First published 2020
Hall Pycroft wants nothing more than steady employment and a decent wage. When he accepts a position as business manager for the Franco-Midland Hardware Company at five hundred pounds per year, it seems his prayers have been answered. But his new employers, the Pinner brothers, prove far from straightforward. Strange requests and suspicious circumstances pile up around Pycroft's new role. The simple clerk realizes he has stumbled into something much larger and more dangerous than honest business dealings. Confused and increasingly worried, Pycroft knows only one person capable of untangling the web that has ensnared him. He turns to Sherlock Holmes, hoping the famous detective can make sense of what appears to be an elaborate deception. Pycroft must decide whether to trust his instincts or his desperate need for work.
Genres: 20th-century, mystery, thriller, detective, 19th-century
Vibes: suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Franco-Midland Hardware Company, Pinner
Period: 19th-century
112 pages · Paperback · Sweet Cherry Publishing