A kidnapping, an elopement gone wrong, and a sensational nineteenth-century trial are only the beginning of this Regency mystery. England, 1817. Barrister George Tuckett wakes to discover that his sixteen-year-old niece Maria Glenn, reputed heiress to West Indian sugar plantations, is missing. It seems she has been abducted by the Bowditches, a local farming family, who intend to force her to marry one of their sons. While Maria is ultimately rescued, the investigation that follows uncovers a complex and disturbing web of lies. At a drama-filled trial that is the talk of the country, four are sentenced to prison. When a cabal of powerful people begin a campaign to destroy Maria's testimony, her supporters fall away and she is openly vilified. Her enemies have her arrested for perjury, and soon she is forced to flee into exile. Yet the story of conspiracy and deception does not end there, as Maria and her uncle are to suffer one final and devastating betrayal . . . Deftly exploring the details of a case that had many in England taking sides, The Disappearance of Maria Glenn is an intriguing fictionalized account of a tawdry tale that will entice readers of both Regency romance and historical mystery.
