefoot and wearing only a silk slip and a man's overcoat. DCI Lilian Wiles arrives on the scene only moments after the unidentified woman's death. 

Though quickly identified, the investigation into the woman's death is quickly snatched out of Scotland Yard and into the auspices of MI5. Lilian is curious and somewhat upset by this change of jurisdiction especially when she sees the woman as part of an investigation she's already conducting into the disappearances of a number of young women. 

Meanwhile, the other four queens of crime are each doing their parts in the war effort. Agatha Christie is volunteering in a hospital pharmacy where she is noticing the some chloralhydrate is going missing. Dorothy Sayers is working for the BBC where she runs into a blackmail plot determined to undercut the country's war efforts. Margery Allingham is safe in the country where she is hosting a young woman evacuated from London. The young woman's sister has gone missing, but a note filled with Cockney rhyming slang has reached her indicating that her sister is in danger and in need of rescue. Ngaio Marsh is back home in Christchurch, New Zealand, driving an ambulance, visiting evacuated soldiers, and directing a play whose actors are young university students and writing long letters to Richard Davidson who has moved from Scotland Yard to MI5.

Each of the queens of crime has clues that all lead to the same mystery. It isn't until Lilian puts all the clues together that they understand what is going on. They rescue the young women and foil a plot against England's best good.

This was an enjoyable mystery. I liked the World War II setting. I liked the insights into the lives of four very famous mystery authors. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Cloak and Dagger Club by Jackie McMahon

The Cloak and Dagger Club
Author: Jackie McMahon
Series: A Cloak and Dagger Club Mystery (Book 1)
Publication: Berkley (July 14, 2026)

Description: Inspired by Agatha Christie's real-life Detection Club, a murder among a group of golden age mystery writers meets a second chance romance in this debut novel from author Jackie McMahon.

London, 1930. Lucy Hubbard is on the cusp of achieving her dreams. With her first mystery novel debuting with strong sales and glowing reviews, she's been invited by Horace Hazelmoor, the king of crime fiction, to join his elite group of writers—the Cloak and Dagger Club.

Thrilled at the opportunity, Lucy finds herself swept up into Horace's glamorous world at the Ritz hotel. She's even willing to put up with the inconvenient presence of her former fiancé, Frank Murray, the club's rising star who is on track to eclipse Horace as Britain's most popular crime writer.

But when Horace is found with a knife in his back, Frank is the police's prime suspect. Despite their complicated history, Lucy knows he's not capable of murder. With suspects galore and the danger rising, these two mystery writers must race to solve the crime—and fight their lingering feelings for each other—before the murderer strikes again.

My Thoughts: Lucy Hubbard who has recently published her first mystery to great acclaim is invited by best-selling author Horace Hazelmoor to join the prestigious Cloak and Dagger Club. She's intrigued but rather reluctant because her former fiancé Frank Murray is also a member. 

The first meeting doesn't go well because Hazelmoor is illuminated as a drunk and as a man who is mercurial. He is also eager for any opportunity to prove his superiority in writing despite the fact that his last mystery didn't do well. Blows are exchanged and he's escorted to his suite where he is discovered dead 36 hours later. 

When Frank becomes the prime suspect, Lucy is determined to discover who really killed Horace Hazelmoor. She needs to uncover the secrets of the other members of the club if she wants to clear Frank's name. And all the other members do have their secrets.

Frank and Lucy's romance is rekindled but they need to battle both external enemies and themselves before they find their way to a happy ending. 

I enjoyed this historical mystery and the intriguing cast of characters who inhabit it. I enjoyed the period details.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: A Bitter Cut by Anna Lee Huber

A Bitter Cut
Author: Anna Lee Huber
Series: A Lady Darby Mystery (Book 14)
Publication: Berkley (June 23, 2026)

Description: Lady Kiera Darby plans to spend the summer reconnecting with friends and family in anticipation of the betrothal of her beloved brother. But when a future in-law is implicated in a murder, the party takes a deadly turn. . . 

July 1833. Lady Darby and her dashing husband, Sebastian Gage, are settling into their newly renovated home at Bevington Park in Warkwickshire with their young daughter. With the breach between them and Sebastian’s father recently healed, they've agreed to help host a country house party for friends and family to share in their joy. Kiera is also anxious to help promote a match between her brother, Trevor, and the woman he’s fallen in love with, inviting her family to join them. However, Kiera swiftly discovers that the would-be bride’s family is not without their detractions. Her brother is unpleasant. Her mother is abrasive. And her father—the prosperous industrialist Jeremiah Birnam—is brusque, discourteous, and, at times, downright rude.

So when Mr. Birnam’s secretary is found murdered with Birnam standing over her body, many are content to allow him to take the blame. But neither Kiera nor Sebastian believes he did it, and in spite of his bluster and boorish behavior, they can’t let an innocent man be hung for another’s crime. Unfortunately, Birnam had his fair share of enemies at the house party, and any one of them might have struck out at his secretary in order to get to him. It's up to Kiera and Sebastian to uncover the truth and salvage Birnam’s reputation. As the couple slowly inches their way closer to the truth and threats emerge against their loved ones, Kiera begins to fear that the price of solving the crime may mean sacrificing her brother’s future happiness.

My Thoughts: It's 1833. Keira and Gage have recently reconciled with Gage's father and have renovated the dower house on his estate for their country home. They are hosting a house party. Keira has invited the family of the young woman her brother Trevor is courting. Except for the young lady Trevor is courting, the family has a number of problems. The brother is unpleasant. The mother rude and abrasive and the father - industrialist Jermiah Birnam is discourteous and downright rude. 

Mr. Birnam has also brought his secretary who is, most unusually, a young woman. Keira fears that she might be a mistress snuck into the company when Birnam demands that she be invited to dine with the company. The dinner is already difficult for Keira to manage since Birnam is determined to convince Lord Gage's political guests against supporting a bill which would allow inspectors into mills and factories. 

When the young secretary is found murdered with Oil of Vitriol, Keira and Gage have a murder to solve before the rest of the large house party assembles. However, they are getting no cooperation from the Birnams who should know the young woman the best. 

I enjoyed this historical mystery. It is the 14th book in the series. I like seeing how Keira has grown to accept her differences with the love and support of her husband and family. I like the way Keira and Gage work together along with their personal attendants and Lord Gage to solve the crime. I also like the setting and time period of the mystery. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Murder at the Spirit Lounge by Jess Kidd

Murder at the Spirit Lounge
Author: Jess Kidd
Series: Nora Breen Investigates (Book 2)
Publication: Atria Books (June 16, 2026)

Description: In the second installment of the Nora Breen Investigates series—“perfect for cozy mystery lovers” (Book Riot)—beloved former nun Nora Breen returns, this time to track down a ghostly killer before it’s too late.

When Dolores Chimes, a famous medium, arrives in Gore-on-Sea, even surly Detective Inspector Rideout is lured in by her promises of messages for the afterlife.

But after a reading goes disastrously wrong, Dolores loses her life—and the six sitters at the séance with her fall victim to supernatural deaths themselves in the days following the nightmare of a reading.

Determined to unveil the truth, Nora finds herself chasing a ghostly serial killer she believes to be responsible, before the sixth victim—Detective Rideout himself—perishes along with the others.

My Thoughts: Nora Breen, former Carmelite nun, is back again solving crimes in Gore-on-Sea in the years shortly after World War II. 

A famous medium arrives in Gore-on-Sea and hosts a seance with a select group of patrons. A gangster, an upcoming young actress, a retired army officer, a Lady and her downtrodden daughter, and Detective Inspector Rideout all arrive by invitation to hear messages from the dead. 

Nora is called in when the medium dies suspiciously during the seance. After all, she spent many years as a nurse at her monastery. When other attendees at the seance also begin dying in unexpected ways, Nora and Rideout have to find the killer before Rideout becomes the last victim. 

I enjoyed this historical mystery. I like that Nora is trying to find a place for herself in the world after leaving the Carmelites. In this one, she begins working for the local newspaper which fits her personality excellently. I enjoyed all the post-WWII details.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: A Botanist's Guide to Tradition and Treachery by Kate Khavari

A Botanist's Guide to Tradition and Treachery
Author: Kate Khavari
Series: Saffron Everleigh Mysteries (Book 5)
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (June 9, 2026)

Description: Brilliant botanist Saffron Everleigh has set sail on her first research expedition, but it's disrupted by accusations of murder when one of her fellow scientists is murdered in this daring fifth installment.

Saffron Everleigh is newly engaged and full of optimism as she sets off on the adventure of a lifetime for any scientist: a research expedition. She sails to newly formed Turkey with her fiancé, Alexander Ashton, and a bevy of fellow researchers under the watchful and reformed eye of Dr. Henry. With only two other women on board, Saffron soon finds she is right back in the same infuriatingly misogynistic environment that marked the earliest days of her career. Only this time, Saffron is determined to show everyone, including Alexander, that she can handle the trials of an expedition.

And trials she has in spades. Before the expedition team has even arrived, Saffron has managed to find an enemy in historian Joseph Clark, who frequently torments the assistant that Saffron has taken under her wing, Martin Neill. But when Martin unexpectedly dies, Saffron is targeted as the main suspect.

Falling ruins, venomous snakes, and mysteriously blocked passages are the least of Saffron’s worries. With unexpected help from a familiar face, Alexander and Saffron have to work fast to prove not only that Saffron is innocent but that they both have nothing to do with a larger conspiracy at play among the expedition crew.

My Thoughts: The fifth Saffron Everleigh historical mystery sees Saffron on her first scientific expedition. She is traveling to the newly formed Turkey to explore Smyrna. Her fiancé Alexander Ashton is along on the expedition which is led by Dr. Henry. Unfortunately, Dr. Joseph Clark is also along on the expedition and is the one Saffron is supposed to work with most closely. 

Clark has taken an inexplicable dislike to Saffron and is playing dangerous pranks on her including a venomous snake, locking her in an underground room, dosing her with sleeping powders, and toppling a loose stone on her. Dr. Henry and even Alexander are inclined to see these things as pranks often done to those new on expeditions though Alexander believes Clark is going much too far. 

Saffron is determined to take care of herself despite these "pranks" and doesn't want to look weak by depending on her fiancé who has assigned her a "helper" named Martin Neill who is a young biologist. When Neill takes ill and dies, Saffron becomes an immediate suspect in his death because of rumors Clark has started about their supposed relationship. 

Arrested by the Turkish police, Saffron needs to depend on Alexander and a mysterious character from earlier in the series to unravel what is happening and to clear her name. Saffron soon finds herself in the middle of antiquities smuggling and old secrets. 

This was another engaging historical mystery about an interesting main character trying to make a place for herself in a man's world. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: Fire Must Burn by Allison Montclair

Fire Must Burn
Author: Allison Montclair
Series: Sparks & Bainbridge Mysteries (Book 8)
Publication: Severn House (January 6, 2026)

Description: The owners of The Right Sort Marriage Bureau are back, and more determined than ever to bring love matches to the residents of Post-WWII London . . . so something as trivial as being dragged into a spy mission isn’t going to stop them!

Sparks fly when an old friend comes to town . . .

London, 1947. After recent events have left the normally steadfast Iris Sparks thoroughly shaken, she’s looking forward to some peace. With The Right Sort doing well, she and business partner Gwen Bainbridge are due a holiday. Until Iris’s former boss enlists their help for a secret mission.

Iris, who left British intelligence after the war, is being recruited for her Cambridge connection to one Anthony Danforth. She hasn’t seen Tony in almost ten years, yet she and Gwen must manipulate him into hiring their marriage service.

Tony’s suspected of being a Soviet operative, and an undercover agent posing as his perfect match could discover the truth. Despite her reluctance at being dragged back into the world of espionage, Iris agrees. After all, Tony was once a very good friend. If he’s innocent, she’ll happily prove it. If not? Well, no one ever said being a spy was easy . . .

Those who enjoy reading Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher Mysteries and Dorothy Sayers will adore this warm and witty historical mystery!

My Thoughts: Iris's past is the focus of this 8th book in the Sparks & Bainbridge series. The Brigadier who was Iris's boss when she was a spy during World War II has come to her because he is suspicious of a man returning from China. 

Tony Danforth was Iris's friend when they were both students at Cambridge. Iris is torn between her old friendship and the possibility that Tony is an agent for the Communists. To determine if this is true, Iris and Gwen convince him to become a patron of their marriage bureau and match him with an agent the Brigadier has inserted. 

When Tony is firebombed in his new flat, Iris and Gwen get involved in finding out why. If it has something to do with his political leanings, they have one answer. But Iris believes that it has more to do with something that happened while they were students at Cambridge. This event is shrouded in mystery but did result in the suicide of one of Iris's other friends. 

I enjoyed the flashbacks to Iris's university days. I also like the way Gwen and Iris work as a team. I enjoy their strong friendship. 

I bought this one January 16, 2026. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: A Ghastly Catastrophe by Deanna Raybourn

A Ghastly Catastrophe
Author: Deanna Raybourn
Series: Veronica Speedwell Mysteries (Book 10)
Publication: Berkley (March 3, 2026)

Description: Veronica and Stoker are practically dying for a new adventure, but when their wish is granted, they find themselves up against a secret society and a darkly seductive duo in this landmark historical mystery from beloved New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn.

When the corpse of an entitled young man is found entirely drained of blood in a carriage next to Highgate Cemetery, Veronica’s interest is piqued. And then a second victim is found, his death made to look like a suicide—and Veronica and her intrepid beau Stoker know the hunt is on. The two men share one link: they were both members of a society so secretive that only a singular mention of it can be found anywhere.

Thirsty for more clues, Veronica and Stoker hear that a young Romany boy may know more about their first victim, and the only way to the boy is through an old acquaintance of Stoker’s, Lady Julia Brisbane. Lady Julia and her dashing husband, Nicholas, occasionally track down murderers and are only too happy to help. But as it becomes clear that e secret society is a dangerous sect looking to entice immortality seekers, Veronica and Stoker find themselves ensnared by a decidedly more sinister couple.

The professed leader of the society claims to be a creature of the night; his partner practices witchcraft and they both fancy themselves emissaries of the otherworldly. Just as Veronica and Stoker get closer to learning the true purpose of the society and unraveling this macabre mystery, another body turns up, and they quickly discover they’ve gone from being the hunters to the hunted. . . .

My Thoughts: The tenth Veronica Speedwell historical mystery begins with both Veronica and her significant other Stoker trying to stave off boredom. It has been a while since their last adventure. But when a corpse appears outside Highgate Cemetery and it is drained of blood, Veronica and Stoker are both intrigued. 

The young man was of the upper class, and his death is quickly covered up by his family. They certainly don't want any hint of scandal. Veronica throws out the theory that the young man was killed by a vampire which raises Stoker's hackles and a bet ensues. 

Then a second young man who happens to the be best friend of the first commits suicide after receiving a note containing dried poisonous plants. Veronica and Stoker soon learn that they were both involved in an exclusive and very secretive club. 

Their investigations take them to a Romany camp in the company of one of Stoker's old friends and her private investigator husband as they try to track down a witness. And they attempt to interview a reclusive American millionaire and his private secretary. 

As they get closer to the solution, they go from hunters to hunted. Veronica and Stoker have drawn the attention of the leaders of the very secret club. 

I enjoyed this historical mystery. I am especially fond of Veronica's unique point of view as she narrates the story. I love the Victorian attitudes and the Victorian setting. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Enola Holmes and the Clanging Coffin by Nancy Springer

Enola Holmes and the Clanging Coffin
Author: Nancy Springer
Series: The New Adventures of Enola Holmes (Book 4)
Publication: Wednesday Books (February 10. 2026)

Description: Enola Holmes―international bestselling and Netflix streaming sensation―returns when the rescue of a young woman sends her into battle with her brother Sherlock against his most deadly, implacable enemy - Professor Moriarty.

In February 1891, London, Enola Holmes―the much younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes―is attending a burial when she hears the faint sound of a handbell in the graveyard. It is not in Enola’s nature to ignore such oddities, no matter the occasion and when she investigates further, as is the Holmes' family instinct, she discovers something absolutely chilling. The ringing bell is attached to the tombstone erected over a recent gravesite and someone, buried within, is pulling the string to ring the alarm.

Galvanized into action, Enola and her companions swiftly and successfully unearth the coffin within, freeing a still-living young woman, one Trevina Trairom. Enola, by predilection and by trade a Scientific Perditorian, a finder of lost things, finds herself comforting and protecting this young girl. The girl herself is a mystery – she remembers very little, including her identity, and has no idea who has buried her alive, much less why. While protecting this mysterious girl from an enigmatic enemy, she discovers that Sherlock is engaged in a related mystery. Enola joins Sherlock in his battle against the scourge of London, the Napoleon of Crime himself, Professor Moriarty. Facing her most brutal foe ever, determined to protect and unravel the secrets surrounding the mysterious Trevina, Enola takes her place more fully than ever as a proud member of the Holmes family.

My Thoughts: Enola Holmes, the much younger sister of Mycroft and Sherlock, begins her next mystery in a graveyard. She's there to bury her landlady when she hears a ringing bell and discovers that the occupant of the grave is not dead. Enola discovers a young woman whose name is Trevina. 

Trevina doesn't remember much more than her name at first leaving Enola to determine who she is and who buried her alive. Enola's investigations lead her into one of Sherlock's most difficult cases when she learns that her young rescue is the niece of the dreaded Professor Robert Moriarty. 

Enola finds herself up against Moriarty's very dangerous henchmen as she tries to solve her mystery. I enjoyed the Victorian setting and Victorian attitudes in this engaging historical mystery. I liked Enola's first person account of her investigation and adventures. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: The Crime at Black Dudley by Margery Allingham

The Crime at Black Dudley
Author: Margery Allingham

Narrator: Paul Panting
Series: Albert Campion (Book 1)
Publication: SNR Audio (February 27, 2025)
Length: 7 hours and 38 minutes

Description: First published in 1929, now public domain in the US and Canada. A house party is under way at the remote Black Dudley, and among the guests are some very shady characters. As they merrily recreate the ritual of the Black Dudley Dagger, Colonel Coombe dies. Pathologist George Abbershaw suspects foul play, and when a vital item is mislaid, a gang of crooks hold the guests hostage. Will they escape the house – what did happen to the Colonel – and just who is the mysterious Mr Campion?

My Thoughts: This classic mystery introduces Allingham's major character Albert Campion. Although he isn't the main character in the country house mystery, his presence is felt.

A group of people have been invited to a country house named Black Dudley for a weekend. The viewpoint character is George Abbershaw who is a pathologist who has sometimes worked with the police. He is there mainly because a young woman he is pursuing is also invited to the party. 

When a parlor game involving the historic Black Dudley Dagger ends with the death of the host of the weekend, Abbershaw finds himself trying to solve the mystery. Things get even more complicated when he and some of the other guests realize that a number of the guests are criminals. They find themselves held hostage by the criminals until a missing item is returned to them.

Abbershaw had found the missing papers and burned them for some mysterious reason making the return impossible. The criminals aren't willing to believe that the papers are gone and threaten the guests. 

I found this an interesting story but with some problems. First of all, there was such a large cast of characters that I couldn't keep the villains and victims clear in my mind. Second, some things happened that didn't really make sense like Abbershaw burning the papers for no apparent reason. 

I did enjoy Campion's appearances and his character which reminded me of the character of the Scarlet Pimpernel though set in modern times. I also had some problems with the racial prejudice running rampant through the story which automatically classified the Germans as villains. I could set that aside considering that the book was published in 1929, but I still found it jarring. 

I was intrigued enough by Albert Campion that I'll be looking for more books in the series. 

I bought the Kindle copy January 18, 2025, and the audiobook December 24, 2025. You can buy your copy here.

Friday Memes: The Crime at Black Dudley by Margery Allingham

 Happy Friday!

Book Beginnings is hosted by Gillion at Rose City Reader. She asks that the first sentence is posted along with the author and title of the book and the reader's initial thoughts on the sentence, the book, or anything else it inspires. 

Carrie at Reading Is My Superpower.org also provides a linky for sharing first lines and connecting with others. This meme asks that the chosen books be PG or marked as Mature if they are not. 

Beginning:

The view from the narrow window was dreary and inexpressible lonely.

Friday 56:

'How thrilling!' she said. 'It sounds just like a play! I've got just the right costume too, haven't I? I shall break into song at any moment. What is it?'

This week I am spotlighting a classic mystery. The Crime at Black Dudley is the first in the Albert Campion mysteries by Margery Allingham. Here is the description from Amazon:

First published in 1929, now public domain in the US and Canada. A house party is under way at the remote Black Dudley, and among the guests are some very shady characters. As they merrily recreate the ritual of the Black Dudley Dagger, Colonel Coombe dies. Pathologist George Abbershaw suspects foul play, and when a vital item is mislaid, a gang of crooks hold the guests hostage. Will they escape the house – what did happen to the Colonel – and just who is the mysterious Mr Campion?