Part of Lady Sherlock
First published 2019
Charlotte Holmes has built her career as a consulting detective under the name Sherlock Holmes. She finds missing persons. She solves murders. She does not steal paintings. But when Mrs. Watson begs her to help recover secrets concealed behind a coveted canvas, Charlotte agrees to something new. The plan requires infiltrating a glamorous Yuletide ball at a glittering French chateau, where the painting is days away from changing hands and the secrets it hides are days away from ruin. Charlotte pulls in everyone she trusts: Lord Ingram, her sister Livia, and Livia's admirer Stephen Marbleton. The whole team moves fast, dressed for a celebration, working toward a theft. The scheme is elaborate and the timeline is tight. But the chateau holds more than one surprise, and disaster is already on the grounds, patient, waiting for Charlotte to slip once. What began as a favor to a dear friend has become the most dangerous game Charlotte has ever played.
Genres: historical-fiction, adventure, mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: atmospheric, clever, elegant, fast-paced, suspenseful, witty
Tropes: clever-protagonist, found-family, heist-plot, team-dynamics
Setting: France, French Chateau
Period: 19th-century, Victorian Era, Yuletide
297 pages · Paperback · Berkley