Londýn, 1887.Po pohřbu své staropanenské tety může osiřelá Veronica Speedwellová pokračovat ve svých cestách po světě a věnovat se vědeckému bádání - a příležitostným milostným avantýrám. Zběhlá v lovu motýlů stejně jako v odhánění ctitelů, Veronika se hodlá vydat na svou životní cestu.Osud má však jiné plány, když Veronika překazí svůj vlastní pokus o únos s pomocí záhadného německého barona, který jí nabídne útočiště v péči svého přítele Stokera, samotářského a mrzoutského přírodovědce. Než jí však baron stačí prozradit, co ví o spiknutí proti ní, je nalezen zavražděný - a Veronika se Stokerem se tak jako obezřetní partneři vydávají po stopě nepolapitelného útočníka, aby se dopátrali zlovolné pravdy.
Deanna Raybourn Knihy
Deanna Raybournová je autorkou bestsellerů New York Times a USA Today, která se proslavila svými historickými detektivními romány. Její styl se vyznačuje bystrým pozorováním a půvabným humorem, často zasazeným do viktoriánského prostředí. Raybourn se zaměřuje na vytváření nezapomenutelných ženských postav, které se nebojí vydat za hranice společenských očekávání. Její díla jsou ceněna pro svou chytrou zápletku a svěží pohled na žánr.







Dámy na zabití
- 320 stránek
- 12 hodin čtení
Billie, Mary Alice, Helen a Natalie pracovaly čtyřicet let pro Muzeum, elitní síť nájemných vrahů a vražedkyň. Teď je jejich talent považován za přežitek a v době, která spoléhá spíše na technologie než na lidské schopnosti, už nikdo neocení, co mohou nabídnout.Když je čtveřice žen při příležitosti odchodu do důchodu vyslána na all inclusive luxusní dovolenou, stane se terčem útoku jednoho ze svých vlastních kolegů. Nařídit odstranění terénního agenta či agentky může pouze nejvyšší orgán Muzea a ženy si uvědomí, že byly odsouzeny k smrti.Aby vyvázly živé, musí se obrátit proti vlastní organizaci, spoléhat na své zkušenosti a především jedna na druhou. Tajemstvím jejich přežití je spolupráce a jsou odhodlány poučit své nadřízené o tom, co skutečně znamená být dámou na zabití.
A Dangerous Collaboration
- 352 stránek
- 13 hodin čtení
A bride mysteriously disappears on her wedding day in the newest Veronica Speedwell adventure by the New York Times bestselling author of the Lady Julia Grey series. Lured by the promise of a rare and elusive butterfly, the intrepid Veronica Speedwell is persuaded by Lord Templeton-Vane, the brother of her colleague Stoker, to pose as his fiancée at a house party on a Cornish isle owned by his oldest friend, Malcolm Romilly. But Veronica soon learns that one question hangs over the party: What happened to Rosamund? Three years ago, Malcolm Romilly’s bride vanished on their wedding day, and no trace of her has ever been found. Now those who were closest to her have gathered, each a possible suspect in her disappearance. From the poison garden kept by Malcolm’s sister to the high towers of the family castle, the island’s atmosphere is full of shadows, and danger lurks around every corner. Determined to discover Rosamund’s fate, Veronica and Stoker match wits with a murderer who has already struck once and will not hesitate to kill again.…
A Murderous Relation
- 336 stránek
- 12 hodin čtení
A royal scandal’s connection to a brutal serial killer threatens London in this new Veronica Speedwell adventure from New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn. Autumn 1888. Veronica Speedwell and her colleague Stoker are asked by Lady Wellingtonia Beauclerk to stop a potential scandal so explosive it threatens to rock the monarchy. Prince Albert Victor is a regular visitor to the most exclusive private club in London, and the proprietress, Madame Aurore, has received an expensive gift that can be traced back to the prince. Lady Wellie would like Veronica and Stoker to retrieve it from the club before scandal can break. Worse yet, London is being terrorized by what would become the most notorious and elusive serial killer in history, Jack the Ripper—and Lady Wellie suspects the prince may be responsible. Veronica and Stoker reluctantly agree to go undercover at Madame Auroreʼs high-class brothel, where a body soon turns up. Secrets are swirling around Veronica and the royal family—and it is up to Veronica and Stoker to find the truth, before it is too late for all of them.
Veronica Speedwell cant resist the allure of an exotic mystery, particularly one involving her enigmatic colleague, Stoker. His old partner has vanished with a diadem from the tomb of an Egyptian princess. Rumours of the mummys curse abound, but this is not the only challenge Veronica must face.
Veronica must find and stop a devious killer when a group of old friends is targeted for death in this new adventure from the New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn. Veronica’s natural-historian beau, Stoker, has been away in Bavaria for months, and their relationship is at an impasse. But when Veronica shows up before him with his brother, Tiberius (Lord Templeton-Vane), he is lured back home by an intriguing job offer: preparing an iguanodon for a very special dinner party. Tiberius has received a cryptic message—along with the obituaries of two recently deceased members of his old group of friends, the Seven Sinners—that he too should get his affairs in order. Realising he is in grave danger but not knowing why, he plans a reunion party for the remaining Sinners at his family estate to lure the killer out while Veronica and Stoker investigate. As the guests arrive and settle in, the evening’s events turn deadly. More clues come to light, leading Veronica, Stoker, and Tiberius to uncover a shared past amongst the Sinners that has led to the fatal present. But the truth might be far more sinister than what they were prepared for.
While investigating a man claiming to be the long-lost heir to a noble family, Veronica Speedwell gets the surprise of her life in this paperback reprint from New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn. London, 1889. Veronica Speedwell and her natural historian beau, Stoker, are summoned by Sir Hugo Montgomerie, head of Special Branch. He has a personal request on behalf of his goddaughter, Euphemia Hathaway. After years of traveling the world, Euphemia's eldest brother, Jonathan, heir to Hathaway Hall, was believed to have been killed in the catastrophic eruption of Krakatoa a few years before. But now a man matching Jonathan’s description and carrying his possessions has arrived at Hathaway Hall with no memory of his identity or where he has been. Could this man truly be Jonathan, back from the dead? Or is he a devious impostor, determined to gain ownership over the family's most valuable possession—a legendary parure of priceless Rajasthani jewels? It's a delicate situation, and Veronica is Sir Hugo's only hope. Veronica and Stoker agree to go to Hathaway Hall to covertly investigate the mysterious amnesiac. Veronica is soon shocked to find herself face-to-face with a ghost from her past. To help Sir Hugo discover the truth, she must open doors to her own history that she long believed to be shut for good.
An Unexpected Peril
- 368 stránek
- 13 hodin čtení
A princess is missing and a peace treaty is on the verge of collapse in this new Veronica Speedwell adventure from the New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-nominated author Deanna Raybourn. January 1889. As the newest member of the Curiosity Club--an elite society of brilliant, intrepid women--Veronica Speedwell is excited to put her many skills to good use. As she assembles a memorial exhibition for pioneering mountain climber Alice Baker-Greene, Veronica discovers evidence that the recent death was not a tragic climbing accident but murder. Veronica and her natural historian beau, Stoker, tell the patron of the exhibit, Princess Gisela of Alpenwald, of their findings. With Europe on the verge of war, Gisela's chancellor, Count von Rechstein, does not want to make waves--and before Veronica and Stoker can figure out their next move, the princess disappears. Having noted Veronica's resemblance to the princess, von Rechstein begs her to pose as Gisela for the sake of the peace treaty that brought the princess to England. Veronica reluctantly agrees to the scheme. She and Stoker must work together to keep the treaty intact while navigating unwelcome advances, assassination attempts, and Veronica's own family--the royalty who has never claimed her.
London, 1887. Victorian adventuress and butterfly hunter Veronica Speedwell receives an invitation to visit the Curiosity Club, a ladies-only establishment for daring and intrepid women.
The Dark Enquiry
- 387 stránek
- 14 hodin čtení
Partners now in marriage and in trade, Lady Julia and Nicholas Brisbane have finally returned from abroad to set up housekeeping in London. But merging their respective collections of gadgets, pets and servants leaves little room for the harried newlyweds themselves, let alone Brisbane's private enquiry business. Among the more unlikely clients: Julia's very proper brother, Lord Bellmont, who swears Brisbane to secrecy about his case. Not about to be left out of anything concerning her beloved—if eccentric—family, spirited Julia soon picks up the trail of the investigation. It leads to the exclusive Ghost Club, where the alluring Madame Séraphine holds evening séances…and not a few powerful gentlemen in thrall. From this eerie enclave unfolds a lurid tangle of dark deeds, whose tendrils crush reputations and throttle trust. Shocked to find their investigation spun into salacious newspaper headlines, bristling at the tension it causes between them, the Brisbanes find they must unite or fall. For Bellmont's sake—and more—they'll face myriad dangers born of dark secrets, the kind men kill to keep….
