The Murderer’s Apprentice

Dense fog masks foul play in the streets of London, as Ann Granger brings us her seventh Victorian mystery featuring Scotland Yard’s Inspector Ben Ross and his wife Lizzie.

It is March 1870. London is in the grip of fog and ice. But Scotland Yard’s Inspector Ben Ross has more than the weather to worry about when the body of a young woman is found in a dustbin at the back of a Piccadilly restaurant.

Ben must establish who the victim is before he can find out how and why she came to be there. His enquiries lead him first to a bootmaker in Salisbury and then to a landowner in Yorkshire. Meanwhile, Ben’s wife, Lizzie, aided by their eagle-eyed maid, Bessie, is investigating the mystery of a girl who is apparently being kept a prisoner in her own home.

As Ben pursues an increasingly complex case, Lizzie reveals a vital piece of evidence that brings him one step closer to solving the crime…

Praise for Ann Granger’s crime novels:

‘Characterisation, as ever with Granger, is sharp and astringent‘ The Times

‘Her usual impeccable plotting is fully in place’ Good Book Guide

‘A clever and lively book’ Margaret Yorke

‘This engrossing story looks like the start of a highly enjoyable series‘ Scotsman