The Victorian era is an age of excursions. And for every hopeful holidaymaker, there are dozens of businesses hoping to sell them the trip of their dreams.

Four such men, eager to make money, come together to offer fossil-hunting expeditions along the south coast of England. But ambition and greed soon rip the venture apart and it ends in violent murder.

Unfortunately, the victim is killed right under the noses of Lord and Lady Calaway. It ought to be a simple case; the police order that no-one is to leave their large country house. The suspects are assembled. But each question unearths more unwelcome secrets from the past, and Adelia herself has to confront a love affair that she thought she'd put long behind her.

As the revelations threaten to tear her marriage apart, the scandalous behaviour of her daughter Edith is rocking their position in society too. Beset on all sides, Adelia has to defy convention, defy the police ... and defy her very own husband.

She is used to fixing other peoples' relationships. But if she can't solve this murder, she might lose her marriage too...

This is the fourth book in The Discreet Investigations of Lord and Lady Calaway. It is written in British English, which may use unfamiliar spellings, vocabulary and grammatical structures. Enjoy with a nice cup of Earl Grey tea and perhaps a biscuit.