1667, London, and Lucy Campion, ex-ladies maid and now a printer’s apprentice, is passing over Holborn Bridge and encounters a young woman. She is wearing only a blood-covered nightdress and is barely able to speak. Lucy takes her to a local doctor’s house, and is asked to stay to look after the woman – who, when recovered, seems to have lost her memory.

Determined to help the woman find out who she is, Lucy tries to help her reconstruct the recent – and distant – past, but it seems there are people out there who wish her harm. And when a body is found by the bridge where she was found, it seems that there are some secrets that are best forgotten…

Book Four in the Lucy Campion series, after A Murder At Rosamund’s Gate, From The Charred Remains and The Masque Of A Murderer, and the strong series continues in the same vein. I enjoyed immensely the first three books, so I was very much looking forward to the next instalment – thanks to St Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the review copy.

It’s always a little dangerous, in my eyes, to do the what-the-hell-is-going-on plot. By the halfway stage, we have just about discovered who the woman is, and met some of her family, but we are still a long way from having a structure to the mystery at this point. But, which is unusual for me, I hadn’t really noticed the slow pace of the central plot. The writing style and the characters are completely absorbing, and, as the plot accelerates towards the conclusion, I found myself having trouble putting the book down.

A fascinating look at life in seventeenth century London and a strong character-led tale with an intriguing plot. Well Worth A Look.