Last updated on 08/17/2026
A gruesome death caused by a deadly poison. A family friend accused of murder.
Just days ago, Amelia Greystone was browsing the shelves of Mr. Tooley’s apothecary shop. Now he stands accused of murder and Scotland Yard Inspector Henry Field is the only person Amelia trusts to untangle the truth.
Henry is far from pleased to have Amelia involved in his latest case, but soon her father is as well. Unfortunately, the evidence against their friend is damning. Yet the deeper Henry digs into the accusations, the clearer it becomes that more than one person had reason to want the victim dead and the apothecary blamed for it.
With each clue that emerges, Amelia and Henry must separate truth from deception before the wrong man is condemned. But one shocking twist strikes so close to home that it threatens both the investigation and their deepening bond.
Can they unveil the killer before another innocent life is claimed by the apothecary’s poison?
Escape to the dark streets of Victorian London with the seventh novel in the bestselling Field & Greystone series —perfect for historical mystery readers and fans of Irina Shapiro, Cara Devlin, and Miss Scarlet and the Duke.
Review:
The books in this series just keep getting better–and they were already fantastic!
First, the mystery–not going to lie, this one had me scratching my head for most of the story. So many people were acting suspiciously, and connecting the dots seemed impossible when Henry and Amelia couldn’t even find all of them for so much of the book. Add in the fact that they couldn’t really even work together for a lot of the book–first, because Amelia’s family was friends with a suspect, and next because her father’s health remedy was found near a dead body (all while her parents were visiting), and the we need to solve this mystery ASAP stakes were stronger than ever!
And as for Amelia and Henry’s relationship, though they weren’t able to spend as much time together on the page as they (and I!) wanted, they still managed to grow closer than ever emotionally. While apart, they both thought about how much they missed and cared for each other–culminating in an absolutely adorable scene between Henry, Amelia, and one of my favorite characters from a past book (and Master Leopold!) in the epilogue.
Not to mention another scene between Henry and another secondary character that *might* have made me squeal with glee–and counting the days until the next book!
Rating: 5 stars / A+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.