The Agency
5 primary works
Book 1
Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan and thief Mary Quinn is offered a place at Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls where she is trained to be part of an all-female investigative unit called The Agency and, at age seventeen, she infiltrates a rich merchant's home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships.
Book 1
Steeped in Victorian atmosphere and intrigue, this diverting mystery trails a feisty heroine as she takes on a precarious secret assignment.
Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn found herself at Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls, the cover for an all-female investigative unit called the Agency. Now seventeen, Mary must put her training to the test. Disguised as a lady’s companion, she infiltrates a merchant’s home in hopes of finding clues to the whereabouts of his missing cargo ships. But the household is full of deceptions, and there is no one to trust. . . . Or is there? Packed with suspense and evoking gritty Victorian backstreets, this breezy mystery marks the debut of a detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets — including those of her own past.
Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn found herself at Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls, the cover for an all-female investigative unit called the Agency. Now seventeen, Mary must put her training to the test. Disguised as a lady’s companion, she infiltrates a merchant’s home in hopes of finding clues to the whereabouts of his missing cargo ships. But the household is full of deceptions, and there is no one to trust. . . . Or is there? Packed with suspense and evoking gritty Victorian backstreets, this breezy mystery marks the debut of a detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets — including those of her own past.
Book 2
Mary’s second adventure as an undercover agent forces her to relive some harrowing childhood experiences as she seeks the identity of a murderer.
Mary Quinn’s new assignment sends her into the building site of the clock tower for the Houses of Parliament dressed as an impoverished young boy, evoking her own childhood memories of fear, hunger, and constant want. As she insinuates herself into the confidence of several persons of interest, she encounters others in desperate situations and struggles to make a difference without exposing — or losing — her identity. Mary’s second adventure offers a fictional window into the fascinating, if grimy, underbelly of Victorian London.
Mary Quinn’s new assignment sends her into the building site of the clock tower for the Houses of Parliament dressed as an impoverished young boy, evoking her own childhood memories of fear, hunger, and constant want. As she insinuates herself into the confidence of several persons of interest, she encounters others in desperate situations and struggles to make a difference without exposing — or losing — her identity. Mary’s second adventure offers a fictional window into the fascinating, if grimy, underbelly of Victorian London.
Book 3
Get steeped in suspense, romance, and high Victorian intrigue as Mary goes undercover at Buckingham Palace — and learns a startling secret at the Tower of London.
Quick-witted Mary Quinn is undercover at Buckingham Palace, hunting a petty thief, when the Prince of Wales witnesses a murder. Even more alarming is the fact that the accused killer shares a name with Mary’s long-lost father. Meanwhile, engineer James Easton, Mary’s onetime paramour, is at work shoring up the sewers beneath the palace, where a newly discovered tunnel seems to be very much in use. Can Mary and James trust each other long enough to solve the mystery and protect the royal family?
Quick-witted Mary Quinn is undercover at Buckingham Palace, hunting a petty thief, when the Prince of Wales witnesses a murder. Even more alarming is the fact that the accused killer shares a name with Mary’s long-lost father. Meanwhile, engineer James Easton, Mary’s onetime paramour, is at work shoring up the sewers beneath the palace, where a newly discovered tunnel seems to be very much in use. Can Mary and James trust each other long enough to solve the mystery and protect the royal family?
Book 4
In her fourth adventure, available in paperback for the first time, Mary Quinn no longer has the Agency to support her — just James Easton.
Though Mary has officially left the Agency, her former superiors have asked her to take on a dangerous case: convicted fraudster Henry Thorold is dying in prison, and Mary must watch for the return of his estranged wife, herself a notorious criminal with a potentially deadly grudge against James Easton, who wants to wed Mary. And Mary can't shake the feeling that a Chinese prizefighter newly arrived in town is somehow familiar. With the stakes higher than ever, can Mary balance family secrets, conflicting loyalties, and professional expertise to bring a criminal to justice and find her own happiness?
Though Mary has officially left the Agency, her former superiors have asked her to take on a dangerous case: convicted fraudster Henry Thorold is dying in prison, and Mary must watch for the return of his estranged wife, herself a notorious criminal with a potentially deadly grudge against James Easton, who wants to wed Mary. And Mary can't shake the feeling that a Chinese prizefighter newly arrived in town is somehow familiar. With the stakes higher than ever, can Mary balance family secrets, conflicting loyalties, and professional expertise to bring a criminal to justice and find her own happiness?