Hasty Death

M.C. Beaton worked as a Fleet Street journalist. She is the author of the Agatha Raisin novels, the Hamish Macbeth series and the Edwardian Murder Mystery series – all published by Constable & Robinson. She divides her time between Paris and the Cotswolds.

Praise for M.C. Beaton’s Edwardian Murder Mystery series:

‘If you missed the first novel in the series, get it right away. Snobbery with Violence introduced the Edwardian heroine Lady Rose Summer. Her second appearance [Hasty Death] is, if anything, even wittier and more amusing than the debut.’

The Globe & Mail

‘Fans of the author’s Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth series should welcome this tale of aristocrats, house parties, servants, and murder.’

Publishers Weekly

‘A light-hearted romantic romp through Edwardian snobbery, with hints of the cataclysmic changes in store for high society.’

Kirkus Review

‘An amusing brew of mystery and romance that will keep fans turning the pages.’

Publishers Weekly

‘Fans of the author’s Hamish Macbeth and Agatha Raisin mysteries . . . will welcome this new series of historical whodunits.’

Booklist

‘Combines history, romance and intrigue, resulting in a delightful romantic mystery.’

Midwest Book Review

Also by M.C. Beaton

Edwardian Murder Mystery series

Snobbery with Violence

Hasty Death

Sick of Shadows

Our Lady of Pain

Hamish MacBeth series

Death of a Valentine

Death of a Witch

Death of a Gentle Lady

Death of a Maid

Death of a Dreamer

Death of a Bore

Death of a Poison Pen

Death of a Village

Death of a Celebrity

Death of a Dustman

Death of an Addict

Death of a Scriptwriter

Death of a Dentist

Copyright © Marion Chesney, 2004, 2010

To George and Isabel Agrest of Paris,

with affection

Shorthand he wrote, his flower in prime did fade,

And hasty death shorthand of him hath made.

– EPITAPH OF WILLIAM LAURENCE,

DIED 1661, WESTMINSTER ABBEY

CHAPTER ONE

Don’t, when offered a dish at a friend’s table, look at it critically, turn it about with the spoon and fork, and then refuse it.

Etiquette for Women,

by one of the aristocracy

Winter is very democratic. In London, its grip extended from the slums of the East End to the elegant squares of Belgravia. Tempers were made as brittle as ice by the all-encompassing cold, even in the home of the Earl and Countess of Hadshire. Their London home in Eaton Square had run out of coal and wood. The butler blamed the housekeeper and the housekeeper blamed the first footman, and as the row about who was responsible raged downstairs, upstairs, a battle royal was going on over a different matter.

Lady Rose Summer, daughter of the earl and countess, was once more demanding to be free to work as a typist. Not only that, she wanted to move to some business women’s hostel in Bloomsbury with her maid,