About the Author

Diana Gabaldon is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the wildly popular Outlander novels—Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, Drums of Autumn, The Fiery Cross, A Breath of Snow and Ashes (for which she won a Quill Award and the Corine International Book Prize), An Echo in the Bone, and Written in My Own Heart’s Blood—as well as the related Lord John Grey books Lord John and the Private Matter, Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade, Lord John and the Hand of Devils, and The Scottish Prisoner; one work of nonfiction, The Outlandish Companion; and the Outlander graphic novel The Exile. She lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, with her husband.

Reviews

“[A] thoroughly entertaining and wonderfully witty historical mystery set in the richly detailed, occasionally bawdy world of Georgian England.”—Booklist
 
“Packed with vivid description and detail. Gabaldon aptly transports readers to eighteenth-century London, with all its reeking humanity and glitteringly elegant excess.”—BookPage

“Gabaldon’s prose is crisply elegant . . . a compelling narrative that also offers a wealth of juicy details about 18th-century London.”—Publishers Weekly

“Gabaldon takes readers for a walk on the wild side . . . A compelling and unique period mystery for the author’s legion of fans.”—Kirkus Reviews

Trouble befalls Lord John Grey (fresh from minor roles in Gabaldon's bestselling Outlander novels) when he accidentally discovers that the Hon. Joseph Trevelyan, his cousin's betrothed, may have what those in 1757 termed "the pox" or "the French disease" syphilis. Before he can figure out an appropriate way to handle this delicate matter, he becomes involved in the investigation of the mysterious and grisly murder of a military colleague suspected of being a spy. Gabaldon (The Fiery Cross; Drums of Autumn; etc.) stitches these two plots together into a compelling narrative that also offers a wealth of juicy details about 18th-century London, especially its homosexual underbelly. Lord John, who reminisces about his dead lover, Hector, and the "lean, hard body" of an old flame, learns that Trevelyan may be traveling from one house of ill repute to another of a different sort: at the Lavender House, both buyers and sellers are men. Among his various trials and tribulations, Lord John must discern the identity of a mysterious figure in a green velvet dress spotted in both of these establishments and investigate the mysterious death of a similarly attired man, found with his face bashed in. Grey is a competent and likable sleuth, and Gabaldon's prose is crisply elegant. Her many fans will be happy to learn that this is the first in a series about the travails of Lord John Grey. (Oct.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

"[A] thoroughly entertaining and wonderfully witty historical mystery set in the richly detailed, occasionally bawdy world of Georgian England."-Booklist

"Packed with vivid description and detail. Gabaldon aptly transports readers to eighteenth-century London, with all its reeking humanity and glitteringly elegant excess."-BookPage

"Gabaldon's prose is crisply elegant . . . a compelling narrative that also offers a wealth of juicy details about 18th-century London."-Publishers Weekly

"Gabaldon takes readers for a walk on the wild side . . . A compelling and unique period mystery for the author's legion of fans."-Kirkus Reviews