In Dean’s highly entertaining fourth Regency mystery featuring 30-ish spinster Dido Kent (after 2012’s A Woman of Consequence), Dido bristles at serving as companion to her Aunt Manners during the latter’s visit to Charcombe Manor, which she finds to be “not a house at ease with itself.” One reason for the underlying tension is the disappearance two days earlier of 19-year-old Letitia Verney, who was under the care of Dido’s host, Lancelot Fenstanton. Letitia was last seen with a young man of dubious reputation, Tom Lomax, who just happens to be the son of the man Dido is in love with. Tom insists that he not only walked Letitia back to the manor but watched her enter, despite the testimony of those in the house at the time that Letitia never came through the door. The solution to that impossibility is as clever as the rest of the plot. Agent: David Marshall, Marshall Rights. (Aug.)
“Dean lays out a complex but never confusing plot. And it's not only the storyline that lifts this novel to a high plane; Dean's prose -- intentionally reminiscent of that of Jane Austen -- and her mastery of period detail combine with Dido's amiability to create another shining example of the historical mystery.” Richmond Times-Dispatch
“The fourth in this excellent series, beautifully written in the style of Jane Austen, will leave even die-hard mystery mavens puzzled until the final chapters.” Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“A clever, crafty lady with unending determination to do what is right, Dido Kent deserves a spot alongside Sherlock Holmes and Miss Marple in the great sleuth pantheon… Plus? The actual whodunit portion of this novel is superb, surprising, and satisfying!” Library Journal (starred review)
“In Dean's highly entertaining fourth Regency mystery…The solution is as clever as the rest of the plot.” Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“This entertaining series set in 1805...is historical mystery at its most effective....If you are looking for a quality historical crime series to get stuck into, then you have just found it.” Historical Novels Review
“There is something delightfully gothic about Ms. Dean's tales of Dido Kent and her investigations...A very well rounded novel that Jane Austen herself might have enjoyed, not to mention Georgette Heyer...Highly recommended.” My Shelf
“A clever regency sleuth much like Jane Austen with her ability to see that the mundane things of life are more important than they seem.” Kirkus Reviews (starred) on A Woman of Consequence
“With its unusually fine sense of time and place, this third Dido Kent entry makes a charming addition to Dean's Regency mystery series.” Booklist on A Woman of Consequence
“Dean smoothly integrates a wealth of historical detail . . . Well-drawn secondary characters . . . lend color.” Publishers Weekly on A Woman of Consequence
“Dean has again scored highly with an imaginative mystery that captures Regency England . . . with Austen-like prose.” Richmond Times-Dispatch on A Woman of Consequence
A Regency lady must prove a man innocent of murder if she is to have any chance of future happiness. Clever, independent Dido Kent chafes under the strictures of caring for her wealthy Aunt Manners, who's visiting her childhood home of Charcombe Manor. The task is Dido's punishment for refusing an offer of marriage from a cleric with a pack of children after she had already received an offer from William Lomax. Although she loves William, she has given him no answer because she fears that her self-reliance might jeopardize their marriage. Upon their arrival at Charcombe, they discover that Letitia Verney, a wealthy heiress, is missing and that William's son Tom is suspected of spiriting her away, even though he is to be found in the neighboring town. The annoying George Fenstanton and his charming nephew Lancelot, who owns Charcombe, have a good deal of money invested in a new town they are building at the nearby seaside, and Miss Verney's fortune would certainly be a help to their scheme. Dido can see that both George's daughter and Miss Verney's best friend are hiding secrets. Even her Aunt Manners is acting strangely. When a man bringing information about the disappearance is found murdered, Tom Lomax is arrested, and although his father does not want Dido putting herself in danger by investigating, she knows that any chance of a marriage between them will be over if Tom is not proven innocent. The fourth in this excellent series (A Woman of Consequence, 2012, etc.), beautifully written in the style of Jane Austen, will leave even die-hard mystery mavens puzzled until the final chapters.