'Has a charm, and mystery, all of its own' The Times'Frances Brody has made it to the top rank of crime writers' Daily Mail The first historical mystery in a new classic crime series from bestselling author Frances Brody. This is the perfect locked room page-turner for fans of Agatha Christie and Jacqueline Winspear, 1969.

A job in the Prison Service is not for everyone. The training is hard, the cells are bleak and a thick skin is needed. But for Nell Lewis, helping prisoners is something she cares about deeply, and when she's promoted into a new post as governor of HMP Brackerley in Yorkshire, she's tasked with transforming the renowned run-down facility into a modern, open prison for women.

Just as Nell is settling into her new role, events take a dark turn when a man's body is discovered in the prison grounds. The mystery deepens still when one of their female inmates goes missing, ensuing a search across the country. Can Nell resolve the sinister happenings at HMP Brackerley, before anyone else is put in danger? What readers are saying about Frances Brody:'Witty, acerbic and very, very perceptive' Ann Cleeves'A splendid heroine' Ann Granger'An engagingly forthright and indefatigable investigator' Irish Times'Frances Brody matches a heroine of free and independent spirit with a vivid evocation of time and place .

. . a novel to cherish' Barry Turner, Daily Mail'The series is right up there with Miss Marple' Sunday Sport'Delightful' People's Friend'Kate Shackleton joins Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs in a subgroup of young, female amateur detectives who survived and were matured by their wartime experiences' Literary Review'Brody's excellent mystery splendidly captures the conflicts and attitudes of the time with well-developed characters' RT Book Reviews'In Yorkshire we are proud to have such a first-rate crime novelist in our county' Yorkshire Gazette & Herald