When the naked body of violinist Anne-Marie Austen is found, Detective Inspector Bill Slider has depressingly few clues to her murder. Struggling with a complex case, Slider also faces turmoil at home when he must choose between his wife and an exciting new love. A rich and powerful debut.

The war was not 'over by Christmas' after all and as 1915 begins, the Hunters begin to settle into wartime life. Diana, the eldest Hunter daughter, sees her fiance off to the Front but doesn't expect such coldness from her future mother-in-law. David's battalion is almost ready to be sent to the Front, but how will Beattie's fragile peace of mind endure? Below stairs, Ethel, the under housemaid, is tired of having her beaux go off to war so she deliberately...

"England, 1903. Giles, the Earl of Stainton, has fled from his stifling duties to resume his research in Egypt, leaving behind his wife Kitty, and his infant son. Kitty, still reeling from Giles' sudden departure, struggles to keep spirits high in the castle and establish herself as the true mistress of the house, an impossible task given how many secrets the inhabitants are hiding from her... The Earl's younger sisters, Rachel and Alice, are both...