The Solitary House

LynnShepherd's first acclaimed novel of historical suspense, Murder at MansfieldPark, brilliantly reimagined the time of Jane Austen. Now, in thisspellbinding new triumph, she introduces an unforgettable duo of detectivesinto the gaslit world of Dickens.

London, 1850. Charles Maddox had been an up-and-coming officer for theMetropolitan police until a charge of insubordination abruptly ended hiscareer. Now he works alone, struggling to eke out a living by tracking downcriminals. Whenever he needs it, he has the help of his great-uncle Maddox, alegendary "thief taker," a detective as brilliant and intuitive as they come.

On Charles's latest case, he'll need all the assistance he can get.

To his shock, Charles has been approached by Edward Tulkinghorn, the shadowyand feared attorney, who offers him a handsome price to do some sleuthing for aclient. Powerful financier Sir Julius Cremorne has been receiving threateningletters, and Tulkinghorn wants Charles to-discreetly-find and stop whoever isresponsible.

But what starts as a simple, open-and-shut case swiftly escalates intosomething bigger and much darker. As he cascades toward a collision with anunspeakable truth, Charles can only be aided so far by Maddox. The old manshows signs of forgetfulness and anger, symptoms of an age-related ailment thathas yet to be named.

Intricately plotted and intellectually ambitious, The Solitary House isan ingenious novel that does more than spin an enthralling tale: it plumbs themysteries of the human mind.

LynnShepherd is the author of theaward-winning Murder at Mansfield Park. She studied English at Oxfordand was a professional copywriter for over a decade. She is currently at workon her next novel of historical suspense, A Treacherous Likeness, whichDelacorte will publish in 2013.