#1 New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Laurens returns to the world of Barnaby Adair, his wife Penelope, and their growing band of sleuths in this mystery that reveals the dangerous underbelly of Regency London. Outside that glittering circle lay another world...and Laurens pulls back the curtain that has hidden it from us-until now.
When Lady Halstead is found dead in her bed, her companion Violet Matcham is alarmed to learn that her Ladyship's death was no accident...but a cold-blooded murder meant to silence an old woman who had discovered a secret she was never meant to learn. Violet enlists the help of Heathcote Montague, the most brilliant financial mind in London, to dig into Lady Halstead's affairs and determine what her killer was trying to hide...all while attempting to stay one step ahead of a murder who is willing to end the life of any person who gets too close to the truth. Lordly sleuth, Barbaby Adair and his wife, Penelope, take a break from wedded and familial bliss to assist Scotland Yard's, Inspector Basil Stokes, his wife Griselda, Violet and Heathcote as they investigate Lady Halstead's unscrupulous family, discover a long list of connected crimes and track down the killer before he returns to silence the one person still alive who could unveil him-Violet.