Part of Isabel Dalhousie, book 1
First published 2005
Isabel Dalhousie has a weakness for mysteries that don't concern her. When she witnesses a young man fall to his death from the upper circle of an Edinburgh concert hall, she can't let it go. Her housekeeper Grace, steeped in traditional Edinburgh values, warns her to stay out of it. Her niece Cat, who Isabel believes is dating entirely the wrong man, offers similar advice. Isabel ignores them both. She pursues the truth behind the man's death, navigating a moral puzzle that would challenge even Kant himself. Meanwhile, Cat's romantic troubles demand Isabel's attention, creating another problem to solve. Isabel must untangle both mysteries while dealing with Edinburgh's thorny personalities and her own irrepressible curiosity about matters that are frankly none of her business.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, mystery, contemporary
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-detective, found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Edinburgh, Scotland
Period: Contemporary
272 pages · Paperback · Anchor