The Riddle of the River

On a balmy summer in 1898 Vanessa Wetherburn is contentedly feeding a clotted cream scone to her young son in her Cambridge garden when she is startled by the abrupt arrival of her long-time friend, the journalist Patrick O'Sullivan. Eager to discover the identity of a beautiful young woman found floating in the River Cam, Pat has called on the one woman he knows is sure to be able to solve the mystery. Over recent years Vanessa has garnered a reputation for solving crimes – including murders, thefts and blackmail attempts – but never before has she faced an unknown victim. She is at a loss to know where to begin.

As Vanessa considers what to do, her first important clue arrives in the form of Ernest Dixon, who is worried by the disappearance of his favorite actress; a young woman named Ivy Elliot, who was playing the part of Ophelia. Could the missing girl and unidentified body be one and the same woman?