‘And in addition to that,’ Lavender continued, ‘an heiress has mysteriously disappeared in neighbouring Bellingham.’
‘An heiress, eh?’
‘Yes.’
‘Isn’t it usually the case, when these pretty young gals disappear, they have eloped with some sponging rake?’
‘Yes,’ Lavender confirmed. ‘However, I understand there are unusual circumstances surrounding this case – and I’ve been asked to travel to Northumberland to solve it.’
‘Requested by name?’
Lavender nodded.
‘It would seem the girl’s concerned uncle is a close friend of Mr Clennell, the magistrate, and that the uncle is also familiar with the particulars of the Kirkley Hall robbery. Despite the fact that we failed to secure the conviction of James Charlton, we’re still famous in Northumberland for recovering most of the missing rent money.’
Woods chuckled: ‘So this uncle thinks that because we found the rent money – we should be able to find his missing niece?’
‘Exactly. Are you willing to accompany me, Constable Woods?’
Woods glanced out of the carriage and seemed to be pondering for a moment. Lavender knew that Betsy, his constable’s wife, would play merry hell at another lengthy absence. Their oldest two sons were a handful and difficult for Betsy to cope with on her own. Lavender knew the family well and if the truth were to be told, he was a little scared himself of the quick temper and sharp tongue of the tiny Mistress Woods. Yet he suspected that she wouldn’t complain about the extra money her husband would earn in expenses.
‘What’re these mysterious circumstances surrounding the gal’s disappearance?’
Lavender smiled and his face lit up like a mischievous schoolboy’s.
‘Oh nothing I’m sure we can’t handle, Ned. Apparently, the girl vanished from a locked bedchamber.’
Wood’s greying eyebrows rose sharply and a wide grin broke across his broad face.
‘Is that all? Shouldn’t take us long to fathom this one out, should it? We’ll be back in Bow Street within a fortnight.’
Praise for
THE HEIRESS OF LINN HAGH
Worthy of Agatha Christie
“Forget the wham, bam, slash you ma’am of modern-day crime thrillers and return to a more sedate era in The Heiress of Linn Hagh, an engaging novel set in a time when ladies wore bonnets, highwaymen terrorised coach travellers and the Bow Street Runners were still, well, running.
Detective Lavender has no time for superstitious nonsense and is soon demonstrating a Sherlock Holmes-like determination in his pursuit of the truth. He’s a well-conceived character, and in Constable Woods the author has created a perfect foil. Where Lavender broods and thinks, Woods is a man who would rather deal in practicalities. In short, they’re a double act made in crime fiction heaven.
The plot has more than a touch of the old fashioned whodunit about it, and, in particular, the scene where Lavender reveals to an incredulous audience how the heiress got out of the locked room is worthy of Agatha Christie.
There’s plenty of historical detail to give the story an authentic feel, and the wide-ranging cast of characters are well drawn and highly believable. Charlton is a skilled writer… It takes a lightness of touch to keep the reader intrigued without making them feel bombarded with historical context, and the author achieves this with aplomb.”
Sandra Mangan
www.crimefictionlover.com
Atmospheric mystery
“Karen Charlton's The Heiress of Linn Hagh is an absorbing glimpse into a Regency England far from London. Detective Stephen Lavender and his partner, Constable Woods, must deal with people who dislike any sign of authority- farmers and gypsies- and as they delve deeper into the facts of the case, they begin to understand why. I loved the way Lavender conducted his investigation and how he pieced the clues together. The comradery and humor he and Woods share is welcome relief from their dealings with suspicious townsfolk and supercilious gentry.
Although there was little doubt as to who instigated Helen Carnaby's disappearance and why, Charlton really made me wonder just how far those people would go to get what they wanted. All in all, a most satisfactory case for the detective…Charlton hooked me with her eerie, suspenseful tale and I didn't want to be pulled away from it for a second.
Now after seeing how Lavender and Woods can solve a case, I have only one thing to say: I want more!”
Cathy G. Cole - Kittling Books
1.5 The Mystery of the Skelton Diamonds Page 5