The Secret of the Lost Pearls by Darcie Wilde

The Secret of the Lost Pearls
by Darcie Wilde

ISBN-13: 9781496738011
Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Berkley
Released: February 2nd 2021

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description from Goodreads:
Rosalind Thorne may not have a grand fortune of her own, but she possesses virtues almost as prized by the haut ton: discretion, and a web of connections that enable her to discover just about anything about anyone. Known as a “most useful woman,” Rosalind helps society ladies in need—for a modest fee, of course—and her client roster is steadily increasing.

Mrs. Gerald Douglas, née Bethany Hodgeson, presents Rosalind with a particularly delicate predicament. A valuable pearl necklace has gone missing, and Bethany’s husband believes the thief is Nora, Bethany’s disgraced sister. Nora made a scandalous elopement at age sixteen and returned three years later, telling the family that her husband was dead.

But as Rosalind begins her investigations, under cover of helping the daughters of the house prepare for their first London season, she realizes that the family harbors even more secrets than scandals. The intrigue swirling around the Douglases includes fraud, forgery, blackmail, and soon, murder. And it will fall to Rosalind, aided by charming Bow Street officer Adam Harkness, to untangle the shocking truth and discover who is a thief—and who is a killer.


My Review:
The Secret of the Lost Pearls is a mystery set in 1820 in England. This is the sixth book in the series. You don't need to read the previous books to understand this one, and this one didn't spoil the previous mysteries.

This was a clue-based puzzle mystery. Rosalind asked good questions and collected information. She's clever, but many of the people involved lied to her, making determining the truth more difficult. Whodunit (who stole the pearls, who killed Nora's husband) was guessable near the end but wasn't obvious. The characters were interesting and reacted realistically to events. Historical details were woven into the story and helped bring the time period alive in my imagination.

There was no sex. There was occasional use of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.