The Berkeley Square Affair
In 1817, the Napoleonic wars are over, but former British intelligence agent Malcolm Rannoch and his wife, Suzanne, can’t resist the allure of another investigation. Their friend, playwright Simon Tanner, arrives wounded at their Berkeley Square house after thieves had attempted to rob him of a manuscript of an alternative version of Hamlet, which may pre-date the familiar version. An investigation into the manuscript’s authenticity takes a dangerous turn when Malcolm discovers that French spies had used it as a codebook during the war. Lord Harleton, father of Malcolm’s friend Crispin, had recently been murdered; he and Malcolm’s father, along with several Oxford classmates, had formed a secret society called the Elsinore League. Malcolm wonders whether his father’s death was murder and whether the Elsinore League was actually a spy ring. Meanwhile, Suzanne has a secret of her own, which Malcolm’s investigation might reveal, and which would threaten the happiness of their marriage if he were to discover it
This book is full of breathtaking twists and turns as the reader is led on an intriguing journey into the characters’ past. This is the first adventure of Malcolm and Suzanne that I’ve read, but it won’t be the last.
