Bonfire Night

By Deanna Raybourn

An amateur sleuth and her detective husband inherit a country house where a maid goes missing in this mystery novella set in Victorian England.

It’s the autumn of 1890, and almost a year has passed since—much to their surprise—Lady Julia and her detective husband, Nicholas Brisbane, became parents. Just as the couple begins to adapt, a solicitor arrives with a strange bequest. Nicholas, it seems, has inherited a country house—but only if he and his family are in residence from All Hallows’ Eve through Bonfire Night.

Neither Lady Julia nor Nicholas is likely to be put off by local legends of ghosts and witches, and the eerie noises and strange lights that flit from room to room simply intrigue them. Until a new lady’s maid disappears, igniting a caper that will have explosive results . . .

Previously published.

Don’t miss the complete Lady Julia Grey mystery series by New York Times–bestselling author Deanna Raybourn!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Mar 13, 2017
• ISBN: 9781488029875

Deanna Raybourn

New York Times bestselling author Deanna Raybourn graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a double major in English and history and an emphasis on Shakespearean studies. She taught high school English for three years in San Antonio before leaving education to pursue a career as a novelist. Deanna makes her home in Virginia, where she lives with her husband and daughter and is hard at work on her next novel.

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

London, 1890

Julia, how did you misplace the baby? Again? my sister asked with more than a touch of asperity.

I gave her the most dignified look I could muster under the circumstances. I did not misplace him, I informed her in lofty tones. I forgot him. The fact that this was now the fourth time I had walked into the park with the child and left without him was mortifying—and not something my siblings would let me soon forget.

Oh, that makes it quite all right then, chimed in our brother Plum. I put my tongue out at him, but before I could form a suitable reply, my husband spoke.

It’s my fault entirely, he said, his voice silken. Julia was generous enough to take on a case of some delicacy. She was rather preoccupied with breaking the alibi of a jewel thief.

Plum twitched in his chair. The Enderby case? I thought that was put to bed last week, he protested. The theft of the Enderby opals was the most important investigation that my husband had allowed Plum to undertake on his own authority. He had been single-minded in his pursuit of the culprit—so much so that Lady Enderby’s maid had nearly been arrested for the theft after only an hour’s investigation.

I smiled sweetly at my brother. Yes, the maid was the most obvious thief, wasn’t she? But the solution seemed a little too simple to Brisbane. He refused to have her arrested until I had spoken with her.

Plum flushed pink to his ears and shot an accusing look at Brisbane. It was my case, he repeated.

And it was mishandled, my husband returned coolly. The case against the girl was damning, but I was not persuaded.

She confessed, Plum retorted, his jaw set stubbornly. But the more enraged he became, the calmer Brisbane remained. It was a trick I had seen him employ a thousand times, and usually upon me. Brisbane had learnt long ago the most effective way of handling any member of the March family was to remain utterly unmoved in the face of strong emotion. Goading him out of his sang-froid was one of my favourite pastimes, but my decidedly intimate methods would never work for my brother, I reflected with a delicate frisson of remembered passion.

She confessed because she is French and therefore away from her home, her country, her friends. She told me about the accusations you lobbed at her, I chided. You practically called her a thief the moment you sat her down. What did you expect her to do?

I expected her to tell the truth, he said.

Careful, Portia warned. Plum’s getting into a pet and you know his sulking puts me off my food.

I waved a hand. If we have dinner at all, you may count yourselves fortunate. The workmen have moved into the kitchens and twice this week Brisbane and I have dined on bananas.

Why bananas? Portia asked.

Gift from a grateful client, Brisbane returned. His Excellency the ambassador of the Emir of Ranapurcha was very generous with them. We have forty pounds left.

Portia blinked. He gave you forty pounds of bananas?

You misunderstood, dearest, I corrected. "We have forty pounds remaining. There were one hundred to begin with. Mrs. Lawson has put them into, salads, sauces, soufflés—I think at one unfortunate meal she even managed to make them into soup."

Do not remind me, Brisbane put in with a curl of his handsome mouth. It was grey.

I went on. But she has left us at last, bound for a peaceful retirement at her sister’s cottage in Weymouth, and we are left with a new cook and a larder full of ripe bananas.

That explains the smell, Plum said. He still looked a trifle sulky, and I knew he was not over his mood. His next remark confirmed it. So, he said, fixing me with a gleeful look, you were telling us about losing the baby. Again.

I cursed him inwardly. Plum had only ever been third favourite amongst my brothers, and I was reminded why. He was always a little too quick to find my soft spots and prod them. Pointedly.

Portia sat forward, her expression avid. Yes, I only ever forgot Jane once, and that was because I saw the most delicious first edition of Bacon’s essays in the window of a bookshop. I left her pram on the pavement without a thought.

Plum snorted. You’ve never pushed a pram in your life. You left the nanny is more like it.

Portia’s gaze was glacial. The nanny’s presence was immaterial. I still forgot the child. Although, she added, turning to me, I’ve never forgot her four times.

I looked to Brisbane. I can’t decide if she is trying to defend me or accuse me, I told him.

A little of both, he decided. She wants you to know that she sympathises with your peccadillo but would never be quite so daft as to commit it herself. At least not four times.

That’s very helpful, I said with a dangerous smile. He smiled back, and there was intimacy in that smile and a promise of something delightful yet to come.

Stop staring at your husband, Julia, my sister instructed. You’ve gone pink as a virgin and it’s unseemly.

Plum spluttered into his whisky, but Brisbane remained unperturbed.

Portia turned back to me. "And you never answered Plum’s question. How did you manage to forget Jack?"

I shrugged. I don’t know. If I knew why I did it, I could stop. But it just happens. I will take him out for some air and then start wool-gathering about something. Before I know it, I’m somewhere entirely new and he’s nowhere to be found.

Thank God for Morag, Plum said fervently.

Yes, thank God for Morag, I echoed, my voice tight. The fact that my lady’s maid had taken it upon herself to act as nanny to the child was both a godsend and the rankest betrayal. She had served me faithfully for

Reviews for Bonfire Night

[murderbydeath · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

About what you'd expect from a novella; too short to get into any character development or conflict, just short, happy little mysteries with tidy endings, but they're fun to read and one or two loose ends from the main body of the series are wrapped up.

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This novella takes place on All Hallows' Eve when Brisbane inherits a haunted manor from a man he has never met. Julia, Portia, and Plum accompany him and all of them investigate the many hauntings and happenings. They bring along Portia's daughter Jane the Younger and their child John Nicholas Brisbane. It is all a complex plot orchestrated by Brisbane's very disreputable father which puts both Nicholas and Julia in danger but does finally cement the place of John Nicholas in their lives.

[jean_sexton-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novella is pretty much fluff. Mind you, it was pleasant fluff where I got to visit with familiar and liked characters. There was a mystery of sorts, although the author made Lady Julia privy to information that was withheld from the reader. However, while that made me a tad miffed, I still liked the story. This novella is only for existing fans of the series. Without the background of the characters, less of it makes sense, although the author made a valiant effort at filling the reader in.

[mickyfine · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Lady Julia and Brisbane are surprised when a solicitor appears on their doorstep informing them that Brisbane has suddenly inherited an estate in the country. The catch is that they must be in residence from All Hallow's Eve until Guy Fawkes Day in order to keep the house. However, upon their arrival Julia and Brisbane discover that the house is purportedly the most haunted in all of Britain. After their first restless night, Julia and Brisbane decide that all is not as it seems and investigate this seemingly haunted gift horse.A trifle on the fluffy side, this novella is not quite as strong as other entries in the series but enjoyable nonetheless. Recommended for the completist and optional for other readers.

[eyes92c · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Chaos, bananas and mystery. A treat indeed!1890 near to All Hallows' Eve. Nicholas Brisbane of the 'witch black eyes' and Lady Julia with a heart of gold, an enquiring mind and a gleefully abandoned love for her husband are in the middle of house renovations which are creating havoc. Nicholas and Julia are now parents to the lively Jack. Julia is questioning her mothering skills as she keeps forgetting about Jack and leaving Him behind. Fortunately Julia's maid Morag has taken charge of Jack. The chaos is added to by Plum and Perdita. Not to forget Perdita's baby Jane, just learning to talk.So when Nicholas is mysteriously left a house in the country conditional on being there to collect the rents on All Hallows' Eve, Julia is more than ready to pack up the family and flee to a place that offers intrigue, a challenge, a refuge from the renovations and something other than bananas to eat. The village of Narrow Wibberley and the crazily built house Thorncross,' the most haunted house in England,' are not disappointing. There are certainly things that go bump in the night. The game's a foot with a surprising ending. A fun novella with the sleuthing family we have come to enjoy in unexpected ways.A NetGalley ARC