Lured to Umbersea Island to attend the engagement party of one of her late husband's fellow officers, Verity Kent mingles among the men her husband once fought beside, and discovers dark secrets--along with a murder clearly meant to conceal them. Relying on little more than a coded letter, the help of a dashing stranger, and her own sharp instincts, Verity is forced down a path she never imagined--and comes face to face with the shattering possibility...

"Peacetime has brought little respite for Verity Kent. Intrigue still abounds, even within her own family. As a favor to her father, Verity agrees to visit his sister in Wiltshire. Her once prosperous aunt has fallen on difficult times and is considering selling their estate. But there are strange goings-on at the manor, including missing servants, possible heirloom forgeries, and suspicious rumors--all leading to the discovery of a dead body on the...

November 1919. At the seaside with her husband, Sidney, could almost convince Verity Kent that life has returned to the pleasant rhythm of pre-war days. Then her beloved Great Aunt Ilse lands on their doorstep after years in war-ravaged Germany. Ilse has returned to England for her health--and because someone has been sending her anonymous threats. As she joins Verity's family deep in the Yorkshire Dales, Ilse encounters difficulties; normally peaceful...