Unnatural Fire (Countess Ashby de la Zouche, 1) (Volume 1) - Softcover

Morgan, Fidelis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1934609501 ISBN 13: 9781934609507

Publisher: Felony & Mayhem Press, 2010

Synopsis

It is the end of the 17th century, and the Countess Ashby de la Zouche is having rather a bad time. The money is long gone, along with the Count, and while the Countess has no mealy-mouthed scruples about renting out her person, fewer gentlemen than one might think appreciate the mellow, nuanced charms of a mature lady. In short, it?s looking like a very hungry winter, until a new possibility arises: A job as a professional gossip columnist for one of London?s daily tabloids. Peering into bedroom windows may not be the most respectable of occupations, but respectability loses a certain amount of its allure when the alternative is debtors? prison.

About this title

Review:

A boisterous, bawdy romp through Restoration England, Unnatural Fire introduces a pair of unlikely heroines and sets them on a merry chase through London just before the dawn of the 18th century. The Countess Ashby de la Zouche has lost her place in society with the death of Charles II, her former paramour, and the subsequent disappearance of her husband, a swindler who's gone to America to seek his fortune. Languishing in debtor's prison, she's soon rediscovered by her erstwhile maid Alpiew, whose circumstances aren't much better than her former employer's. But the two women swiftly discover how to turn their shared fondness for gossip into a tidy livelihood as stringers for an infamous scandal sheet. Hired by a wealthy matron to get the goods on her philandering husband, they stumble on a murder that sets this fast-paced, funny story in motion. The mystery mixes royal intrigue, theatrical shenanigans, cross-dressing strangers, and secret formulas into a delicious potion brewed by an actor and playwright who specializes in Restoration comedy. Author Fidelis Morgan's thorough familiarity with the period informs every paragraph of this delightful historical romp. --Jane Adams

About the Author:

Fidelis Morgan is an actor and an expert in Restoration comedy. Acclaimed for her stage plays, Pamela and Hangover Square, she also collaborated with Lynda la Plante on Channel 4's tense, psychological thriller Killer Net. She has written non-fiction studies of charismatic female figures from the 17th and 18th centuries, and contributed to the bestselling Virago anthology Wicked. In Unnatural Fire, she combines historical interest with her lifelong passion for crime fiction.

About this edition

• Publisher: Felony & Mayhem Press
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1934609501
• ISBN 13: 9781934609507
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 352