The Rival Queens

Fidelis Morgan

This book is the second Countess de la Zouche novel - the first being Unnatural Fire. Set in 1699 it tells of how the eccentric Countess and her maid become entangled in a brutal murder. The author cleverly blends a wide variety of characters, including a salty sea dog and an ageing Samuel Pepys to create a cracking good read full of surprises.

Extract

She stood up and took a few steps around the room. Lord, but these chains weighed a ton. Rattle, rattle, clink, clink, every time she scratched an eyebrow. She was glad there wasn't a glass in the room. She dreaded to think what she must look like. There were more chunks of make-up in her cleavage and sprinkled around the floor than there could possibly be on her face.

Parallels