MISS MORTON AND THE ENGLISH HOUSE PARTY MURDER

Lloyd leaves behind Kurland St. Mary to introduce a sassy new Regency-period heroine with a tough row to hoe.

Lady Caroline Morton’s engagement was broken and her reputation destroyed when her father, the Earl of Morton, committed suicide, leaving her and her sister, Susan, penniless. For some years Lady Eleanor, their aunt, has taken in stray children and raised them along with her own offspring, if not always successfully, and some of these are still friends of the family. Lady Eleanor has been housing Susan, and she’s offered Caroline a home as well. But Caroline decides that she’d rather be a paid companion than an unpaid drudge. Now Lady Eleanor insists that Caroline come to the birthday party for her cousin Mabel. To that end, she invites Caroline’s employer, Mrs. Frogerton, a wealthy widow whose fortune comes from trade, and her beautiful, well-dowered daughter, Dorothy. Unfortunately, the other guests include Caroline’s former fiance, Lord Francis Chatham, and his sister, who used to be her best friend. When young Dr. Harris arrives to attend to Lady Eleanor’s butler, who's had a messy accident in the cellar, it reinforces the doctor’s dislike of the wealthy. Next, Caroline’s great-aunt Ines, who has lived on the estate for many years, is found murdered and Caroline finds a large sum of money hidden in her room. Caroline fears that past secrets have come back to haunt her family members, who insist there were no murders, and at Mrs. Frogerton’s urging, she investigates.

A charming cross between a Regency romance and a well-constructed detective story with a surprising denouement.