This book was absolutely fascinating!

I have studied the Victorian Period extensively during my academic career, so this book instantly appealed to me based on that. I also wrote my thesis on Victorian female detective fiction, so this book really would have come in handy for me while I was working on it!

This book discusses fictional female detectives (Loveday Brooke, Dorcas Dene, etc) but also analyzes actual female detectives working in Great Britain at the time. It was interesting to see the comparison between how they were depicted in literature and on stage versus real life. This was especially evident in comparing how differently male versus female detectives approached the job. For example, women did a lot of undercover work because they appeared to be innocuous and nonthreatening. They also handled a lot of cases involving marital spats or looking for proof of infidelity.

Overall this was a very interesting look at the time period. I haven’t read a nonfiction about the Victorian period in ages, so it was a lot of fun to experience it again.

Thanks to NetGalley for the free kindle book in exchange for my review! I would have never found this book without their app!

As someone who has always loved historical cozy mysteries, particularly those set in the Victorian and Regency period, I ❤️ loved reading a book about the real female detectives during that time period. As with every non-fiction book, I am always concerned about author bias, but there wasn't any of that here (unless you count the 'woman should be able to work and get a divorce from violent partners' as bias). The entire book was just filled with information about descriptions of real cases and summaries of fictional novels and plays about written about female detectives written in the 1800s.


Although most of the fictional detectives we see are upper class women, in real life, most of them were working women. Some were actresses, and many were the wives of policemen. They would go investigate were the police couldn't, but they usually were not involved in murders. They performed searches on other women, helped gather evidence for divorces, and even helped close baby farms.

Of course, everything they did wasn't all that great. The pretty ones would ride trains and give the conductors a sob story about why they couldn't pay for the ride and get the men fired if they were nice enough to help out.


I loved learning that there used to be entire newspapers devoted to just sharing all the salacious details of people's divorces. That is what would save the small town newspaper. Gossip sheets about your neighbor's divorce. Tell it everyone in town wouldn't have a subscription. Sure, it would never work, what with lawsuits, but still.

I absolutely loved this book! Definitely would recommend it, not only to non-fiction lovers, but everyone who loves historical cozy mysteries. It will definitely show you a new side of all of your favorite novels (even though it doesn't reference any of them), as you learn about the real female detectives.

The book addresses both real life and fictional female detectives. It reads a little like a doctoral thesis and intends to inform more than entertain. Women were involved in detecting in fiction and real life sooner than I realized. There was an interesting correlation matrimonial causes act of 1857 and the rise of private detectives that employed both men and women for “secret watching” to aid in the surprising number of women petitioners. They were also female “detective searchers” in police departments and by the 1890s women were running their own agencies.
If you have an interest in Victorian literature and culture, this is the book for you. If you’re just a lover of detective stories set in this era with female leads and not an academic, some sections might drag.

Loved this book so much omg!!! I rated it 4 stars because it really is THAT book! I really recommend everyone to read this book as fast as they can because it's really good and the characters are fantastic.