The Law and the Lady

When her new husband is accused of poisoning his first wife under a Scottish verdict of ‘Not Proven,’ the determined Valeria Woodville sets out to clear his name and uncover the truth herself, becoming one of fiction’s earliest female detectives. Collins combines a gripping mystery with a bold, sympathetic portrait of a resourceful woman defying Victorian convention to fight for justice. Suspenseful and forward-looking, The Law and the Lady blends courtroom drama, detection, and a strong heroine well ahead of her time. Ingenious and engaging, it is a fine example of Collins’s mastery of the mystery and his interest in women who refuse to accept their assigned place.