Books like 'Last Dance Before Dawn'
Readers who enjoyed Last Dance Before Dawn by Katharine Schellman also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical mystery historical-fiction romantic-love female-mc lgbtq cozy
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The Saltwater Murder by L.B. Hathaway
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsMURDERED WITH A BOX OF TEARS… London, 1924Posie Parker has been called to her most baffling case yet.Amyas Lyle, London’s top young lawyer, has been found with his head in a box of poisoned saltwater.It’s the perfect murder... -
![The Tell Tale by Clare Ashton]()
The Tell Tale by Clare Ashton
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA small town, enduring love, a web of secrets.The Tell Tale has been watching and waiting, because there’s something queer about the village of Foel.Beth Griffiths has returned home to raise her daughter in the Welsh hills. They arrive to the open arms of the community, but not all is what it seems and Beth isn’t home for the reason she pretends either... -
![Masquerade in London by Emily L. Finch]()
Masquerade in London by Emily L. Finch
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSuspected of murder, Samantha Kingston leaves behind the world she knows when she flees to the streets of London to discover the truth in this, the first book in a new historical mystery series.London, 1861. Samantha Kingston has lived under the control of her overbearing uncle since the death of her parents six years ago...Categorized as:
historical-fiction cozy female-mc romance mystery historical fiction action-adventure -
![A Lark's Flight by Lynn Messina]()
A Lark's Flight by Lynn Messina
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsVerity Lark — England's most tenacious gossip, the London Daily Gazette ’s most dogged reporter — relishes a challenge, which is why she refuses Colson Hardwicke's offer of menial employment... -
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![The Shadow Palace (The House of Closed Doors) by Jane Steen]()
The Shadow Palace (The House of Closed Doors) by Jane Steen
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsFor unwed mother Nell Lillington, 1876 Chicago—and her new wealth—offer the promise of longed-for independence. She dreams of a place in society for her daughter Sarah and contentment for her friend Tess... -
![A Baby on the Doorstep (Volume 2) by Rachel Wesson]()
A Baby on the Doorstep (Volume 2) by Rachel Wesson
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIn this heartbreaking and beautiful tale, a woman running an orphanage during the Great Depression does everything she can to help the children in her care—perfect for fans of Before We Were Yours and The Orphan Train .Distant rumblings of conflict in Europe have reached even the secluded, snow-dusted mountains of Virginia, where Lauren Greenwood faces a battle of her own...Categorized as:
historical-fiction romantic-love female-mc historical fiction womens-fiction suspense mystery -
![Pilfered Promises by M. Louisa Locke]()
Pilfered Promises by M. Louisa Locke
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIt is the winter of 1880, and the future looks promising for Annie and Nate Dawson. Nate’s law practice is taking off. Annie has made the transition from pretend clairvoyant to a successful financial consultant. And they are looking forward to spending their first Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays together... -
![The Stationmaster's Cottage by Phillipa Nefri Clark]()
The Stationmaster's Cottage by Phillipa Nefri Clark
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsChristie is happy in her life... or so she tells herself. Despite the tragedy in her childhood, she has a satisfying career, a city apartment, and a long-term relationship. But deep down she yearns for a simpler life. Family. A garden. And a place to heal her heart.The decision to attend a funeral in a town she's never heard of throws her safe world into disarray, exposing the holes in her life... -
![A Gentleman of Dubious Reputation by Grace Burrowes]()
A Gentleman of Dubious Reputation by Grace Burrowes
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA matter of matrimony...Lord Julian Caldicott is summoned to the family seat by his ducal brother, whose bachelorhood is imperiled by the very determined Lady Clarissa Valmond. As the only titled Eligible the hostesses avoid including on their guest lists, Julian has little sympathy for the duke’s situation... -
![Eternal Deception by Jane Steen]()
Eternal Deception by Jane Steen
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLove or independence? Few choices remain for Nell and her new family on the Kansas frontier… Kansas, 1872. Unwed mother Nell Lillington hopes to support her daughter Sarah and friend Tess by working as a seamstress in an isolated seminary. When her only ally among the seminary's leaders dies, she must choose between returning to her old life in Chicago and remaining in charge of her destiny... -
![The Midwife's Secret by Emily Gunnis]()
The Midwife's Secret by Emily Gunnis
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA little girl goes missing from Yew Tree Manor - the same house from which a girl vanished decades before. Does the key to the present lie buried even deeper in the past, in the forgotten history of an innocent midwife accused by a family of shocking betrayal? A gripping, heartwrenching story of love, loyalty and family secrets... -
![Murder in Tuscany by L.B. Hathaway]()
Murder in Tuscany by L.B. Hathaway
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsUnder the Tuscan sun, ice-creams melt and dark secrets unravel…March, 1925Pregnant, bored, and longing for an adventure, Posie Parker accepts a rather last-minute Wedding Invitation from an old friend who is getting married out in the gorgeous town of San Gimignano, Tuscany.But what Posie -and her husband, Richard Lovelace- arrive into is not a blissfully happy wedding party at all... -
![Murder at the Folly by Beth Byers]()
Murder at the Folly by Beth Byers
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSeptember 1923. When Violet and Victor run into an old friend in Belgium, they have an idea of what to expect. What they don’t expect is to be followed back to England, persuaded to spend an additional weekend away from home, or to have their group experience another murder. This time, the suspect is their long-time friend Tomas St. Marks—-a shell-shocked former soldier... -
![Murder Under A Blue Moon: A 1930s Mona Moon Historical Cozy Mystery Book 1 (A Mona Moon Mystery) by Abigail Keam]()
Murder Under A Blue Moon: A 1930s Mona Moon Historical Cozy Mystery Book 1 (A Mona Moon Mystery) by Abigail Keam
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFIVE STARS! "A most delightful novel." -- READERS' FAVORITE Mona Moon is not your typical young lady. She is a cartographer by trade, explorer by nature, and adventurer by heart. But there’s a problem. Miss Mona is broke. It’s during the Depression, and National Geographic has just turned down her application to join an expedition to the Amazon... -
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![The Faithless Fool by Sarah Woodbury]()
The Faithless Fool by Sarah Woodbury
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsGareth & Gwen find themselves once again at the center of a conspiracy … with the throne of England on the line.May 1149. Unexplained death follows Gareth and Gwen wherever they go, as does their reputation for solving murders. So when a man turns up dead at Carlisle Castle, where the pair have traveled as representatives of Gwynedd, King David of Scotland naturally turns to them for answers...Categorized as:
historical-fiction female-mc mystery law-enforcement historical fiction children-books young-adult -
![Last Will by Ron Schwab]()
Last Will by Ron Schwab
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen the dead body of one of lawyer Ian Locke’s wealthy clients is discovered in a place most unbefitting for a man of his station, it is just one piece of a complicated legacy that Ian must unravel...Categorized as:
historical-fiction romantic-love western mystery historical fiction industrial-era book -
![Mrs. Holloway's Christmas Pudding: A Below Stairs Mystery Novella by Jennifer Ashley]()
Mrs. Holloway's Christmas Pudding: A Below Stairs Mystery Novella by Jennifer Ashley
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDecember 1882When Cook Kat Holloway is blamed when a dinner guest mysteriously takes ill after eating one of her meals, she sets out to prove she had nothing to do with the gentleman’s sickness. She discovers a whole host of people who might wish to do away with the man, and she and her friends—Daniel McAdam, Lady Cynthia, Mr...Categorized as:
historical-fiction cozy romantic-love female-mc mystery historical industrial-era victorian -
![Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan Henry]()
Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan Henry
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWhen Savannah history professor Everly Winthrop is asked to guest-curate a new museum collection focusing on artifacts recovered from the steamship Pulaski, she's shocked. The ship sank after a boiler explosion in 1838, and the wreckage was just discovered, 180 years later...Categorized as:
historical-fiction romantic-love female-mc fiction historical audiobook civil-war womens-fiction -
![The Dagger Dance by Elizabeth Bailey]()
The Dagger Dance by Elizabeth Bailey
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLady Fan returns in another twisty murder case! For fans of Georgette Heyer, Mary Balogh, Barbara Erskine and Jane Austen.Can Lady Fan unravel another mystery…?1793, EnglandAfter a not-so-relaxing holiday in Tunbridge Wells, Lady Ottilia and Lord Francis Fanshawe have returned to their home with a young orphaned girl, Pertesia ‘Pretty’ Brockhurst... -
![Dr. Bones and the Lost Love Letter (Dr Benjamin Bones Mysteries) by Emma Jameson]()
Dr. Bones and the Lost Love Letter (Dr Benjamin Bones Mysteries) by Emma Jameson
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThere's no such thing as privacy in the tiny village of Birdswing. Everywhere Dr. Benjamin Bones turns, someone is spying from a window, listening through a wall, or gossiping over a garden fence. "The birds sing in Birdswing," says the vicar, Father Cotterill, and in February 1940 this is more true than ever... -
![Death by the Book by Beth Byers]()
Death by the Book by Beth Byers
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsInspired by classic fiction and Miss Buncle's Book. Death by the Book questions what happens when you throw a murder into idyllic small town England.July 1936When Georgette Dorothy Marsh’s dividends fall along with the banks, she decides to write a book. Her only hope is to bring her account out of overdraft and possibly buy some hens... -
![Obsidian Murder by Beth Byers]()
Obsidian Murder by Beth Byers
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsBonfire Night 1924. Violet, Victor, and friends intend to celebrate an evening with cocktails, bonfires, and fireworks. What they don't intend is to find a body instead of their Guy Fawkes. What's even more baffling? The obsidian blade. Once again, the friends delve into a wicked crime. Tensions rise as they realize that murder wasn't the only game afoot during the celebration... -
![Murder at Feathers & Flair by Lee Strauss]()
Murder at Feathers & Flair by Lee Strauss
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIt's 1924 and war widow fashionista Ginger Gold's new Regent Street dress shop, Feathers & Flair, is the talk of the London fashion district attracting aristocrats from Paris to Berlin to Moscow.Ginger is offered her first job as a private detective when a well-known stage actor goes missing, and though the dress shop takes most of her time, Ginger takes the case... -
![Murder at Kensington Gardens by Lee Strauss]()
Murder at Kensington Gardens by Lee Strauss
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsMurder's not a walk in the park . . .War widow fashionista, Ginger Gold, makes a gruesome discovery while walking her dog, Boss, through Kensington Gardens. A woman of ill-repute is dead.When Chief Inspector Basil Reed becomes a prime suspect, the blustery and often times pigheaded Superintendent Morris pulls him off the case... -
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![Jane and the Year without a Summer by Stephanie Barron]()
Jane and the Year without a Summer by Stephanie Barron
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIf you have a Jane Austen-would-have-been-my-best-friend complex, look no further . . . [Barron] has painstakingly sifted through the famed author's letters and writings, as well as extensive biographical information, to create a finely detailed portrait of Austen's life--with a dash of fictional murder . . . Some of the most enjoyable, well-written fanfic ever created... -
![The Vengeance Trail by Elizabeth Bailey]()
The Vengeance Trail by Elizabeth Bailey
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsJoin Lady Fan in her most dangerous case yet! For fans of Georgette Heyer, Mary Balogh, Barbara Erskine and Jane Austen.Is someone from her past trying to kill Lady Fan…?1796, EnglandWhen Lady Ottilia Fanshawe finds herself launched into a river and fighting for her life, she becomes convinced someone pulled her under the water... -
![Speculations in Sin by Jennifer Ashley]()
Speculations in Sin by Jennifer Ashley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTo save an innocent man’s life, amateur sleuth and cook Kat Holloway must expose a financial scam that could ruin the most powerful aristocrats in Victorian-era London, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Secret of Bow Lane... -
![A Measure of Menace by Jennifer Ashley]()
A Measure of Menace by Jennifer Ashley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsOctober 1883When cook Kat Holloway and the kitchen staff maintain the empty Mayfair house while the family resides in the country, Lord Clifford, Lady Cynthia’s confidence-trickster father, arrives in London and asks Kat and Daniel McAdam for help. Lord Clifford might be accused of murder but won't go to the police because his involvement with the victim will implicate him in another crime...Categorized as:
historical-fiction cozy female-mc romance historical mystery industrial-era victorian -
![How Goes The World? by K.J. Charles]()
How Goes The World? by K.J. Charles
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Positively Final Appearance: a two-part epilogue with Daniel and Archie at a house party and Kim and Will in a gentleman's club, because those are definitely settings that go well for them... -
![Lady Violet Pays a Call by Grace Burrowes]()
Lady Violet Pays a Call by Grace Burrowes
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWhile Lady Violet Belmaine is busy sorting out the odd turns her life has recently taken, Hugh St. Sevier repairs to his Kent estate in hopes of embarking on the placid life of a rural physician. Alas, for St. Sevier, the village of St. Ivo has more secrets than it has pots of heartease, and the good doctor will once again find himself the target of rumors and threats.Somebody is rigging St... -
![A Death in Devon by Shéa MacLeod]()
A Death in Devon by Shéa MacLeod
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsCocktails, capers, and corgis in 1948 England! After receiving a letter about a mysterious inheritance, Sugar Martin hops a plane from the West Coast of America to exciting post-war London. However, everything is not as it seems, and Sugar finds herself stuck in England for the foreseeable future. Fortunately, she’s also been offered a job... -
![The Mysterious Point of Deceit by Beth Byers]()
The Mysterious Point of Deceit by Beth Byers
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSeverine DuNoir has returned home and continued to investigate the death of her parents. She has, however, reached a roadblock. As she tries to break through, she comes across an unexpected offer of help. While she delves into the history of her father’s life, she also starts to investigate the haunting of an elderly woman...Categorized as:
cozy historical-fiction romantic-love mystery fiction historical gothic amateur-sleuth -
![The Council of the Cursed by Peter Tremayne]()
The Council of the Cursed by Peter Tremayne
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen Bishop Leodegar of Autun calls upon the church leaders from western Europe to attend a council, it is to be a meeting haunted by sudden death and intrigue.It's AD 670, and the Council of Autun is meeting to discuss serving a final devastating blow to the Celtic Church... -
![The Leper's Bell by Peter Tremayne]()
The Leper's Bell by Peter Tremayne
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIn November of 667 A.D., Fidelma of Cashel has returned home to her brother's castle to discover that a servant, her son's nurse, has been found brutally murdered in the woods near town, and her son is missing, presumed kidnapped or worse... -
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![Lady Violet Investigates by Grace Burrowes]()
Lady Violet Investigates by Grace Burrowes
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLady Violet Belmaine emerges from two years of mourning less than enthusiastic about resuming her place in Polite Society. She’s talked into attending a country house party by her French physician friend, Hugh St. Sevier, only to find that the house party guests are preyed upon by a mysterious thief.Among the guests is Sebastian MacHeath, Marquess of Dunkeld... -
![A Bucket of Ashes by P.B. Ryan]()
A Bucket of Ashes by P.B. Ryan
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratings“As always, the author excels at setting the scene, evoking the time and place by use of the day-to-day details as well as historical events. The resolution of the central mystery is almost secondary to the revelations about Nell’s past and the way the author ties up all the loose ends of her present situation. Longtime readers will enjoy this aspect immensely; I know I did... -
![Murder in Venice by L.B. Hathaway]()
Murder in Venice by L.B. Hathaway
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWho do you trust when simply everyone is wearing a mask?A Winter Wedding, Venice, 1923Posie Parker, London’s premier female Private Detective, is getting married…But on arrival in Venice, Posie finds she is walking into a nightmare: her lodgings on the Grand Canal are consumed by fire, her famous fiancé is preoccupied, and most bizarrely of all, her hostess, the Countess Romagnoli, confesses she... -
![Turning the Tide by Edith Maxwell]()
Turning the Tide by Edith Maxwell
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratings"An intriguing look at life in 19th-century New England, a heroine whose goodness guides all her decisions, and a mystery that surprises."--Kirkus Reviews A suffragist is murdered in Rose Carroll's Massachusetts town Excitement runs high during presidential election week in 1888... -
![Victorian San Francisco Stories by M. Louisa Locke]()
Victorian San Francisco Stories by M. Louisa Locke
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThis is a collection of four short stories by bestselling author, M. Louisa Locke, set in the gas-lit world of Victorian San Francisco. was written specifically for this collection and it finds Annie Fuller, the young widowed boardinghouse keeper, just starting her career as a pretend clairvoyant... -
![Death at the Falls by Rosemary Simpson]()
Death at the Falls by Rosemary Simpson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSet amidst the opulent mansions and cobblestone streets of 1800’s New York, this atmospheric new historical mystery brings the Gilded Age to life in a tantalizing tale of old money, new love, and grave suspicion, as newly-minted lawyer Prudence MacKenzie and ex-Pinkerton Geoffrey Hunter travel to Niagara Falls for a dangerous assignment…October 1890: As Prudence and Geoffrey settle into the most... -
![Mystery at the Regal Rose Hotel: A 1920s Romance Mystery by C. Jane Reid]()
Mystery at the Regal Rose Hotel: A 1920s Romance Mystery by C. Jane Reid
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe week that Lola Rose checked into the Regal Rose Hotel, three events caught her quite her widowed mother's surprise engagement to a famous London barrister, her desire to form a friendship with the cantankerous elderly woman living in the hotel's penthouse, and a dead body at the foot of the elegant sweeping staircase on the hotel's first floor... -
![Atonement of Blood by Peter Tremayne]()
Atonement of Blood by Peter Tremayne
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWinter, 670 AD. King Colgú has invited the leading nobles and chieftains of his kingdom to a feast day. The gathering is interrupted by a religieux claiming that he has an important message for the King. Suddenly, the man, shouting 'Remember Liamuin!' stabs King Colgú. The assassin is slain but Colgú is on the verge of death... -
![Violet Vanquishes a Villain by M. Louisa Locke]()
Violet Vanquishes a Villain by M. Louisa Locke
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIn this novella, Annie and Nate Dawson, the amateur sleuths from M. Louisa Locke's cozy Victorian San Francisco Mystery series, are visiting Nate's family at their ranch near San Jose, California. What was supposed to be a pleasant romantic interlude for the two of them, plus a chance for Annie to get to know Nate's family better, turns serious when a crime is uncovered... -
![Master of Souls by Peter Tremayne]()
Master of Souls by Peter Tremayne
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn January of 668 A.D., Fidelma of Cashel - sister to the king of Muman, an advocate of the Brehon law courts and a religieuse in the Celtic Church - is called to investigate the brutal murder of Abbess Faife and the mysterious disappearance of six young female religieuse accompanying her on a short pilgrimage away from her abbey... -
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![The Apostate's Tale by Margaret Frazer]()
The Apostate's Tale by Margaret Frazer
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAs the nuns of St. Frideswide's priory prepare for the welcome end of Lent, their peaceful expectations are overset by the sudden return of long- vanished Sister Cecely. Nine years ago she fled from the nunnery with a man. Now her lover is dead and she has come back, bringing her illegitimate son with her... -
![Mrs. Jeffries and the Best Laid Plans by Emily Brightwell, Jennifer M. Dixon]()
Mrs. Jeffries and the Best Laid Plans by Emily Brightwell, Jennifer M. Dixon
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsShe keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon . . . and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes-but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task . . . proving that behind every great man there's a woman-and that a crimesolver's work is never done... -
![Mrs. Jeffries Appeals the Verdict by Emily Brightwell]()
Mrs. Jeffries Appeals the Verdict by Emily Brightwell
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsGUILTY BYSTANDERSAfter a perfectly decent local woman is killed during a robbery, the Witherspoon household receives a surprising visit from a stranger named Blimpey Groggins. He claims his best buddy was convicted of the crime. He also claims the peaceable chap didn’t even know how to fire a gun. And considering he’s to be hanged in three weeks, Blimpey’s desperate to find the real killer... -
![Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away by Emily Brightwell]()
Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away by Emily Brightwell
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsOLD SINS CAST LONG SHADOWS Normally dead bodies in a graveyard are buried—but not this one. When a woman is found strangled in a North London cemetery with an old newspaper clipping clutched in her hand, Inspector Witherspoon is surprised to find that he and the victim have crossed paths before. Alice Robinson was a respectable widow who ran a quiet Islington lodging house... -
![The Chalice of Blood by Peter Tremayne]()
The Chalice of Blood by Peter Tremayne
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe brilliant new novel in the internationally renowned Sister Fidelma crime series by Peter Tremayne.Ireland AD 670. When an eminent scholar is found murdered in his cell in the abbey of Lios M�r, fear spreads among his brethren; his door was secured from the inside, with no other means of exit... -
![The Dove of Death by Peter Tremayne]()
The Dove of Death by Peter Tremayne
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn A.D. 670, an Irish merchant ship is attacked by a pirate vessel off the southern coast of the Breton peninsula. Merchad, the ship?s captain, and Bressal, a prince from the Irish kingdom of Muman, are killed in cold blood after they have surrendered. Among the other passengers who manage to escape the slaughter are Fidelma of Cashel and her faithful companion, Brother Eadulf...
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