A Woman of Consequence

February 6, 2012
Set in 1806, Dean’s pleasing third mystery featuring Miss Dido Kent (after 2011’s A Gentleman of Fortune) showcases the amateur sleuth’s most outstanding characteristic—her curiosity. From Badleigh Vicarage, Dido writes to her sister, Eliza, of Penelope Lambe’s falling and hitting her head at ruined Madderstone Abbey, where the “sweet-tempered, good-natured girl” had gone in the hope of getting a glimpse of the abbey ghost known as the Grey Nun. Penelope’s claim to have seen the Grey Nun shortly before losing consciousness leads Dido to investigate Madderstone for herself. The discovery in a drained pool on the abbey grounds of a human skeleton raises the stakes. Dean smoothly integrates a wealth of historical detail, especially regarding the rights of women and the inheritance laws in effect in the early 19th century. Well-drawn secondary characters, from Dido’s dour sister-in-law to an opium-eating poet, lend color. Agent: David Marshall, Marshall Rights.