Murder, Scandal, and the Magistrate from Below Stairs
(2026)(A book in the Regency: Ghostly Grievances Society series)
A novel by Marisa Paxon
I am the narrator of this book, which means I carried the whole elegant catastrophe on my back, received no thanks, and have now been ordered to sell it as well.Naturally. So here you are: a cathedral city during assizes week, a stubborn meadow dispute, an ex-suitor too vain to hear the word no, and Lady Miriam Alverton trying to keep her good sense while society does its level best to mislay hers.
I had scarcely finished presenting her with the deeply inconvenient return of Daniel Rainsford, once below stairs, now a magistrate with far too much steadiness for anyone''s peace, when Sir Bertram Marchmont chose to propose in public, swallow a poisoned peppermint, and die at her feet. Very theatrical. Very bad for a lady’s reputation. Worse still, he refuses to go quietly. Miriam is left to manage a murder, a city drunk on scandal, an old attachment newly aflame, and the loud, offended ghost of the dead man himself, who would like justice promptly and his dignity restored if possible.
If she fails, she does not merely lose face. She risks having a gentleman’s murder pinned to her name, letting a cruel little scheme stand, and watching the one man she might actually trust get dragged through the same provincial mud with her. I, meanwhile, am forced to shepherd clues, lies, widow’s claims, chipped sweets, and one extremely revealing fit of cousinly greed into something like order. You may imagine the strain.
Perfect for readers who like Regency cozy mystery with ghosts, sharp banter, social scandal, clue-trails that actually matter, and a second-chance romance conducted with more restraint than the county deserves. This is a clue-rich mystery with a satisfying logical reveal, non-gory violence, and a closed-door romance with an HEA. It is also a fully self-contained story, so you may begin here without consulting a family tree, a parish register, or the dead.
Start reading, then. I have already done the hard part; you may as well enjoy it.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
I had scarcely finished presenting her with the deeply inconvenient return of Daniel Rainsford, once below stairs, now a magistrate with far too much steadiness for anyone''s peace, when Sir Bertram Marchmont chose to propose in public, swallow a poisoned peppermint, and die at her feet. Very theatrical. Very bad for a lady’s reputation. Worse still, he refuses to go quietly. Miriam is left to manage a murder, a city drunk on scandal, an old attachment newly aflame, and the loud, offended ghost of the dead man himself, who would like justice promptly and his dignity restored if possible.
If she fails, she does not merely lose face. She risks having a gentleman’s murder pinned to her name, letting a cruel little scheme stand, and watching the one man she might actually trust get dragged through the same provincial mud with her. I, meanwhile, am forced to shepherd clues, lies, widow’s claims, chipped sweets, and one extremely revealing fit of cousinly greed into something like order. You may imagine the strain.
Perfect for readers who like Regency cozy mystery with ghosts, sharp banter, social scandal, clue-trails that actually matter, and a second-chance romance conducted with more restraint than the county deserves. This is a clue-rich mystery with a satisfying logical reveal, non-gory violence, and a closed-door romance with an HEA. It is also a fully self-contained story, so you may begin here without consulting a family tree, a parish register, or the dead.
Start reading, then. I have already done the hard part; you may as well enjoy it.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Used availability for Marisa Paxon's Murder, Scandal, and the Magistrate from Below Stairs