Murder at the Royal Botanic Gardens

Charlotte Sloane is deep in preparations for her wedding to the Earl of Wrexford in Regency London. Dress fittings, flower arrangements and breakfast menus leave her little time for doubt. Her love for him is settled, yet she wonders whether life as a Countess will cost her independence and the secret identity she keeps as the satirical artist A.J. Quill.

Their first public outing as an engaged couple is a symposium at the Royal Botanic Gardens. A visiting botanist collapses and dies there. White powder near his mouth shows he was murdered.

Charlotte and Wrexford are drawn into the inquiry. They learn that the victim was involved in a major medical discovery, and that fame and a large fortune depend on it. Suspects are plentiful, and a few of them have already shown how ruthless they can be.

The mystery draws on early forensic science and the world of the era's leading scientific minds, with a slow-burning attraction running beneath the case. The danger moves closer to the couple than either expects, and the wedding date hangs on whether they can catch the killer first.