Mary Lancaster

Partners in crime... but not in love?Silver & Grey take on their first official inquiry, when Mrs. Angela Lambert hires Constance and Solomon to discover the truth about the ghost haunting her garden.Constance enters the household disguised as Angela's maid, but the apparently trivial case turns serious with the discovery of Caleb Lambert's underworld connections, and his involvement in the fatal collapse of a slum dwelling. Bringing him to justice becomes more important than the mystery of the ghost - or is the ghost somehow involved?A murdered body in the cellar further complicates matters, as does a threat to Constance's colorful mother.Alone in a houseful of dangerous murder suspects, with only Angela's doubtful protection, Constance's feelings for Solomon begin to clarify - as does the true impossibility of a personal relationship between them.But Solomon, it seems, has other ideas...Silver and Grey SeriesBook 1 - Murder in MoonlightBook 2 - Evidence of EvilBook 3 - Ghost in the GardenBook 4 - The Trick of the TreasureBook 5 - Word of the Wicked

Pursuing murder and fighting love...Several weeks after they parted company, courtesan Constance calls on the wealthy business-man Solomon Grey to request his help solving another mystery. Her old friend Elizabeth, now the wife of respected magistrate Sir Humphrey Maule, is being accused of murder.Solomon, bored and restless, happily agrees, before he realizes they are expected to pose as husband and wife. While this presents its own challenges, the case itself is elusive. The young woman fished out of the lake in her nightgown is the Maules' neighbor, and there is nothing to show how she died except that it was not by drowning.Hunting for evidence, Constance and Solomon turn their attention to the complicated victim herself, who may have harboured more than one deadly secret.As they struggle toward the truth, their own relationship grows more intense and neither can see a way forward. When the mystery is solved, will their friendship survive?Silver and Grey SeriesBook 1 - Murder in MoonlightBook 2 - Evidence of EvilBook 3 - Ghost in the GardenBook 4 - The Trick of the TreasureBook 5 - Word of the Wicked

A house of secrets, an impossible attractionOn a personal quest, Constance Silver, who runs Mayfair's most exclusive brothel, has lied her way into Greenforth Manor, home of respectable and charismatic provincial banker, Walter Winsom. She feels quite safe from recognition until Solomon Grey joins the party.Aloof and strangely exciting, Solomon is one of the wealthiest men in London, so what does he want with any of the small players gathered at Greenforth? More immediately, will he give Constance away? He saved her life once, with most disturbing effects on her, and she is still magnetically drawn to him. But he is one of the few men she cannot read or influence.When they discover their host's murdered body together, they have to overcome distrust of each other to investigate. Everyone in the house seems to have had both motive and opportunity to kill him, so Constance and Solomon must uncover many secrets and set a dangerous trap in order to reach the truth.But is the murderer one step ahead of them?And if they both survive, will they part forever?Silver and GreyBook 1 - Murder in MoonlightBook 2 - Evidence of EvilBook 3 - Ghost in the GardenBook 4 - The Trick of the TreasureBook 5 - Word of the Wicked

"He was my last dance, and it is already over"At thirty years old, Delilah Vale attends the Blackhaven assembly room ball for only one reason-to enjoy a symbolic final waltz before embracing spinsterhood and an independent career as a translator and secretary. Lord Linfield, distinguished diplomat, handsome, graceful, and charming, is the perfect partner.Unfortunately, Linfield is there for an entirely different reason-to reel in the traitor who is leading one of Britain's allies to assassination.Neither expects to be quite so fascinated by the other. Or so mistaken...Together, they could save a princess's life and a valuable political alliance. But can they save their own personal happiness?One Night in BlackhavenThe Captain's Old LoveThe Earl's Promised BrideThe Soldier's Impossible LoveThe Gambler's Last ChanceThe Poet's Stern CriticThe Rake's MistakeThe Spinster's Last Dance

An elusive poet clashes with an opinionated young lady...Cornelius Vale, hard-working steward of his brother's land, has another secret identity as acclaimed poet Simon Sacheverill. No one has ever met the mysterious poet - except the woman who once accosted him in a London bookshop and tore his works to shreds.When he encounters That Girl again at a Blackhaven ball, he is appalled.If only he knew, the girl in question, Lady Alice Conway, adores his poetry and is completely bowled over by the man. She too has secrets. She longs to play her own musical compositions in the great concert halls of Europe. And, disgusted by male physical contact, she refuses to marry. Unfortunately, she rejects a dangerous nobleman who hates to lose.Despite frequent quarrels, Cornelius and Alice keep each other's secrets and grow ever closer, incurring the ire of his old love and of the suitors determined to marry Alice.As threats fall from all sides, will they risk everything to save each other? And if they do, is there even a way for them to be together?One Night in BlackhavenThe Captain's Old LoveThe Earl's Promised BrideThe Soldier's Impossible LoveThe Gambler's Last ChanceThe Poet's Stern CriticThe Rake's MistakeThe Spinster's Last Dance

Time to confront reality - and a worrying mystery. Lord Petteril and his new viscountess return to England to face the consequences of their unequal marriage, only to discover that Petteril's valet, the enigmatic Stewart, has been arrested for theft. Naturally, Piers and April have to clear his name by finding the true thief among the Red Lion Inn's servants and guests, who include an eccentric baronet and his sister, a wounded soldier and an old friend from Stewart's past. But Stewart isn't helping himself by keeping secrets which they need to unravel in order to reach the truth. Events take a more terrifying turn when Piers is shot at, and April makes a momentous decision regarding the future of their marriage.

Incognito in Portugal... Lord Petteril's cousin, the newly commissioned Major Bertie Withan, has gone missing somewhere between landing in Lisbon and joining his regiment on the front line of the Peninsular War. Piers and trusty assistant April, disguised as a government clerk and his wife to deter undue interest from possible ransom-seekers, try to follow Bertie's last movements from British army headquarters to the fetid back streets of Lisbon. Inevitably they face hostility, danger and too many secrets. But are they already too late to save Bertie?

A defaced portrait and the death of an artist - but is anything quite what it seems? To the furious disapproval of his assistant, April, Lord Petteril insists on calling in on Lady Haggard's country house party - only to discover his hostess and her guests in uproar over a portrait of the late Sir Weston Haggard which has been deliberately damaged. While Petteril tries to trace the vandal among the well-born suspects - who include members of his own family, old friends and enemies, and even amorous widows - April encounters fresh problems and makes new friends. But when real violence erupts, their hunt for the truth turns suddenly much more urgent...

A chance-meeting of soulmates? Or is everything a lie?Betrothed since birth to some stuffy earl she has never met, Lucy is torn between family duty and a longing for love and fun. Naturally, she determines to enjoy her last days of freedom - and her first Blackhaven ball - to the full. Especially when she encounters the unusual Tyler who makes her laugh and takes her on apparently pointless adventures in search of stray puppies, suspicious strangers, and an escaping highwayman.In fact, Tyler also plays a risky game to change the world and find his own personal justice. Already in love, Lucy is happy to help.And then the truth spoils everything.Or does it?One Night in BlackhavenThe Captain's Old LoveThe Earl's Promised BrideThe Soldier's Impossible LoveThe Gambler's Last ChanceThe Poet's Stern CriticThe Rake's MistakeThe Spinster's Last Dance