In 1887 outside of Toronto, midwife Dolly Merishaw helps an anonymous lady give birth to an illegitimate child. Keeping this secret is perfect for Dolly, who is not above a bit of blackmail. However, almost eight years later, Dolly is murdered, a victim of a vicious beating. Dolly leaves behind three foster children, who might be better off fending for themselves than cope with the abuse their guardian heaped onto them.

Though still mourning the death of his fiancee due to a typhoid outbreak, acting detective William Murdoch heads the investigation into Dolly's brutal death. He quickly finds himself embroiled in class warfare as Dolly tendered to the birthing or abortion needs of the rich and the poor. As he digs deeper into Dolly's past while training for the upcoming police tournament, William finds himself struggling to open the doors to a silent society that remains closed regardless of which class he visits.

UNDER THE DRAGON'S TAIL scores on two fronts. It is a great mystery that will enthrall fans of police procedurals. It is also a wonderful historical novel that brings to light the last decade of the nineteenth century in Victorian Toronto. The lonely William is a great cop, whose philosophical ramblings make for a fantastic understanding of the era and ultimately a lively tale. As with her debut novel (EXCEPT THE DYING), Maureen Jennings provides her fans with a stupendously stimulating historical mystery that will garner new readers for a rising star.

Harriet Klausner