The Duke's Murder Portrait and Other Unfinished Compliments

A Cozy Regency Mystery of Love and Murder

Miniaturist Dorothea Pemberton is paid to make people look better than they deserve. Unfortunately, when a gilded portrait and its temperamental critic share a private viewing at the Royal Academy, the critic drops dead behind the curtain and Dorothea is the only one in the room who notices that the cracks in the paint are lying.

Dragged into the scandal by a duke with an inconvenient conscience, Dorothea finds herself assisting Lucian Fallowfield and a dryly amused Bow Street runner as they peel back layers of altered varnish, reworked faces, and very expensive secrets. A restorer who improves the dead, a patroness who buys strychnine for her roses, a debtor who hid his grandfather’s mistakes in a cupboard, and a city that would quite like to blame the nearest tradeswoman: everyone has something to lose if the truth comes out, and Dorothea most of all. If she is wrong, she ruins her own livelihood. If she is right, she might ruin a duke.

This is a fair play mystery, clue rich and satisfying, with the body and any nastiness kept politely off page. The romance is a closed door slow burn with a wry happy for now, all sharp glances, reluctant carriage rides, and treacherously steady hands. Perfect for readers who enjoy cozy Regency mysteries, cross class banter, art world intrigue, and corpses that insist on causing social inconvenience.

Settle in with The Duke’s Murder Portrait and Other Unfinished Compliments and let Dorothea decide whose reputation deserves to crack first.