Black Plumes

A classic from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. One of the best books by a mystery novelist whose work is always of first rank. The New York Times Something is afoot at the Ivory Gallery in London. A string of suspicious incidentsa Kang-Tse vase broken, a specially commissioned catalog burned, and now a painting slashedhas young Frances Ivory on edge. She suspects that the instigator is her stepsisters husband, Robert Madrigal, but theres not much she can do about it while her father is out of the country. Robert is even interfering in Francess love life, encouraging her to marry his loathsome assistant. To stop his infernal matchmaking, Frances agrees to a sham engagement with the painter whose work was defaced. But when Robert disappears after a confrontation with the artist, hes found stashed in a cupboard, dead. Frances is now drawn into a mystery that will have her second-guessing her family, her fianc, and even herself . . . Praise for Margery Allingham Margery Allingham stands out like a shining light. Agatha Christie The best of mystery writers. The New Yorker Dont start reading these books unless you are confident that you can handle addiction. The Independent One of the finest Golden-Age crime novelists. The Sunday Telegraph