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A Lucy Campion Mystery
by Susanna Calkins
In Susanna Calkins's atmospheric debut novel, a chambermaid must uncover a murderer in seventeenth-century plague-ridden London.
For Lucy Campion, a seventeenth-century English chambermaid serving in the household of the local magistrate, life is an endless repetition of polishing pewter, emptying chamber pots, and dealing with other household chores until a fellow servant is ruthlessly killed, and someone she loves is wrongly arrested for the crime. In a time where the accused are presumed guilty until proven innocent, lawyers aren't permitted to defend their clients, and - if the plague doesn't kill them first - public executions draw a large crowd of spectators, Lucy knows she may never see this person alive again. Unless, that is, she can identify the true murderer.
Determined to do just that, Lucy finds herself venturing out of her expected station and into raucous printers' shops, secretive gypsy camps, the foul streets of London, and even the bowels of Newgate prison on a trail that might lead her straight into the arms of the killer.
In her debut novel, Susanna Calkins seamlessly blends historical detail, romance, and mystery into a moving and highly entertaining tale.
"Calkin's debut mystery places her unusual detective in a world rich in carefully researched historical detail. Even mystery mavens who winkle out the killer may well enjoy the story anyway." - Kirkus
"Calkins makes Lucy's efforts to find the real killer entirely plausible, leading to a nail-biter climax with London in flames. This history-mystery delivers a strong heroine making her way through the social labyrinth of Restoration London. - Booklist
"The solution isn't quite at the same level as the other aspects of the plot, but the high-quality writing augurs well for future outings." - Publishers Weekly
"Susanna Calkins makes Restoration England come alive in her terrific debut, A Murder at Rosamund's Gate. Murder, romance, and flawless social history combine into a beautifully crafted mystery that captivates until the very last page." - Stefanie Pintoff, author of In the Shadow of Gotham
This information about A Murder at Rosamund's Gate was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Susanna Calkins became fascinated with seventeenth century England while pursuing her doctorate in British history and uses her fiction to explore this chaotic period. Originally from Philadelphia, Calkins now lives outside of Chicago with her husband and two sons. This is her first novel. Visit her at susannacalkins.com
Dear Reader,
The crime at the heart of A Murder at Rosamund's Gate came to me when I was a graduate student in history. I'd been pouring through ballads and broadsides—the penny press that served as both a source of exaggerated news and a cheap entertainment in seventeenth-century England—and I was struck by the same story that appeared again and again.
These "true accounts" would speak of a woman who'd been found stabbed in a secluded glen or a deserted field. In her pocket, the investigating authorities often found a letter, purportedly from the killer. In this letter, he would usually tell his victim to meet him at 'such-and-such deserted location.' Then he would sign the letter, with either his given name or his initials.
The case seemed open and shut.
Yet, every time I read one of these accounts, I had to wonder: Why didn't the killer search his victim for incriminating evidence before he fled the scene? Didn't it ever occur to him that she might bring the letter—you know, the one with his initials—with her to their rendezvous? I also would wonder: Why did the victims agree to meet these killers? Or perhaps, most simply of all, was some other chap being framed for the crime? No matter what, the story was not just sad, but incomplete.
In some ways, A Murder at Rosamund's Gate became the answer to the questions that never got asked—Who was this woman? Why had she agreed to meet her killer? Did she know him, or had she been tricked? And perhaps most important of all—would she get the justice she deserved?
I decided to focus my story around Lucy Campion, a seventeenth-century English chambermaid serving in the household of the local magistrate. Lucy's life is an endless repetition of polishing pewter, emptying chamber pots, and dealing with other household chores until a fellow servant is ruthlessly killed, and someone close to Lucy is wrongly arrested for the crime. In a time where the accused are presumed guilty until proven innocent, lawyers aren't permitted to defend their clients, and—if the plague doesn't kill them first—public executions draw a large crowd of spectators, Lucy knows she may never see her loved one alive again. Unless, that is, she can identify the true murderer.
Determined to do just that, Lucy finds herself venturing out of her expected station and into raucous printers' shops, secretive gypsy camps, the foul streets of London, and even the bowels of Newgate prison on a trail that might lead her straight into the arms of the killer.
I hope you enjoy the first in this series featuring Lucy Campion!
Cheers!
Susanna
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