Slaves of Obsession

“METICULOUSLY CONSTRUCTED …

Perry’s images of the carnage and confusion of battle are relentless in their intensity, unflinching in their truth- telling detail.”

—The New York Times Book Review

“[Perry’s] concern for pressing social issues and her ability to set a scene are always strong—never more so than when depicting the terrifying battle of Manassas.”

—The Seattle Times

“Pure, hearty escapism enhanced by a rich tapestry of period details … Perry keeps up the suspense right to the end.”

—The Baltimore Sun

“A welcome and entertaining read … Perry writes with a deft sense of history and place. Her dialogue, suitable for the drawing room, sheds much light on the manners and codified pursuit of Victorian life.”

—The Cincinnati Post

“Slaves of Obsession combines all the action of a modern thriller with an enjoyable look at a time when people took all day to travel a few miles and there were no phones, fingerprints, or databases to help catch killers.”

—The Orlando Sentinel

By Anne Perry

Published by The Random House Publishing Group:

Featuring William Monk:

THE FACE OF A STRANGER

A DANGEROUS MOURNING

DEFEND AND BETRAY

A SUDDEN, FEARFUL DEATH

THE SINS OF THE WOLF

CAIN HIS BROTHER

WEIGHED IN THE BALANCE

THE SILENT CRY

A BREACH OF PROMISE

THE TWISTED ROOT

SLAVES OF OBSESSION

FUNERAL IN BLUE

DEATH OF A STRANGER

THE SHIFTING TIDE

DARK ASSASSIN

EXECUTION DOCK

Featuring Thomas and Charlotte Pitt:

THE CATER STREET HANGMAN

CALLANDER SQUARE

PARAGON WALK

RESURRECTION ROW

BLUEGATE FIELDS

RUTLAND PLACE

DEATH IN THE DEVIL’S ACRE

CARDINGTON CRESCENT

SILENCE IN HANOVER CLOSE

BETHLEHEM ROAD

HIGHGATE RISE

BELGRAVE SQUARE

FARRIERS’ LANE

THE HYDE PARK HEADSMAN

TRAITORS GATE

PENTECOST ALLEY

ASHWORTH HALL

BRUNSWICK GARDENS

BEDFORD SQUARE

HALF MOON STREET

THE WHITECHAPEL CONSPIRACY

SOUTHAMPTON ROW

SEVEN DIALS

LONG SPOON LANE

BUCKINGHAM PALACE GARDENS

The World War I Novels:

NO GRAVES AS YET

SHOULDER THE SKY

ANGELS IN THE GLOOM

AT SOME DISPUTED BARRICADE

WE SHALL NOT SLEEP

The Christmas Novels:

A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY

A CHRISTMAS VISITOR

A CHRISTMAS GUEST

A CHRISTMAS SECRET

A CHRISTMAS BEGINNING

A CHRISTMAS GRACE

A CHRISTMAS PROMISE

Books published by The Random House Publishing Group are available at quantity discounts on bulk purchases for premium, educational, fund- raising, and special sales use. For details, please call 1-800-733-3000.

A Ballantine Book

Published by The Random House Publishing Group

Copyright © 2000 by Anne Perry

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Fawcett Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and simultaneously in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

FAWCETT is a registered trademark and the Fawcett colophon is a trademark of Random House, Inc.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

eISBN: 978-0-345-44689-3

www.ballantinebooks.com

v3.1

To

Moreen, James and Nesta, nee MacDonald,

for their friendship