Showing results by author "Irina Shapiro" in All Categories

When the body of a young woman is found near the ruins of a haunted abbey, everyone assumes she died of fright. A postmortem examination tells a different story. Not only was Elizabeth Barrett poisoned, but the lethal dose of cyanide must have been administered by someone close to her - someone she trusted, who may have known her secret. As Captain Redmond and Constable Haze delve into the victim's seemingly ordinary life, they learn she wasn't the proper, biddable wife everyone believed her to be.

1588. When Rafael de Silva’s ship is smashed on the rocks off the coast of Ireland, he must find a way to get by without access to any resources or help from the locals, since being apprehended will result in certain death for a soldier of the ill-fated Spanish Armada. Terrified and half starved, Rafael gets help from an unexpected source, but safety is just an illusion, and love is a liability when Rafael’s very survival depends on keeping the secret of his birth from being discovered by those closest to him.

Gemma Tate has a new job and a new address. She is putting her past—her memories of nursing in the Crimean war—behind her. But when Jacob Harrow, a journalist with ties to Crimea, is found brutally killed, Gemma is pulled into the investigation. Police inspector Sebastian Bell works alone. But when all signs point towards a dark secret Harrow brought back from the war, he realizes he needs Gemma’s help to untangle the mystery. But raking up the past has devastating consequences when Gemma’s friend, another nurse from Crimea, is found murdered in her boarding house.

2014. When skeletal remains are discovered in a bathtub concealed in a secret chamber in a London mansion, Quinn’s only clue is a Fabergé necklace that may have belonged to the victim. She delves into the life of Valentina, a young Russian refugee who came to live in the house after the Russian Revolution. 1917. Wealthy, beautiful, and titled, Valentina has enjoyed a gilded existence, but the winds of change thrust her into the role of head of the family. Valentina quickly learns that not everyone can be trusted, and sometimes true love can be found in the most unexpected places.

When Hugo and Neve settle in Paris, they assume that they will enjoy a few peaceful years away from the turmoil of British politics, but they are not nearly as safe as they believe themselves to be, especially since everyone has something to hide. Meanwhile, Max must learn to adapt to life on a sugar plantation in Barbados, and decide whether to accept help from an unexpected and dangerous source; a decision which may cost him his life.

When a guest at a séance dies under suspicious circumstances, Inspector Haze and Lord Redmond quickly realize his death was a cleverly plotted execution. The main suspects are the other guests - including Daniel’s wife Sarah. Delving into the life of the deceased reveals a growing list of possible suspects, while the motive remains elusive.

When Nicole Rayburn travels to Lockwood Hall and begins to research Alys’s story for a new book, she discovers startling irregularities in Alys’s case. Nicole’s suspicions mount as every answer leads to more questions. What really happened to Alys? And what became of her son, who disappeared the day she was hanged? Could it be that Alys’s death was the result of a well-planned conspiracy, or is there another, less obvious answer? And who is trying to sabotage Nicole's efforts by stealing her work?

When skeletal remains are unearthed at her husband’s ancestral home, Dr. Quinn Allenby must use her psychic gift to discover what led to Gabe's ancestor's secret burial in an unmarked grave. As Quinn bridges the centuries with the help of a warrior's sword and an amber rosary buried with the skeleton, she stumbles upon a secret about her own past that will cast a new light on everything she's been told about her birth and set her on a quest to discover the truth.

Hours later, the man’s cold body lies in the city mortuary, alongside the woman he couldn’t save. And his sister, unconventional nurse Gemma Tate, tracks down troubled police inspector Sebastian Bell to unravel the truth. Sebastian has enough pressure to solve the murder of an aristocratic heiress without Gemma meddling in his case. But the cryptic sentences she brings him from her brother’s notebook could be a crucial lead. If only they knew what “milky way” meant.

Pregnant and alone, Dr. Quinn Allenby finds herself detained in New Orleans, tasked with obtaining footage for the finale of the Echoes from the Past series. As she delves deeper into the mystery of Madeline Besson, whose very existence seems to have been erased from history, Quinn finally gets closer to finding out the truth about her own psychic gift, and to a secret that had remained buried for over a century.

When Nicole Rayburn adds a historic bookshop to her list of promotional venues, she meets the owner, Deborah Dolan, who’s desperate to discover what happened to her Victorian ancestor. A well-respected playwright, Edgar Hilliard seemingly had it all: professional success, a thriving business, and a loving family, but according to family lore, Edgar walked out one night, never to return, an unfinished manuscript his only legacy to future generations.

Forced to return to London to try to save Max from the gallows, Hugo and Neve are well aware of the danger of their situation and try to anticipate every eventuality. But betrayal comes from an unexpected quarter, putting Neve and Hugo in mortal danger, and forcing them to reevaluate whom they can trust. Unexpected reunions, simmering old hatreds, and shocking betrayals abound as Neve and Hugo race against time to help Max and flee England before it's too late.

Home at last after years of exile, Neve and Hugo Everly just want to pick up the pieces of their life and enjoy time with their growing family, but destiny has its own plan. A tragic loss nearly tears the family apart, and an unexpected guest brings a warning of dire events still to come. Hugo and Neve find themselves in danger once again; for outstanding debts must be paid, and old enemies will no longer wait to settle scores.

Nurse Gemma Tate is heartbroken when she hears that one of her young charges at the Foundling Hospital has been killed. She knows that police inspector Sebastian Bell will work tirelessly to uncover the truth, but obstructed by the curt matron, he’ll need her help navigating the cloistered world of the orphanage.

When Hugo is imprisoned on a charge of treason and Neve is accused of witchcraft by a spiteful rival, the Everlys must put their scruples aside in order to save their family and make a bid for freedom. However, their decision will alter not only their own future, but change the lives of everyone they hold dear. Can they escape in time, and will those left behind pay the ultimate price for their loyalty?

When the skeletal remains of a young woman and her baby are found entombed behind the kitchen wall of a historic Tudor house, Cassandra is overcome with grief. She seems to know who the young woman was, but not how she knows, or how she came to be there. Cassandra becomes inexplicably drawn to the house and the mystery of the bones of Blackfriars. As she begins to learn the truth about the Thorne siblings who occupied the house during the reign of Elizabeth I, her own life takes an unexpected turn, and she finds out that her fate is linked to the Thornes in ways she never imagined.

Katie Price is baffled when a man claiming to be her grandfather leaves her his entire estate in the Scottish Highlands. The bulk of the estate consists of a thriving whisky distillery and a moldering castle. The will stipulates that Katie must travel to Scotland and claim her inheritance in person. There, she uncovers the secret that led to her mother’s birth, and begins to unravel a 250-year-old mystery surrounding the beautiful young wife of the last laird of Clan McBride. As Katie begins to unearth the clues to Isobel’s fate, she embarks on a romantic journey of her own.

When American Lexi Maxwell buys a derelict mansion in a quaint English village and sets about turning it into a manor-house hotel, it’s a dream come true. But events take a turn for the bizarre, as a heartbroken ghost makes a nightly appearance and kneels beneath a tree next to a centuries-old ruin, and people in the village keep commenting on Lexi’s resemblance to a woman who’s been dead for a quarter of a century. As Lexi tries to find out more about the man in the ruin, she unexpectedly stumbles upon secrets from her own past.

When the Earl of Granville is skewered with a pitchfork in his own stables, Inspector Haze and Lord Redmond must unearth decades-old family secrets in order to unravel the motive behind the murder. But just when they think they’re making headway, disturbing new revelations come to light and cast doubt on their findings.

Every old house has its secrets, so it comes as no surprise when a relic of a noble Victorian family is discovered in the new home of historical author Nicole Rayburn and her husband Kyle. Curious about the lovely young woman in the sepia photograph, Nicole delves into the history of the family and stumbles on a long-forgotten mystery.