First published 2020
Lady Katherine Bascomb has made enemies. As one of London's most talked-about newspaper columnists, she writes about the criminals targeting women, and when her reporting helps put a notorious killer behind bars, the attention becomes overwhelming. She retreats to a country house party to let things quiet down. On her first night there, she watches a man die. Detective Inspector Andrew Eversham arrives to investigate and immediately blames Katherine. Her column, he argues, whips the public into a frenzy rather than informing them, and that interference nearly destroyed his career. He wants her out of his case. She wants to prove him wrong. Neither gets what they want. Katherine turns out to be a sharper observer than Eversham expects. Eversham turns out to be more principled than Katherine assumed. His superiors are pushing him to close cases fast rather than carefully. She is the only witness who saw what actually happened. They need each other, and they both know it. The argument between them gradually shifts into something warmer. But the killer is still at the party, and catching him will require Katherine and Eversham to trust each other completely.
Genres: romance, historical-fiction, mystery, adult, adult-fiction, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, engaging, suspenseful, tension-filled, witty
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, forced-proximity, mutual-respect, slow-burn
Setting: London, country house
Period: 19th-century
352 pages · Paperback · Forever
Content warnings: murder, violence