The Ambitious Stepmother

Third in Fidelis Morgan’s hugely entertaining series featuring the irrepressible Countess Ashby de la Zouche and her stupendously bosomed former maid, Alpiew.

The Countess Ashby de la Zouche would not be every parent’s choice of chaperone for a beautiful teenager, and still fewer would entrust her with finding the girl a suitable husband – in France, of all places. The second Mrs Alderman Franklyn-Green, however, is willing to go to any lengths to get rid of her unwanted stepdaughter Virginia. And the promise of 100 guineas and a sojourn in the land of gay balls and all-night gambling is sufficient to secure the Countess’s services, even if the girl is a complete shrew.
Sadly, the exiled English Court at St Germain is far from the den of iniquity the Countess and her maidservant Alpiew were hoping for. Worse, any hopes of enjoying fine French cuisine are dashed when a fellow guest is poisoned.
Once more the Countess and Alpiew are plunged into a dangerous investigation In addition to unravelling plots against three kings and negotiating the culinary eccentricities of the Court of Versailles, our sleuths encounter the Bastille’s most mysterious prisoner, and discover – among other depravities – the peculiar employment Lord Whippingham has devised for young women with strong teeth.

Following on from Unnatural Fire and The Rival Queens, actress and comedy writer Fidelis Morgan has another winner here. - Kirkus UK

A third irrepressible outing for the ebullient Countess Ashby de la Zouche and her awesomely bosomed maid, Alpiew, a pair of Restoration detectives dubbed Cagney and Lacey in corsets, although I'd add a strong dash of Laurel and Hardy to the mix. ...Plots within plots, culinary eccentricities, the Bastille's most mysterious prisoner and the discovery of Lord Whippingham's favourite depravity, involving women with strong teeth, pepper the uproarious progress of our two unconventional heroines. Fun never came so lusty. - The Guardian