A USA TODAY BESTSELLER
A mysterious bequest of money leads to a murder in this new novel in the
critically acclaimed and bestselling series whose last installment The
New York Times called "a sterling addition to this well-polished
series."
Charles Lenox has received a cryptic plea for help from an old Harrow
schoolmate, Gerald Leigh, but when he looks into the matter he finds
that his friend has suddenly disappeared. As boys they had shared a
secret: a bequest from a mysterious benefactor had smoothed Leigh's way
into the world after the death of his father. Lenox, already with a
passionate interest in detective work, made discovering the benefactor's
identity his first case - but was never able to solve it.
Now, years later, Leigh has been the recipient of a second, even more
generous bequest. Is it from the same anonymous sponsor? Or is the money
poisoned by ulterior motives? Leigh's disappearance suggests the latter,
and as Lenox tries, desperately, to save his friend's life, he's forced
into confrontations with both the most dangerous of east end gangs and
the far more genteel denizens of the illustrious Royal Society. When
someone close to the bequest dies, Lenox must finally delve deep into
the past to uncover at last the identity of the person who is either his
friend's savior - or his lethal enemy.
