Mirabelle Bevan Mystery Series by Sara Sheridan

In post-World War II England, former Secret Service operative Mirabelle Bevan becomes embroiled in a new kind of intrigue . . . In the popular seaside town of Brighton, it's time for Mirabelle Bevan to move beyond her tumultuous wartime years and start anew. A job at a debt collection agency seems the right step toward a more tranquil life... moreIn post-World War II England, former Secret Service operative Mirabelle Bevan becomes embroiled in a new kind of intrigue . . . In the popular seaside town of Brighton, it's time for Mirabelle Bevan to move beyond her tumultuous wartime years and start anew. A job at a debt collection agency seems the right step toward a more tranquil life. But as she follows up on a routine loan to a pregnant Hungarian refugee, Mirabelle's instincts for spotting deception are stirred when the woman is reported dead, along with her unborn child.As Mirabelle investigates the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death, aided by her feisty sidekick--Vesta Churchill ("no relation to Winston," as she explains)--she unravels a web of evil that stretches from the Brighton beachfront to the darkest corners of Europe. With more than a little British resourcefulness at hand, she must risk her life to navigate a lethal labyrinth of lies and danger in order to expose the truth.Praise for Sara Sheridan and the Mirabelle Bevan Mysteries"Mirabelle has a dogged tenacity to rival Poirot." --Sunday Herald "I was gripped from start to finish." --Newbooks magazine"Unfailingly stylish, undeniably smart." --Daily Record "Plenty of colour and action, will engage the reader from the first page to the last. Highly recommended." --Bookbag "Fresh, exciting and darkly plotted."--Good Book Guide less

1952, Brighton. When eighteen-year-old Rose Bellamy Gore goes missing in a seedy Soho jazz club, the prime suspect is a young sax player, Lindon Claremont. He hightails it to Brighton to seek the help of his childhood friend Vesta, who works with ex-Secret Service backroom girl Mirabelle Bevan. When London is taken into custody, the two women dive into London's underworld of smoky nightclubs, fast cars and lethal cocktails to establish the truth.

Dangers abound in 1950s Brighton as former Secret Service operative Mirabelle Bevan cuts to the chase to solve multiple murders . . . When sportswriter Joey Gillingham stops off at a Brighton barbershop for a shave and a trim, he gets more than he bargained for--a slashed throat. With the ghastly murder the talk of the seaside town, Mirabelle and her close friend and coworker Vesta Churchill find themselves irresistibly drawn to the case... moreDangers abound in 1950s Brighton as former Secret Service operative Mirabelle Bevan cuts to the chase to solve multiple murders . . . When sportswriter Joey Gillingham stops off at a Brighton barbershop for a shave and a trim, he gets more than he bargained for--a slashed throat. With the ghastly murder the talk of the seaside town, Mirabelle and her close friend and coworker Vesta Churchill find themselves irresistibly drawn to the case. Rumors of the newspaperman being a member of the freemasons lead the ladies to the group's local lodge, where they happen upon a cleaning woman in the throes of poisoning.Despite being warned off by Superintendent McGregor, the fearless friends continue to investigate, breaking into an abandoned royal residence in Brighton and following a trail of clues to a Cambridge college and bizarre masonic rituals. With desperate characters and more bodies turning up, Mirabelle and Vesta will need to walk the razor's edge to stay alive long enough to stop the killing . . .Praise for Sara Sheridan and her Mirabelle Bevan Mysteries"The story grows progressively darker as Sheridan delves into issues of race and class--not to mention loyalty and abuse of power--in this extraordinarily rich historical." -- Publishers Weekly "As a British historical mystery, this fits the bill."-- RT Book Reviews "One part Nancy Drew, two parts Jessica Fletcher, Mirabelle has a dogged tenacity to rival Poirot."-- Sunday Herald less