City of Scoundrels

Written by Victoria Thompson

Narrated by Kate Forbes

An exciting new book in the series featuring Elizabeth Miles, con woman turned Lady, from the beloved national bestselling author of the Gaslight Mysteries. Elizabeth Miles finds herself in a position no con can help her escape. Her beloved fiance, Gideon Bates, is awaiting his turn in the draft to fight in the Great War. Elizabeth is finding it hard to think of anything else, but Gideon has thrown himself into his work, preparing wills for soldiers before they ship out. Corporal Tom Preston is part owner of Preston Shoes, a company that is making footwear for the army, so he has a rather large estate. He needs a new will, however, because he has just been secretly married to a woman whom his family would never approve. He wants to make sure she and their unborn child are provided for if he does not return. When Tom is later reported killed, Elizabeth and Gideon learn that the new will has gone missing after Tom's bride revealed her identity to his family. Unless the new will is found and validated, the original will, which leaves everything to Tom's brother, will prevail and the wife and child will get nothing. If Tom's new bride survives, that is. Some terrible threats have been leveled against her, and Elizabeth and Gideon must figure out a way, legal or not quite, to secure Tom's fortune for his wife and child while saving her life in the process.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9781980070054

Victoria Thompson

Victoria Thompson is the author of twenty bestselling historical romances. She is also the Edgar nominated author of the bestselling Gaslight Mystery Series, set in turn-of-the-century New York City and featuring midwife Sarah Brandt. She also contributed to the award winning writing textbook Many Genres/One Craft. A popular speaker, Victoria teaches in the Seton Hill University master's program in writing popular fiction. She lives in Central PA with her husband and a very spoiled little dog.Please visit Victoria Thompson’s www.victoriathompson.homestead.com to learn about new releases and discover old favorites!

Reviews for City of Scoundrels

[bgknighton · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Elizabeth has a lot on her mind — Gideon has been drafted. They let themselves be distracted by the case of Rose Preston whose new in-laws try to cheat her out of her inheritance when Corp Tom Preston is reported dead. Elizabeth and her family set up the in-laws but the flu is the worst enemy….

[kathy89_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story is about a WWI war widow who is cut out of her husband’s family’s fortune by her greedy brother-in-law and left penniless. In 1918 a woman wasn’t allowed to file a lawsuit. The main characters are con artists and cleverly trick the brother-in-law out of the money in a rob-from-the-rich scheme during the great Flu epidemic and WWI German spies .

[katebaxter_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The is the third installment in author Victoria Thompson's charming, "A Counterfeit Lady Novel" mystery series. As in a previous installment, a young woman is cheated out of her anticipated inheritance and our protagonist Elizabeth Miles is brought in to help right the wrong. Yet this time it's a young recently wed widow of an industrialist who had done his part for the war effort. She was to have received his ownership in a factory holding governmental contracts in support of the war effort. Someone in his family (presumably) is committed to cutting her out completely. Elizabeth, her family and fiancé Gideon all work together to turn tables on the cheats. Spies are everywhere. Be careful what you say and with whom you consort. Folks are bound for jail for the smallest infractions. It's a grifter's game. But who holds all the pieces?Initially, the book felt a bit formulaic but the insightful historical details and the fast-paced action left this reader breathless at times and unable to set the book down. It's definitely an enjoyable read.Synopsis (from book's dust jacket):Elizabeth Miles finds herself in a position no scheme can help her escape. Her beloved fiancé, Gideon Bates, is awaiting his draft notice to fight in the Great War. Elizabeth finds it hard to think of anything else, but Gideon has thrown himself into his work, preparing wills for soldiers before they ship out. As part owner of a company that makes footwear for the army, Corporal Tom Preston has a rather large estate. He needs a new will, however, because he has just secretly married Rose, a woman of whom his family would never approve. He wants to make sure she and their unborn child are provided for if he does not return.When Tom is later reported killed, Elizabeth and Gideon learn that after Tom's bride revealed her identity to his family, the new will went missing. Unless it is found and validated, the original will--which leaves everything to Tom's brother--will prevail, and Rose and their child will get nothing. If she even survives. Some terrible threats have been leveled against her, and Elizabeth and Gideon must figure out a way, legal or not quite, to secure Tom's fortune for his wife and child while saving her life in the process.