"A delightful Regency mystery"
In 1811, much of the city of London debate the merits
of a central police force because of the rise in crime,
especially homicides. The noise level is raised higher
than ever when a coach apparently kills wealthy
philanthropist Constance Tyrone. At the coroner's inquest,
Bow St. detective John Chase points out that this is more
than a simple hit and run murder of the founder of the St.
Catherine Society. Instead the victim may have been dead
before the hackney ran over her. The obvious suspect is Jeremy Wolfe who claims to have
been commissioned by Constance's father to do a portrait of
the do-gooder. His not so flattering sketches and the
damaging letter he authored to her lead to his occupying a
cell in Newgate. When a solicitor makes bail for Jeremy,
John needs to know why and who this Mr. Merkle fronts. He
begins digging into those individuals that would want
Constance dead only to find a relatively long list of
people satisfied with her death. Set in the exact venue as P.D. James' The MAUD AND THE
PEAR TREE, THE ROSE IN THE WHEEL uses a real incident to
relate a descriptive historical mystery. The story line
enlightens readers while furbishing a powerful who-done-it
that grips the audience from start to finish. The wide
ensemble seems so real one will feel the rain and mud which
allows the audience to further accept the tale and marvel
at S.K. Rizzolo's ability to keep everyone consistently
straight. The author paints a powerful Regency mystery
that will make her a sub-genre favorite rather quickly. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted December 29, 2001
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