Duelling, derring-do, and dastardly deeds are all in a day's work for Liberty Lane, a new heroine for fans of Georgette Heyer and Sarah Waters's Victorian novels.

The Augustus theatre likes to put on a good show. But when a public spat erupts between two dancers on the London stage, it comes to a dramatic conclusion that definitely wasn't part of the script: one dead, the other arrested for murder. As far as the jury's concerned, it's an open-and-shut case, but Liberty Lane believes otherwise.

Soon she's leading her own investigation, in a desperate race against the hangman's noose. And while the criminal underworld may be no place for a lady, there's no place for a criminal to hide once Liberty's on the case...