Mortal Arts (Lady Darby Mystery #2)

by Anna Lee Huber

Overview

From the national bestselling author of The Anatonmist's Wife comes the second historical mystery featuring enigmatic sleuth Lady Kiera Darby.

Scotland, 1830. Lady Kiera Darby is no stranger to intrigue—in fact, it seems to follow wherever she goes. After her foray into murder investigation, Kiera must journey to Edinburgh with her family so that her pregnant sister can be close to proper medical care. But the city is full of many things Kiera isn’t quite ready to face: the society ladies keen on judging her, her fellow investigator—and romantic entanglement—Sebastian Gage, and ultimately, another deadly mystery.

Kiera’s old friend Michael Dalmay is about to be married, but the arrival of his older brother—and Kiera’s childhood art tutor—William, has thrown everything into chaos. For ten years Will has been missing, committed to an insane asylum by his own father. Kiera is sympathetic to her mentor’s plight, especially when rumors swirl about a local girl gone missing. Now Kiera must once again employ her knowledge of the macabre and join forces with Gage in order to prove the innocence of a beloved family friend—and save the marriage of another…

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780425253786
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	09/03/2013
Series:	Lady Darby Series , #2
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	145,202
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Anna Lee Huber is the RITA and Daphne award–nominated author of the Lady Darby Mysteries, including As Death Draws Near, A Study in Death, A Grave Matter, Mortal Arts, and The Anatomist’s Wife. She is a summa cum laude graduate of Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, where she majored in music and minored in psychology. She currently resides in Indiana with her family and is hard at work on the next Lady Darby novel.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Praise for Anna Lee Huber and The Anatomist's Wife

“Lady Darby is an engaging new sleuth to follow.”—Julia Spencer-Fleming, New York Times bestselling author

“A riveting debut.”—Deanna Raybourn, New York Times bestselling author

“An unusual and romantic heroine.”—Judith Rock, author of A Plague of Lies

“A fast-paced, atmospheric, and chilling debut featuring a clever heroine with a shocking past and a talent for detection.” —Carol K. Carr, national bestselling author of India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy

“Huber’s protagonist is complex and likable and the well-plotted mystery is filled with fascinating secondary characters…You’ll be engaged right to the end.”—RT Book Reviews

“Huber’s debut…reads like a cross between a gothic novel and a mystery with a decidedly unusual heroine.”—Kirkus Reviews

Editorial Reviews

Set largely in Scotland in 1830, Huber’s well-done sequel to 2012’s The Anatomist’s Wife includes all the ingredients of a romantic suspense novel, starting with a proud and independent heroine. Talented artist Lady Kiera Darby, who survived a dreadful first marriage, remains the object of society gossip. She’s attracted to the dashing and rather mysterious Sebastian Gage, the upper class’s go-to guy for private inquiries in Britain, with whom she has lots of misunderstandings. Strong and lively characters as well as believable family dynamics, however, elevate this above stock genre fare. Furthermore, the underlying mystery deals with a serious, even horrifying, subject—the treatment of the insane in asylums. Readers should be prepared for some grim tales, though credit Huber for not turning this into a treatise on post-traumatic stress disorder. Rather, she assembles a collection of facts that unfold gradually, serving the story rather than the other way around. Agent: Kevan Lyon, Marsal Lyon Literary. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for the Lady Darby Mysteries

“[A] history mystery in fine Victorian style! Anna Lee Huber’s spirited debut mixes classic country house mystery with a liberal dash of historical romance.”—New York Times bestselling author Julia Spencer-Fleming
 
“Riveting…Huber deftly weaves together an original premise, an enigmatic heroine, and a compelling Highland setting.”—New York Times bestselling author Deanna Raybourn

“[A] fascinating heroine…A thoroughly enjoyable read!”—National bestselling author Victoria Thompson

“[A] clever heroine with a shocking past and a talent for detection.”—National bestselling author Carol K. Carr

“Reads like a cross between a gothic novel and a mystery with a decidedly unusual heroine.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Huber deftly evokes both [Sebastian and Kiera’s] attraction and the period’s flavor.”—Publishers Weekly

“[Huber] designs her heroine as a woman who straddles the line between eighteenth-century behavior and twenty-first-century independence.”—New York Journal of Books

“[A] must read…One of those rare books that will both shock and please.”—Fresh Fiction

“Fascinates with its compelling heroine who forges her own way in a society that frowns upon female independence.”—RT Book Reviews

“One of the best historical mysteries that I have read this year.”—Cozy Mystery Book Reviews

From the Publisher