A NEWLYWED'S GUIDE TO FORTUNE AND MURDER

A favor for a friend leads to murder.

Now that the feckless aristocrat she’s married has died, American heiress Frances Wynn is free to wed George Hazelton and move into his London home with her 8-year-old daughter, Rose. Now the elderly Lady Winstead, the wealthy second wife of the late explorer Lord Peter Ashley, has asked Frances to sponsor her niece, Katherine Stover, for her presentation to Queen Victoria because her husband’s family is still in mourning. George, who does occasional jobs for the Home Office, is on a hunt that turns out to be connected to Frances’ task. Frances is taken aback when Lady Esther, a friend of Lady Winstead’s, shows up at her house as she's on her way to have tea with Lady Winstead and her family, saying she'd like to join them. Frances is already acquainted with the extended Ashley family, who were once her neighbors, and she dislikes them all. They live on the largesse of Lady Winstead because their family money was spent by their late father. When Frances and Lady Esther arrive for tea, Lady Winstead appears to be in ill health, and the family has hired Nurse Plum to help out, but only Katherine seems truly concerned. After both Frances and Lady Esther come to believe that someone is dosing Lady Winstead with laudanum to keep her muddled, Frances agrees to watch out for skulduggery while preparing Katherine for her entrance to society. George is searching for Lord Peter’s diary, which was left to the British Museum along with his collection of artifacts. On top of all this, Frances discovers that Katherine is an occasional actress, a position that would ruin her aunt’s plans for her debut. When Nurse Plum is murdered, there’s no doubt that something is rotten in the house of Ashley.

A pleasant combination of Victoriana and murder.