“Odden keenly evokes the physical as well as cultural milieu of Victorian England, and peoples her setting with fully realized and intriguing characters. This book will delight readers who like their mysteries cloaked in well-researched history.”  ​– Publishers Weekly

A Trace of Deceit

A Trace of Deceit, by Karen Odden

London,  1875.  A  YOUNG  PAINTER,  A  MYSTERY.

A young painter digs beneath the veneer of Victorian London’s art world to learn the truth behind her brother’s murder.

"Edwin is dead." This is what Scotland Yard Inspector Matthew Hallam tells Annabel Rowe when she discovers him searching her brother’s flat for clues. Annabel is devastated but not wholly surprised, given Edwin's history as a swindler and convicted art forger.

Recently released from prison, Edwin swore he'd reformed and wanted to repair his broken relationship with her. Annabel wants desperately to believe him--but when she discovers that a priceless French painting is missing from his studio, she wonders if he had lied to her yet again, or if--despite Edwin's best efforts--his old life had come back to haunt him.  

Determined to know the truth, Annabel convinces Matthew that as a painter at the prestigious Slade School of Art and Edwin’s only family, she is crucial to his investigation. Together they trace a path of deceit and villainy that reaches far beyond the elegant rooms of the auction house, into an underworld of treachery, heartbreak, and secrets someone will kill to keep.

KaREN's  BLOG:  WHY THE 1870s? 

The 1878 Matrimonial Causes Act finally provided legal protection for abused wives.

 
​In 1850s and 1860s London, waves of social unrest were spurred in part by popular and sensation novels that represented bigamy, adultery, and spousal and child abuse; and by reports of famous legal cases and ardent discussions in the growing number of newspapers and journals. Read More...

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A  TRACE  OF  DECEIT

Purchase A Trace of Deceit by author Karen Odden, published December 17, 2019.

UPCOMING  EVENTS

​

February 27, 2020
7-8 pm
A conversation with
Susan Elia MacNeal
THE POISONED PEN
BOOKSTORE
4014 N. Goldwater
Scottsdale, AZ

March 11-14, 2020
LEFT COAST CRIME
CONFERENCE
San Diego, CA
​
April 30-May 3, 2020
MALICE DOMESTIC
CONFERENCE
Bethesda, MD

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