The Secrets of Wishtide
by:
Kate Saunders (author)
Mrs Laetitia Rodd is the impoverished widow of an Archdeacon, living modestly in Hampstead with her landlady Mrs Bentley. She is also a private detective of the utmost discretion. In winter 1850, her brother Frederick, a criminal barrister, introduces her to Sir James Calderstone, a wealthy and...
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Mrs Laetitia Rodd is the impoverished widow of an Archdeacon, living modestly in Hampstead with her landlady Mrs Bentley. She is also a private detective of the utmost discretion. In winter 1850, her brother Frederick, a criminal barrister, introduces her to Sir James Calderstone, a wealthy and powerful industrialist who asks Mrs Rodd to investigate the background of an 'unsuitable' woman his son intends to marry – a match he is determined to prevent.
In the guise of governess, she travels to the family seat, Wishtide, deep in the frozen Lincolnshire countryside, where she soon discovers that the Calderstones have more to hide than most. As their secrets unfold, the case takes an unpleasant turn when a man is found dead outside a tavern. Mrs Rodd's keen eyes and astute wits are taxed as never before in her search for the truth – which carries her from elite drawing rooms to London's notorious inns and its steaming laundry houses.
Dickensian in its scope and characters, The Secrets of Wishtide brings nineteenth century society vividly to life and illuminates the effect of Victorian morality on women's lives. Introducing an irresistible new detective, the first book in the Laetitia Rodd Mystery series will enthral and delight.
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Format: paperback
ISBN:
9781408879160 (1408879166)
Publish date: 2016-07-14
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Limited
Pages no: 334
Edition language: English
Series: A Laetitia Rodd Mystery (#1)
I've previously started this book at least 3 times and never gotten past the first page - or even gotten to the first page before being distracted by something else so this time I was determined to get this book read. It turns out that once I could actually sit down and read more than a handful of...
My friend Shae sent a copy of this one to me because she thought I’d like it–and I did! It’s a Victorian mystery with some Dickensian elements (loosely inspired by parts of David Copperfield). I liked that it features an older woman as the detective, and Saunders does a nice job of weaving in everyd...
Five years after her archdeacon husband passed away, leaving her with a very small annuity, Laetitia Rodd makes ends meet (and staving off boredom) by investigating mysteries for her lawyer brother. It is a curious career for a widow, but Laetitia has a knack for getting people to reveal their secre...
Laetitia Rodd has been engaged to investigate the background of a woman by Sir James Calderstone. Sir James’ son wants to marry Helen Orme and Sir James believes her to be hiding her true background and to therefore be unsuitable for his son. Disguised as a governess, Letty travels to the home of th...