New Releases by Anne Perry

An ancient scroll draws a bookseller into a chilling mystery. Monty Danforth finds the tin buried beneath a shipment of leather-bound classics. Inside is a millennia-old vellum manuscript written in an unfamiliar but unmistakably ancient language. Danforth tries to photocopy and photograph it, but he ends up with blank images, as though the ink were made of something impervious to modern technology. As the scroll’s mystery enchants him, this hapless bookseller falls into a cutthroat conspiracy that he may never escape. Soon a dead-eyed old man and his granddaughter come calling for the scroll. Danforth refuses to sell them the manuscript, but they will not be the last to demand it. Powerful forces crave the secrets locked within this ancient document, and Danforth will survive only if he can master its power. The Bibliomysteries are a series of short tales about deadly books, by top mystery authors.

“An annual treat,” declared The Wall Street Journal of Anne Perry’s Victorian-era holiday mysteries. Now she continues this magnificent tradition with A Christmas Garland, a yuletide tale set in exotic India. This time the mistress of mystery tells the story of a terrible crime that sets the stage for another: accusing an innocent man of murder. The year is 1857, soon after the violent Siege of Cawnpore, with India in the midst of rebellion. In the British garrison, a guard is killed and an Indian prisoner escapes, which leads to yet more British deaths. Cries for revenge are overwhelming. Despite no witnesses and no evidence against him, a luckless British medical orderly named John Tallis is arrested as an accomplice simply because he was the only soldier unaccounted for when these baffling crimes were committed. Though chosen to defend Tallis, young Lieutenant Victor Narraway is not encouraged to try very hard. Narraway’s superiors merely want a show trial. But inspired by a soldier’s widow and her children, and by his own stubborn faith in justice, Narraway searches for the truth. In an alien world haunted by memories of massacre, he is the accused man’s only hope. The trial of John Tallis equals the white-knuckle best of Anne Perry’s breathtaking courtroom dramas. And thanks to a simple Christmas garland and some brilliant detective work, Narraway perseveres against appalling odds, learning how to find hope within himself—and turn the darkest hour into one full of joy and light. PRAISE FOR THE CHRISTMAS NOVELS OF ANNE PERRY A Christmas Homecoming “Could have been devised by Agatha Christie . . . [Perry is] a modern master.”—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette “Vastly entertaining . . . uplifting and thought-provoking by turns.”—The Star-Ledger A Christmas Odyssey “[Perry] writes with detail that invades the senses.”—Lincoln Journal Star A Christmas Promise “Poignant . . . should be on the Christmas stocking list of anyone who likes a sniffle of nostalgia.”—The Washington Times A Christmas Grace “[A] heartwarming, if crime-tinged, complement to the holiday season.”—Booklist A Christmas Beginning “Intriguing . . . Perry’s use of period detail is, as always, strong and evocative.”—The Seattle Times

When evidence of a mole within the Special Branch is discovered, Thomas Pitt realizes that he cannot trust anyone; while his boss, Victor Narrawy, learns that Charlotte''s aunt''s friend might have unearthed war-provoking secrets.

Among the brilliant array of Anne Perry’s New York Times bestselling novels, her Christmas stories occupy perhaps the warmest spot in the hearts of readers. Each one is a masterpiece of suspense; each is alight with the true holiday spirit. In A Christmas Homecoming, a familiar face from the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt novels—Charlotte’s mother, Caroline—travels with her young husband, Joshua Fielding, and his theatrical troupe to Whitby, the Yorkshire fishing village where Dracula the vampire first touched English soil in the sensational novel named after him. Joshua has arranged to produce a stage adaptation of Dracula by the daughter of Whitby millionaire Charles Netheridge during the Christmas holiday, but after the disastrous first read-through of her amateurish script, only the fact that the company is depending on Netheridge’s financial backing for their spring tour keeps them at work. As tempers flare and wind and snow swirl around Netheridge’s lonely hilltop mansion, a black-cloaked stranger emerges from the storm—an eerily opportune arrival, for this enigmatic figure, one Anton Ballin, turns out to be a theatrical genius. At the same time, a brooding evil makes itself felt. Instead of the theatrical triumph that Netheridge desired for his daughter, there is murder—shocking and terrifying. Anne Perry’s ninth Christmas novel keeps us poised on a razor’s edge of suspense, hypnotized by a story in which the heartwarming power of goodness is challenged by the seductive power of inner darkness. In the end, A Christmas Homecoming lifts the spirit and rejoices the heart.

In a sensational breach-of-promise suit, two wealthy social climbers are suing on behalf of their beautiful daughter, Zillah. The defendant is Zillah’s alleged fiancé, brilliant young architect Killian Melville, who adamantly declares that he will not, cannot, marry her. Utterly baffled by his client’s refusal, Melville’s counsel, Sir Oliver Rathbone, turns to his old comrades in crime—William Monk and nurse Hester Latterly. But even as they scout London for clues, the case suddenly and tragically ends, in an outcome that no one—except a ruthless murderer—could have foreseen.

The Prince of Wales has asked four wealthy entrepreneurs and their wives to Buckingham Palace to discuss a fantastic idea: the construction of a six-thousand-mile railroad that would stretch the full length of Africa. But the prince’s gathering proves disastrous when the mutilated body of a prostitute turns up in a linen closet among the queen’s monogrammed sheets. With great haste, Thomas Pitt, the brilliant mainstay of Special Services, is summoned to resolve the crisis. The Pitts’ cockney maid, Gracie, is also recruited to pose as a palace servant and listen in on the guests’ conversations. If Pitt and Gracie fail to find out who brutally murdered the young woman, Pitt’s career will be over, and the scandal may just cause the monarchy to fall.

Anne Perry’s seventeenth William Monk novel, now in paperback, is a mesmerizing masterpiece of innocence and evil on London’s docks, a welcome addition to this successful and beloved series. NATIONAL BESTSELLER On a London riverbank, when the body of small-time crook Mickey Parfitt washes up with the tide, no one grieves. But William Monk, commander of the River Police, is puzzled by the murder weapon: an elegant scarf whose original owner was obviously a man of substance. Dockside informers lead Monk to a floating palace of corruption on the Thames managed by Parfitt, where a band of half-starved boys is held captive for men willing to pay a high price for midnight pleasures. Though Monk and his fearless wife, Hester, would gladly reward Parfitt’s killer, duty leads them in another direction—to an unresolved crime, to a deadly confrontation with some of the empire’s most respected men, and ultimately to a courtroom showdown with Monk’s old friend, Oliver Rathbone, in a trial of nearly unbearable tension and suspense. BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Anne Perry''s A Sunless Sea. “Masterful storytelling . . . [the] best in the series to date.”—The Star-Ledger

When an obscure moneylender named William Weems is murdered in the humble Clerkenwell district, there are no mourners—and there is more than a little discreet rejoicing among those whose meager earnings he so mercilessly devoured. Yet when Inspector Pitt finds in the murdered man’s office a list containing the names of some of London’s most distinguished gentlemen, he begins to realize the magnitude of his duty. William Weems, it transpires, was no common usurer but a vicious blackmailer. Fortunately, Pitt’s clever, well-born wife, Charlotte, has entrée to London’s best society. Her insights prove to be invaluable to Pitt’s investigation as she observes, at glittering balls and over gossipy tea tables, a world of passion, power, and greed that the police are seldom permitted to see.

A mystery set in Victorian England by the New York Times–bestselling author whose “novels attain the societal sweep of Trollope or Thackeray” (Booklist, starred review). 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.

Inspector Pitt is charged with murder in this “gripping and highly satisfying” entry in the New York Times–bestselling Victorian mystery series (Publishers Weekly). At the behest of his superior, Thomas Pitt reopens a case gone cold. Three years prior, Robert York, an important member of the British Foreign Office, was murdered in his home in London’s exclusive Hanover Close. Pitt has been advised to handle the situation with the utmost discretion, given the compromising circumstances of the crime: a distinguished victim from a powerful family, whispered rumors of treason, and the unimpeachable reputation of the widow, whose imminent marriage to a high-level diplomat could be cause for concern. One of Pitt’s first leads, a York family housemaid, seems innocent enough, but shortly after his interrogation, the woman is found dead. To make matters worse, Pitt is accused of the crime and thrown into prison. Now, only Charlotte and her recently widowed sister, Emily, Lady Ashworth, stand between one of Victorian England’s most adept private investigators and the gallows. From the upstairs drawing rooms to the servants’ downstairs quarters, Charlotte and Emily play a deadly game—and it may be only a matter of time before a killer gets the best of both of them.

The stylish gentlemen of London’s Paragon Walk are suspects in a novel that “combines murder with a profile of the morals and manners of Victorian society” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution). When innocent Fanny Nash of exclusive Paragon Walk dies in the arms of her exquisite sister-in-law, Jessamyn, Inspector Pitt is assigned to investigate her rape and murder. Every man of Paragon Walk is under suspicion, even Pitt’s brother-in-law, Lord George Ashworth, who was the last to have seen her. Could it be the charming, enigmatic Frenchman? Fanny’s cruel brother? Wealthy Dilbridge, who hosts wild, decadent parties? As Pitt digs deeper into the mystery, Paragon Walk’s aristocratic haughtiness gives way to fear, its calm to hatred. To keep her sister Emily, Lady Ashworth, company in this difficult time, inquisitive Charlotte once again finds herself in the midst of a deadly mystery. In the drawing rooms of her sister’s neighbors, Charlotte engages in witty and sharp-edged conversations that reveal unsavory intrigues and bitter rivalries. On Paragon Walk, Charlotte’s probing despite Thomas’s warnings may prove fatal.

For Superintendent Thomas Pitt, the sight of the dead man riding the morning tide of the Thames is unforgettable. The corpse lies in a battered punt drifting through the early mist, clad in a torn green gown and bestrewn with flowers. Pitt’s determined search for answers to the victim’s identity leads him deep into London’s bohemia—to the theatre where beautiful Cecily Antrim is outraging society with her bold portrayal of a modern woman, and into studios where masters of light and shadow are experimenting with the fascinating new art of photography. But only Pitt’s masterly investigative skills enable him to identify the wildfire passions raging through this tragedy of good and evil, to hunt down the guilty and protect the innocent.

When the distinguished Mr. Justice Stafford dies of opium poisoning, his shocking demise resurrects one of the most sensational cases ever to inflame England: the murder five years before of Kingsley Blaine, whose body was found crucified in Farriers’ Lane. Amid the public hysteria for revenge, the police had arrested a Jewish actor who was soon condemned to hang. Police Inspector Thomas Pitt, investigating Stafford’s death, is drawn into the Farriers’ Lane murder as well, for it appears that Stafford may have been about to reopen the case. Pitt receives curiously little help from his colleagues on the force, but his wife, Charlotte, gleans from her social engagements startling insights into both cases. And slowly both Thomas and Charlotte begin to reach for the same sinister and deeply dangerous truth.

Clemency Shaw, the wife of a prominent doctor, has died in a tragic fire in the peaceful suburb of Highgate. But the blaze was set by an arsonist, and it is unclear whether she or Dr. Shaw was the intended victim—or did the doctor himself set the blaze in order to inherit his wife’s large fortune? Baffled by the scarcity of clues in this terrible crime, Inspector Thomas Pitt turns to the people who had been closest to the couple—Clemency’s stuffy but distinguished relatives. Meanwhile, Pitt’s wellborn wife, Charlotte, retraces the dangerous path that Clemency walked in the last months of her life, finding herself enmeshed in a sinister web that stretches from the lowest slums to the loftiest centers of power.

Anne Perry’s acclaimed William Monk novels have captivated readers with their rich texture and masterly suspense, leading The New York Times Book Review to exclaim, “Give her a good murder and a shameful social evil, and Anne Perry can write a Victorian mystery that would make Dickens’s eyes pop.” Now, the first five books in the spellbinding series are collected in this addictive eBook bundle: FACE OF A STRANGER His name, they tell him, is William Monk, and he is a London police detective. With his memory erased after a terrible accident, Monk intends on hiding his condition and starting a new life by tackling a grisly murder case in which each new revelation leads him to the answers he seeks—but dreads to find. A DANGEROUS MOURNING Called upon to investigate the brutal murder of a blue-blooded young widow, Monk is plagued by both his lingering amnesia and an inept supervisor. But when nurse Hester Latterly offers her assistance, together they grope warily through the silence and shadows that obscure the aristocrat’s demise. DEFEND AND BETRAY After a brilliant military career, General Thaddeus Carlyon meets his death not on the battlefield but at a London dinner party. Although his wife confesses to the murder, Monk and Hester suspect deceit. With the trial only days away, they feverishly work to unravel the dark heart of the mystery. Praise for Anne Perry and her William Monk series “Perry’s Victorian mysteries are marvels.”—The New York Times Book Review “There’s no one better at using words to paint a scene and then fill it with sounds and smells than Anne Perry.”—The Boston Globe “[The] reigning monarch of the Victorian mystery.”—People “Few mystery writers this side of Arthur Conan Doyle can evoke Victorian London with such relish for detail and mood.”—San Francisco Chronicle “[A] master of crime fiction.”—The Baltimore Sun “[Among] Perry’s strengths: memorable characters and an ability to evoke the Victorian era with the finely wrought detail of a miniaturist.”—The Wall Street Journal

Deep in London’s dangerous slums, Victorians transact their most secret and shameful business. For a price, a man can procure whatever he wants. But for one such man, the price he pays is his life. In sunless Water Lane, respected solicitor Leighton Duff lies dead, kicked and beaten to death. Beside him is the barely living body of his son, Rhys. The police cannot fathom these brutal assaults until shrewd investigator William Monk, aided by nurse-turned-sleuth Hester Latterly, uncovers a connection between them and a series of rapes and beatings of local prostitutes. But then the case takes an even more shocking turn.

In 1892, the grisly murders of Whitechapel prostitutes four years earlier by a killer dubbed Jack the Ripper remain a terrifying enigma. And in a packed Old Bailey courtroom, Superintendent Thomas Pitt’s testimony causes distinguished soldier John Adinett to be sentenced to hang for the inexplicable murder of a friend. Instead of being praised for his key testimony, Pitt is removed from his station command and transferred to Whitechapel, one of the East End’s most dangerous slums. There he must work undercover investigating alleged anarchist plots. Among his few allies are his clever wife, Charlotte, and intrepid Gracie, the maid who can travel unremarked in Whitechapel. But none of them anticipate the horrors to be revealed.

Someone in the Colonial Office is passing secrets to Germany about England’s strategy on Africa. While Police Superintendent Thomas Pitt investigates this matter of treason, he is quietly looking into the tragic death of his childhood mentor, Sir Arthur Desmond. Pitt believes that Sir Arthur was murdered, and that the crime is connected with the treachery in the government. And when the strangled body of an aristocratic society beauty is found floating near lonely Traitors Gate, Pitt and his clever wife, Charlotte, begin to see clearly the pattern of tragedy and frightening evil that Pitt must deal with, at the risk of his career—and his life.

Not since the bloody deeds of Jack the Ripper have Londoners felt such terror as that aroused by the gruesome beheadings in Hyde Park. And if newly promoted Police Superintendent Thomas Pitt does not quickly apprehend the perpetrator, he is likely to lose his own head, professionally speaking. Yet even with the help of Charlotte Pitt’s subtle investigation, the sinister violence continues unchecked. And in a shocking turn of events that nearly convinces the pair of sleuths that they have met their match, the case proves to be Pitt’s toughest ever.

The murder of a prostitute named Ada McKinley in a bedroom on decrepit Pentecost Alley should occasion no stir in Victoria’s great metropolis, but under the victim’s body, the police find a Hellfire Club badge inscribed with the name “Finlay Fitzjames”—a name that instantly draws Superintendent Thomas Pitt into the case. Finlay’s father—immensely wealthy, powerful, and dangerous—refuses to consider the possibility that his son has been in Ada McKinley’s bed. The implication is clear: Pitt is to arrest someone other than Finlay Fitzjames for Ada’s demise. But Thomas Pitt is not a man to be intimidated, and with the help of his quick-witted wife, Charlotte, he stubbornly pursues his investigation—one that twists and turns like London’s own ancient streets.

On the bustling docks along the River Thames, Great Britain’s merchant ships unload the treasures of the world. And here, in dank and sinister alleys, sex merchants ply their lucrative trade. The dreaded kingpin of this dark realm is Jericho Phillips, who seems far beyond the reach of the law. But when thirteen-year-old Fig is found with his throat cut, Commander William Monk of the River Police swears that Phillips will hang for this abomination. Monk’s wife, Hester, draws a highly unusual guerrilla force to her husband’s cause—a canny ratcatcher, a retired brothel keeper, a fearless street urchin, and a rebellious society lady. To one as criminally minded as Phillips, these folks are mere mosquitoes, to be sure. But as he will soon discover, some mosquitoes can have a deadly sting.

When Countess Zorah Rostova asks London barrister Sir Oliver Rathbone to defend her against a charge of slander, he is astonished to find himself accepting. For without a shred of evidence, the countess has publicly insisted that the onetime ruler of her small German principality was murdered by his wife, the woman who was responsible for the prince’s exile to Venice twenty years before. Private investigator William Monk and his friend Hester Latterly journey to the City of Water in an attempt verify the countess’s claims, and though the two manage to establish that the prince was indeed murdered, as events unfold the likeliest suspect seems to be Countess Zorah herself.

In his family life Angus Stonefield had been gentle and loving, in business a man of probity, and in his relationship with his twin brother, Caleb, a virtual saint. Now Angus is missing, and it appears more than possible that Caleb—a creature long since abandoned to depravity—has murdered him. Hired to solve the mystery, William Monk puts himself in Angus’s shoes, searching for clues to the missing man’s fate and his vicious brother’s whereabouts. Slowly Monk inches toward the truth—and also, unwittingly, toward the destruction of his good name and livelihood.

Here are two holiday mysteries set in remote, snow-covered regions of Victorian Britain–where the nights are indeed silent but all is not calm, and where some will sleep in eternal peace. A CHRISTMAS BEGINNING While spending Christmas on the island of Anglesey off the coast of Wales, Superintendent Runcorn of Scotland Yard, a lonely bachelor, stumbles upon the lifeless body of the vicar’s younger sister in the village churchyard. Everyone insists that only a stranger to the island could have committed the heinous crime, but the evidence proves otherwise. Intending to uncover the identity of the ruthless killer, Runcorn never dreams that the case may also, miraculously, open the door to a new future for himself. A CHRISTMAS GRACE With Christmas just around the corner, Thomas Pitt’s sister-in-law, Emily Radley, is suddenly called from London to be with her dying aunt on the western coast of Ireland. Emily soon discovers that painful memories of an unsolved murder haunt the lonely Irish town and sets out to unmask the culprit. When a lone shipwreck survivor washes up onshore, he brings with him not only the key to solving the terrible crime but the opportunity for the townspeople to make peace with the past–and with one another.

Anne Perry’s Victorian Christmas novels have attracted as many faithful readers as her two New York Times bestselling series featuring investigators Thomas Pitt and William Monk. A Christmas Promise is the seventh in Perry’s holiday series, and it will surely bring joy to this special season. Three days before Christmas, in the freezing slums of London’s East End, thirteen-year-old Gracie Phipps encounters Minnie Maude Mudway, who is only eight, alone, and determined to find her friend Charlie. However Charlie is no ordinary companion: He is a donkey who belonged to Minnie Maude’s Uncle Alf. Gracie is shocked to learn that only the day before, someone brutally murdered Uncle Alf and made off with his rag-and-bones cart and the beloved beast who pulled it. Now, come hell or high water, Minnie Maude means to rescue Charlie–and Gracie decides to help. But the path that Uncle Alf had taken to his death was not his regular route, and in his cart were not just the usual bits of worn silver and china but also, the children are told, a dazzling golden box. What its contents may have been no one can say, for, like Charlie and the cart, it too has vanished. Uncertain where their four-legged friend may be, the children are drawn into an adult world far beyond their innocent imaginings. And in a shop gleaming with beautiful objects, they recruit an unexpected ally: Mr. Balthasar, who warns them that the shining prize may be a Pandora’s box of evil. Set in the Victorian world where Anne Perry reigns supreme, A Christmas Promise culminates in a radiant finale that will remain with you long after the final page is turned.

For the first time in one cozy volume: Anne Perry’s first two Christmas novels–yuletide offerings full of holiday magic . . . and murder A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY “One of the best books to brighten the joyous season.” –USA Today “This brief work has an almost Jamesian subtlety. . . . [A] powerful message of responsibility and redemption.” –The Wall Street Journal In the Berkshire countryside, family and guests have gathered for a delicious weekend fête surrounded by roaring fires and candlelight. It’s scarcely the setting for misfortune, and no one–not even that clever budding sleuth Lady Vespasia Cumming-Gould–anticipates the tragedy that is to darken this holiday house party. A CHRISTMAS VISITOR “Satisfyingly dark and suspenseful.” –Entertainment Weekly “Wondrous . . . a welcome entry to the seasonal thriller.” –Richmond Times-Dispatch At the Dreghorn family reunion, the tranquility of a snowbound English estate is shattered by what an apparently accidental death. The victim’s distraught wife summons her godfather, the distinguished mathematician and inventor Henry Rathbone, to the scene. And questions about the tragic event soon turn into whispers of murder.

Two holiday novels provide the perfect combination of mystery and murder mixed with a generous helping of Yuletide cheer. A CHRISTMAS GUEST When her daughter and son-in-law plan a Christmas vacation to Paris sans hers truly, Grandmama Mariah Ellison travels to the chilly, windswept Romney Marshes to spend the holiday with old friends. But when the body of a fellow guest is found lifeless in bed, Grandmama senses foul play and takes it upon herself to assume the role of amateur detective–uncovering startling truths about the victim . . . and herself as well. A CHRISTMAS SECRET Dominic Corde is thrilled to “fill the robe” as substitute vicar in the village of Cottisham while the Reverend Wynter is away on a Christmas holiday. Upon arrival, Dominic and his wife, Clarice, wonder how they will be received by the congregation. But the Cordes soon discover that they have more dire matters to worry about. It turns out that the Reverend Wynter isn’t on holiday at all–and that something very sinister has transpired.

Anne Perry’s magnificent Victorian mysteries established her as one of the world’s best known and loved historical novelists. Now, in her vividly imagined World War I novels, Perry’s talents “have taken a quantum leap” (The Star-Ledger), and so has the number of her devoted readers. We Shall Not Sleep, the final book in this epic series featuring the dedicated Reavley family, is perhaps the most memorably enthralling of all Perry’s novels. After four long years, peace is finally in sight. But chaplain Joseph Reavley and his sister Judith, an ambulance driver on the Western Front, are more hard pressed than ever. Behind the lines, violence is increasing: soldiers are abusing German prisoners, a nurse has been raped and murdered, and the sinister ideologue called the Peacemaker now threatens to undermine the peace just as he did the war. Then Matthew, the third Reavley sibling and an intelligence expert, suddenly arrives at the front with startling news. The Peacemaker’s German counterpart has offered to go to England and expose his co-conspirator as a traitor. But with war still raging and prejudices inflamed, such a journey would be fraught with hazards, especially since the Peacemaker has secret informers everywhere, even on the battlefield. For richness of plot, character, and feeling, We Shall Not Sleep is unmatched. Anne Perry’s brilliantly orchestrated finale is a heartstopping tour de force, mesmerizing and totally satisfying.

"It''s July 1917, and as the sun sets over no-man''s-land so Joseph Reavley''s heart sinks with it. As Chaplain he is charged with keeping up the men''s morale, but as rumours of mutiny grow stronger he knows that he is losing any chance of getting through to them. Then, after the death of an officer, twelve soldiers are arrested, and it falls to Joseph to uncover the truth about their involvement." "Away from the trenches Joseph''s brother Matthew, of the S.I.S., is also in pursuit of the truth, whilst struggling to come to terms with his part in the death of the man they called the Peacemaker. Approached by a Junior Cabinet Minister who is being blackmailed, Matthew learns of a plot to destroy the men who can prevent an enemy alliance and bring about lasting peace. As he embarks on a investigation, Matthew is aware that his own life is under threat but it is a small price to pay to secure the future of millions."--BOOK JACKET.

Just in time for the holidays, Anne Perry gives her fans a marvelous gift: a new yuletide yarn full of light celebration and dark mischief. Dominic Corde is thrilled to “fill the robe” as substitute vicar in the village of Cottisham, while the Reverend Wynter is away on a three-week Christmas holiday. Glad to escape his dreary London flat and a less-than-satisfying job as church curate, Dominic and his beloved wife, Clarice, set off for what they hope will be a lovely winter getaway. Upon arrival, in the midst of a frigid, exceptionally snowy season, Dominic and Clarice are welcomed by warm, hospitable neighbors and enchanted by the cozy, inviting vicarage. Everything seems almost too perfect. Dominic’s only concern is how he will be received by the congregation, who hold the Reverend Wynter in such high regard. But as Clarice soon discovers, she and Dominic have much more dire matters to worry about. It turns out that the Reverend Wynter isn’t on holiday at all–and that something very sinister has transpired. As a blizzard leaves Cottisham treacherously snowbound and the isolated village swirls with unsavory secrets, Dominic and Clarice suddenly find themselves in deadly danger.