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The first kiss occurred in a dimly lit hallway on the upper floor of Elwin Hastings's grand house. Louisa Bryce never saw it coming. Of course, handsome, wealthy Anthony Stalbridge couldn't possibly have had romantic intentions. The kiss was merely meant to distract the armed guard about to catch the two unlikely sleuths. After all, the only thing these two interlopers have in common is a passionate interest in uncovering the dastardly secrets of Mr. Hastings—a prominent member of society whom they suspect of murder.
Brought together by their desire for the truth, Anthony and Louisa finally discover the incriminating evidence they're looking for. But bringing Hastings to justice will be more perilous than they anticipate, especially since their thrilling attraction to danger—and, it turns out, to each other—might very well get in the way . . .
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
February 21, 2023 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9798765089576
- File size: 296835 KB
- Duration: 10:18:24
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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In this romantic thriller, a litter of suspicious suicides and murders is wrapped around an unlikely love affair in Victorian England. Louisa Bryce, a wallflower who is also a scandal-sheet writer in secret, is investigating blue blood Alwin Hastings, suspected of owning a notorious brothel. Handsome, rich Anthony Stalbridge is also probing Hastings's well-disguised private life. He believes Hastings was responsible for the suicide of his fiancée. Katherine Kellgren builds Louisa's character slowly but with intrigue as she falls in love with Stalbridge. Kellgren artfully portrays the hero with masculine intensity, and oozes evil as Hastings and the homicidal brothel madam, Victoria. The predictable climax--Hastings's downfall and Louisa and Stalbridge's declarations of love--takes too long in coming, but Kellgren keeps the excitement red-hot until the end. M.T.B. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine -
January 29, 2007
The suspense begins with the first sentence of this romantic mystery from the pseudonymous Quick (Jayne Ann Krentz uses this pseudonym for her Victorian novels). Gossip spreads fast about the liaison between "unimportant, unfashionable, excessively dull" Louisa Bryce and wealthy, handsome Anthony Stalbridge. In reality, their first kiss was a spur-of-the-moment coverup when the two are caught snooping around Elwin Hastings's mansion. Louisa, an undercover reporter for the sensational newspaper, Flying Intelligencer
, is investigating Hastings's crooked financial dealings, while Anthony seeks the truth about his fiancée, one of three society women who supposedly committed suicide a year ago. Under the guise of their romance, Louisa and Anthony expose Hastings's many criminal schemes. Their relationship isn't all business, however, and Louisa's profession isn't her only secret. Quick's tightly woven tale allows little room for extraneous subplots—every cracked safe and mysterious prostitute plays an important role. Light humor and playful love scenes temper the more gruesome moments for an alluring combination of foggy nights and steamy afternoons.
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