A dynasty is at stake.It seemed like a straightforward request–and Helena is used to her sister Blanche making demands on her time and fortune.But the most ambitious of her sisters reveals a dilemma that may wipe out the title she holds. When tragedy strikes, Helena must reprise her role as the Investigating Lady to save a nephew she doesn’t even like.And what about her own future? The return of a hero from the past awakens old emotions and suggests new pos...

Do you ever really know your family?In the 1880s a sixth daughter learns not to ask for much, even if she’s the daughter of an earl. Even if she married the richest man in her corner of Sussex. Even if she’s now a widow with a splendid Georgian mansion.Lady Helena Whitcombe is still trying to adjust to widowhood and reconcile her family loyalties with her desires when her artist sister Odelia makes a startling suggestion. Why not make her mark on the house ...

A reluctant lady sleuth finds she's investigating her own family.1881, Sussex. With a drowned husband—the second love lost—an overbearing family, no longed-for child, and the responsibility of a huge baroque mansion, it's not surprising Lady Helena Whitcombe is overwhelmed. When attractive, mysterious, French physician Armand Fortier disturbs her first weeks of mourning with his theory of murder, Helena's reluctant and ineffective attempts at investigation...