Masters of Mystery with Darci Wilde and Colleen Cambridge

Help us celebrate Darci Wilde’s newest mystery inspired by the works of Jane Austen.  She’ll be joined in conversation with fellow Michigan author Colleen Cambridge for a Masters of Mystery event.

This event is free to attend. However it helps us in planning to receive your RSVP. Please register here so we know you plan to join us: https://events.humanitix.com/mystery-in-ann-arbor

About the Books:

THE SECRET OF THE LADY’S MAID
Inspired by the works of Jane Austen, this charming mystery series set in Regency London features Rosalind Thorne, a young woman with a talent for helping ladies of the ton with their most pressing and delicate problems . . .

Rosalind Thorne’s quick wits and discretion have proved invaluable to London’s haut ton. Success has at last brought her financial stability and a new home, which she shares with her best friend, Alice Littlefield. But now trouble has infiltrated Rosalind’s sanctuary, and the reputations in danger include her own.

Alice has formed a tender attachment to Amelia, the maid in their employ, and her affection is returned. But before meeting Alice, Amelia was involved with Cate Levitton, daughter of a well-respected family. The scandalous liaison caused the Levittons to banish Cate to the house of her widowed cousin. Amelia has no expectation of seeing Cate again—until she stumbles upon her in the marketplace, looking deathly ill.

The women bring Cate to their home with the help of Bow Street officer Adam Harkness, who deduces that Cate’s sickness may in fact be arsenic poisoning. But who had motive, or means? As Rosalind and Adam work side by side, their suspicions grow—as does the bond between them. Rosalind knows that both her blossoming relationship with Adam and her increasing independence would be frowned upon by society. Poison, politics, jealousy and jewel thieves combine in Rosalind’s most complex case yet.  But to solve this dangerous puzzle, Rosalind must also decide where her heart and her future lie . . .

MURDER BY INVITATION ONLY

In this engaging historical mystery, Agatha Christie’s ever-capable housekeeper, Phyllida Bright, not only keeps the celebrated author’s English country home in tip-top shape, she excels as an amateur sleuth. But when a murder-themed game goes awry, can she outfox the guilty party?

“A murder will occur tonight at Beecham House . . .” Who could resist such a compelling invitation? Of course, the murder in question purports to be a party game, and Phyllida looks forward to using some of the deductive skills she has acquired thanks to her employer, Mrs. Agatha, who is unable to attend in person.

The hosts, Mr. and Mrs. Wokesley, are new to the area, and Phyllida gladly offers their own overwhelmed housekeeper some guidance while events get underway. Family friends have been enlisted to play the suspects, and Mr. Wokesley excels in his role of dead body. Unfortunately, when the game’s solution is about to be unveiled, the participants discover that life has imitated art. Mr. Wokesley really is dead!

In the absence of Inspector Cork, Phyllida takes temporary charge of the investigation, guiding the local constable through interviews with the Murder Game actors. At first, there seems no motive to want Mr. Wokesley dead . . . but then Phyllida begins to connect each of the suspects with the roles they played and the motives assigned to them. It soon becomes clear that everyone had a reason to murder their host—both in the game and in real life. Before long, Phyllida is embroiled in a fiendishly puzzling case, with a killer who refuses to play by the rules . . .

About the authors:

Darcie Wilde is the award-winning author of stylishly adventurous historical mysteries and romances, including the Rosalind Thorne Mysteries, a Regency-set series inspired by the novels of Jane Austen, as well as the Regency Makeover Trilogy. She has also written, under the name Sarah Zettel, Locus and Philip K. Dick Award-winning novels, including Fool's War, a New York Times Notable Books of the Year selection. She lives in Michigan and can be found online at DarcieWildeRomance.com.

Colleen Cambridge is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Phyllida Bright Mysteries and the American in Paris Mysteries. Both the Agatha Award-nominated Murder at Mallowan Hall: A Phyllida Bright Mystery and Mastering the Art of French Murder: An American in Paris Mystery were IndieNext Picks from the American Booksellers Association, and Mastering the Art of French Murder was also a LibraryReads Pick. An accomplished historian whose meticulously researched novels appeal to fans of historical fiction and mysteries alike, she also writes under the pennames C.M. Gleason and Colleen Gleason. She lives in the Midwest and can be found online at ColleenCambridge.com.