Set in the period just before women won the right to vote in the U.S., Thompson's solid sequel to 2017's City of Lies pits lovable Elizabeth Miles, a grifter turned suffragist, and her attorney fiancé, Gideon Bates, against criminals who have stolen twice-widowed Priscilla Knight's life savings and left the young woman destitute. After Elizabeth befriends Priscilla, a sister suffragist, she realizes that the circumstances surrounding the deaths of both of Priscilla's husbands are suspicious at best. Further investigation reveals that Priscilla's second husband was being manipulated by blackmailers who had photographs of him in a decidedly unusual compromising position with a woman. The mystery turns out to be much more perverse than Elizabeth could've imagined, and the stress begins to wreak havoc on her relationship with Gideon. The everyday sexism that Elizabeth and other female characters have to deal with is a sad testament to how little things have changed in the last century. Thompson successfully combines an intriguing mystery with social commentary. Agent: Nancy Yost, Nancy Yost Literary. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

*Starred Review* An entertaining meld of romance and historical mystery, Thompson's second in her Counterfeit Lady series, set in turn-of-the-century New York, again shines the spotlight on Elizabeth Miles, who works scams on predatory men who deserve to be scammed (City of Lies, 2017). The best of intentions drives her elaborate plan to catch a cabal of unsavory suspects at their own game and gain back the fortunes of her swindled and twice-widowed friend, Priscilla Knight. At every turn, however, the precarious nature of Elizabeth's scam threatens to tilt into chaos, and this is where Thompson's talent for intricate plotting and creative characterization shines. Elizabeth's con-artist father and his cronies execute Elizabeth's scam, but Elizabeth's beloved and painfully honest fiancé, Gideon, and Priscilla remain amusingly in the dark. This is a suspenseful and twisty story guaranteed to bate breaths and engage readers until the wee hours. Fans of Amy Stewart's Kopp sisters, Deanna Raybourn's Veronica Speedwell, and Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher will welcome the addition of another strong woman to the ranks of early-twentieth-century crime solvers.--Jen Baker Copyright 2018 Booklist

A semireformed con artist slowly learns society's rules in a world even more corrupt than she is.Years after Elizabeth Miles and her half brother learned the art of grifting from their father, a stint in jail with several society suffragettes sets her life on a new course. Because Gideon Bates is in love with Elizabeth, his mother, a prominent suffragette, is making a push to introduce her into New York society. When Elizabeth befriends a woman named Priscilla Knight, who's recently been widowed for the second time, she's put on a collision course with Gideon, a lawyer who's honest to a fault. The rumor is that Priscilla remarried quickly after her first husband died because she and her two young daughters had been left penniless. Priscilla tells Elizabeth and Mrs. Bates that her first husband actually left her well off and that her pastor, the Rev. Peter Honesdale, and his wife, Daisy, pushed her into marrying her second husband, Endicott Knight, whose sudden death has left her impoverished. In going through Knight's papers, Elizabeth discovers that he'd been making payments to someone who's depleted both his and Priscilla's fortunes. A scandalous photograph of him with another woman hints that the money all went for blackmail. Although she consults Gideon for advice, they both realize that the blackmailer is unlikely to be punished, since the corrupt police would be bribed to look the other way. While Gideon looks for some legal means to solve the problem, Elizabeth goes to her father for advice, certain that the only way to get Priscilla's money back is to run a con on the people who stole it. Elizabeth and Gideon fall out over the illegal plan, but Gideon is still drawn into it while he researches the suspicious deaths of both of Priscilla's husbands.A far cry from the average mystery, the fast-moving second novel in Thompson's (City of Lies, 2017, etc.) Counterfeit Lady series features a bold and clever sleuth, abundant historical detail, and a rocky romance. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.