The fourth novel in Robertson's series of historical mysteries featuring Mrs. Harriet Westerman and anatomist Gabriel Crowther, which one critic has likened to "CSI: Georgian England."
Set in 1784, at a masked ball in the duchy of Maulberg in Germany, the Duke's mistress is found murdered in a locked room. The body exhibits no sign that the victim resisted. And crouched in the same room as the corpse, bleeding from slashed wrists and completely incoherent, is Mr. Daniel Clode, Harriet's new brother-in-law. Clode and his bride, Harriet's younger sister Rachel, are in Maulberg on their wedding journey, combining business with pleasure.
Rushing to their support, Harriet enlists the assistance of several friends including Crowther, and travels to Maulberg, where she and Crowther begin by searching for evidence to prove Daniel's innocence. But soon they are drawn into the larger investigation: if not Daniel, then who is responsible for what they begin to suspect is a whole series of cunning murders targeting prominent members of the Duke's inner circle of advisors.
A gripping tale of political intrigue, deceit and vengeance that lives up to the standard Robertson has set in her three previous volumes: Instruments of Darkness, Anatomy of Murder and Island of Bones. Elegant and pithy, these are the kinds of stories you might expect if Jane Austen had turned her hand to murder mysteries. Fans of Stephanie Barron's series featuring Jane as sleuth will enjoy these too. Note: As each tale builds upon the last, it helps to read them in sequence.
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