London, 1923. An old library. A dead actress.
American expatriate Eden Brior has built a quiet life among the books of St. Cecelia's Library. Then she is accidentally locked overnight in its underground vault with Simon Cross, a charming, unreliable playboy she has only just met.
When they are released the following morning, they discover that Simon's estranged wife, French actress Isabelle Jalbert, has been murdered upstairs. Worse still, someone appears to have deliberately locked Eden and Simon away while the crime was committed.
Quiet, perceptive Detective Inspector William Garrett is fairly certain he already has his man.
Garrett tells Eden to go home and leave the detecting to the professionals. She has no intention of listening.
Racing to clear their names before Garrett closes the case, Eden and Simon pursue Isabelle's secrets through London theatres, fashionable nightclubs, university drawing rooms, and the glittering but brittle world of the Bright Young Things. Yet Isabelle had collected enemies as readily as admirers, and someone is prepared to kill to keep the truth buried.
Witty, atmospheric, and rich in postwar intrigue, The Harlot of St. Cecelia's is a character-driven historical mystery steeped in the tradition of Golden Age detective fiction. Perfect for readers who enjoy clever amateur sleuths, perceptive police inspectors, and Jazz Age scandal.