Things are not what they seem in fashionable Rutland Place, where secrets that are never discussed at tea include murder
When her mother asks her help in finding a lost locket with a compromising picture, neither Charlotte Pitt, nor her mother, has any idea that the locket may be at the center of a bizarre chain of events leading to murder. Arriving at her mother’s home at Rutland Place, Charlotte discovers that other residents of the exclusive neighborhood have also suffered similar small thefts. It all appears quite mild as crimes go—a light-fingered servant, perhaps. That is, until Mina Spencer-Brown, a woman known for her prying, is poisoned and dies. Inspector Thomas Pitt quickly surmises that Mina’s snooping might have led to her murder, but what secrets had she stumbled upon? And whose?
As Pitt patiently struggles to break down the protective silence of high-born neighbors, Charlotte works behind the closed doors of society’s drawing rooms to help unravel a mystery that reveals sordid secrets and the chilling, dark corners of human behavior.
Review
“When Anne Perry puts Thomas and Charlotte Pitt on the case, we are in exemplary Victorian company.” —The New York Times
“When it comes to the Victorian mystery, Anne Perry has proved that nobody does it better.” —The San Diego Union-Tribune
“The period detail remains fascinating, and [Anne Perry’s] grasp of Victorian character and conscience still astonishes.” —The Plain Dealer
“Pitt’s compassion and Charlotte’s cleverness make them compatible sleuths, as well as extremely congenial characters . . . Perry has the gift of making [the Victorian era] all seem immediate and very much alive.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer
“Few mystery writers this side of Arthur Conan Doyle can evoke Victorian London with such relish for detail and mood.” —The San Francisco Chronicle
“Perry combines murder with a profile of the morals and manners of Victorian society . . . Murder fans who prefer their crimes with a touch of class should heat some scones and nestle back for the afternoon.” —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Perry’s Victorian novels attain the societal sweep of Trollope or Thackeray.” —Booklist, starred review
“For readers longing to be in 1890s London, Perry’s tales are just the ticket.” —Chicago Tribune
From the Inside Flap
"When Anne Perry puts Thomas and Charlotte Pitt on the case, we are in exemplary Victorian company." THE NEW YORK TIMES When Charlotte Pitt, well-born wife of Thomas Pitt, the police investigator, learned of her mother's distress in losing a locket with a compromising picture, she did not know it was the beginning of several bizarre events that would end in sudden death. For hidden behind the sumptuous elegance of Ruthland Place were terrible secrets. Secrets so horrifying that only murder could conceal them. And only the dogged persistence of Charlotte and Thomas could reveal them....
Description:
Things are not what they seem in fashionable Rutland Place, where secrets that are never discussed at tea include murder
When her mother asks her help in finding a lost locket with a compromising picture, neither Charlotte Pitt, nor her mother, has any idea that the locket may be at the center of a bizarre chain of events leading to murder. Arriving at her mother’s home at Rutland Place, Charlotte discovers that other residents of the exclusive neighborhood have also suffered similar small thefts. It all appears quite mild as crimes go—a light-fingered servant, perhaps. That is, until Mina Spencer-Brown, a woman known for her prying, is poisoned and dies. Inspector Thomas Pitt quickly surmises that Mina’s snooping might have led to her murder, but what secrets had she stumbled upon? And whose?
As Pitt patiently struggles to break down the protective silence of high-born neighbors, Charlotte works behind the closed doors of society’s drawing rooms to help unravel a mystery that reveals sordid secrets and the chilling, dark corners of human behavior.
Review
“When Anne Perry puts Thomas and Charlotte Pitt on the case, we are in exemplary Victorian company.” —The New York Times
“When it comes to the Victorian mystery, Anne Perry has proved that nobody does it better.” —The San Diego Union-Tribune
“The period detail remains fascinating, and [Anne Perry’s] grasp of Victorian character and conscience still astonishes.” —The Plain Dealer
“Pitt’s compassion and Charlotte’s cleverness make them compatible sleuths, as well as extremely congenial characters . . . Perry has the gift of making [the Victorian era] all seem immediate and very much alive.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer
“Few mystery writers this side of Arthur Conan Doyle can evoke Victorian London with such relish for detail and mood.” —The San Francisco Chronicle
“Perry combines murder with a profile of the morals and manners of Victorian society . . . Murder fans who prefer their crimes with a touch of class should heat some scones and nestle back for the afternoon.” —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Perry’s Victorian novels attain the societal sweep of Trollope or Thackeray.” —Booklist, starred review
“For readers longing to be in 1890s London, Perry’s tales are just the ticket.” —Chicago Tribune
From the Inside Flap
"When Anne Perry puts Thomas and Charlotte Pitt on the case, we are in exemplary Victorian company."
THE NEW YORK TIMES
When Charlotte Pitt, well-born wife of Thomas Pitt, the police investigator, learned of her mother's distress in losing a locket with a compromising picture, she did not know it was the beginning of several bizarre events that would end in sudden death. For hidden behind the sumptuous elegance of Ruthland Place were terrible secrets. Secrets so horrifying that only murder could conceal them. And only the dogged persistence of Charlotte and Thomas could reveal them....