In the tradition of C. S. Harris and Anne Perry, a fatal disaster on the Thames and a roiling political conflict set the stage for Karen Odden’s second Inspector Corravan historical mystery.September 1878. One night, as the pleasure boat the Princess Alice makes her daily trip up the Thames, she collides with the Bywell Castle, a huge iron-hulled collier. The Princess Alice shears apart, throwing all 600 passengers into the river; only 130 survive. It is the worst maritime disaster London has ever seen, and early clues point to sabotage by the Irish Republican Brotherhood, who believe violence is the path to restoring Irish Home Rule.  For Scotland Yard Inspector Michael Corravan, born in Ireland and adopted by the Irish Doyle family, the case presents a challenge. Accused by the Home Office of willfully disregarding the obvious conclusion, and berated by his Irish friends for bowing to prejudice, Corravan doggedly pursues...

In the vein of C. S. Harris and Anne Perry, Karen Odden’s mystery introduces Inspector Michael Corravan as he investigates a string of vicious murders that has rocked Victorian London’s upper crust.  London, 1878. In the murky waters of the Thames, a young woman’s body is discovered floating in a small lighter boat. When the body is identified as Rose Albert, daughter of a prominent judge, Michael Corravan must take the case. Corravan is one of only three remaining Scotland Yard Senior Inspectors remaining in the wake of a scandal that has left the force in ruins and Rose’s case means he must abandon his search for missing woman Mrs. Beckford, the wife of a shipping magnate. Corravan resentfully agrees, knowing Rose’s case must take precedence. An Irish former bare-knuckles boxer and dockworker from London’s seedy East End, Corravan has good street sense and an inspector’s knack...

A Paperback OriginalFrom the author of A Dangerous Duet comes the next book in her Victorian mystery series, this time following a daring female painter and the Scotland Yard detective who is investigating her brother's suspicious death.A young painter digs beneath the veneer of Victorian London's art world to learn the truth behind her brother's murder... Edwin is dead. That's what Inspector Matthew Hallam of Scotland Yard tells Annabel Rowe when she discovers him searching her brother's flat for clues. While the news is shocking, Annabel can't say it's wholly unexpected, given Edwin's past as a dissolute risk-taker and art forger, although he swore he'd reformed. After years spent blaming his reckless behavior for their parents' deaths, Annabel is now faced with the question of who murdered him—because Edwin's death was both violent and deliberate. A valuable French painting he'd been restoring for an auction house is missing from his...

Karen Odden's enthralling debut historical mystery transports readers to Victorian England, where a terrifying railway disaster plunges a headstrong young noblewoman into a conspiracy that reaches to the highest corridors of power. After a humiliating fourth Season in London, Lady Elizabeth Fraser is on her way back to her ancestral country estate when her train careens off the rails and bursts into flames. Though she is injured, she manages to drag herself and her unconscious mother out of the wreckage, and amid the chaos that follows, a brilliant young railway surgeon saves her mother's life. Elizabeth feels an immediate connection with Paul Wilcox--though society would never deem a medical man eligible for the daughter of a viscount. After Paul reveals that the train wreck was no accident, and the inspector who tried to prevent it dies under mysterious circumstances, Elizabeth undertakes a dangerous investigation of her own that leads back to her...

This dazzling new Victorian mystery from USA Today bestselling author Karen Odden introduces readers to Nell Hallam, a determined young pianist who stumbles upon the operations of a notorious—and deadly—crime ring while illicitly working as the piano player in a Soho music hall. Perfect for readers of Tasha Alexander, Anne Perry, and Deanna Raybourn.Nineteen-year-old Nell Hallam lives in a modest corner of Mayfair with her brother Matthew, an inspector at Scotland Yard. An exceptionally talented pianist, she aspires to attend the Royal Academy; but with tuition beyond their means, Nell sets out to earn the money herself—by playing piano in a popular Soho music hall. And the fact that she will have to disguise herself as a man and slip out at night to do it doesn't deter her.Spending evenings at the Octavian is like entering an alternate world, one of lively energy, fascinating performers, raucous patrons—and dark secrets....