Vanessa Weatherburn
2 primary works
Book 3
March, 1896. Motherhood and work as a private detective don't easily go hand-in-hand, but Vanessa is determined to give it a try. Being a wife and mother has meant that she's had to give up her beloved teaching job, but Vanessa has been kept busy by a string of requests asking for her help in solving troubling cases. It is not often, though, that her investigations involve violent death...When three sombre professors knock on her door, Vanessa knows they have come in search of her help. But when they explain the circumstances surrounding their colleague's murder, she begins to doubt whether her modest capabilities will be enough to solve the mystery. Leaving the comforts and pleasures of her home in Cambridge behind for the duration of the enquiry, Vanessa embarks on a journey to London where the grim realities of life threaten to overwhelm her. An exquisitely written and devilishly clever murder mystery by the author of "The Three Body-Problem" and "Flowers Stained with Moonlight".
Book 4
In 1898, enjoying the sunshine in the garden of her Cambridge shire home, Vanessa Weatherburn is startled by the abrupt arrival of her long-time friend, the journalist Patrick O'Sullivan. Eager to discover the identity of a young woman found floating in the River Cam in order to get a scoop for the local newspaper, Pat has called on the one woman he is sure will be able to solve the mystery. Over recent years Vanessa has garnered a reputation for solving crimes - including murders, thefts and blackmail attempts - but never before has she been faced with the problem of identifying a victim, as well as a murderer. She is at a loss to know where to begin.In desperation, Vanessa agrees to go to London to attend a seance meeting, but has little hope of gathering any important information. Yet to her astonishment, she hears the medium cry out, 'Murder, murder, grisly murder!' Can the flamboyant woman really connect with the spirit of the dead, or are there other, more mysterious and deadly ways of communicating secret information?
Forced to go undercover to continue her investigation, helped along as always by the cream of Cambridge's academic community, Vanessa employs all the skills she has learnt over the past years to reel in the murderer - but will it be enough to solve the river's riddle? Beautifully written and thoroughly researched, this latest case for the talented Mrs Weatherburn proves to be her most perplexing yet.
Forced to go undercover to continue her investigation, helped along as always by the cream of Cambridge's academic community, Vanessa employs all the skills she has learnt over the past years to reel in the murderer - but will it be enough to solve the river's riddle? Beautifully written and thoroughly researched, this latest case for the talented Mrs Weatherburn proves to be her most perplexing yet.