The Agency 1: A Spy in the House

Introducing an exciting new series! Steeped in Victorian atmosphere and intrigue, this diverting mystery trails a feisty heroine as she takes on a precarious secret assignment. Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn is surprised to be offered a singular education, instruction in fine manners — and an unusual vocation. Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls is a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency, and at seventeen, Mary is about to put her training to the test. Assuming the guise of a lady’s companion, she must infiltrate a rich merchant’s home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships. But the household is full of dangerous deceptions, and there is no one to trust — or is there? Packed with action and suspense, banter and romance, and evoking the gritty backstreets of Victorian London, this breezy mystery debuts a daring young detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets — including those of her own past. The Barnes & Noble Review A Spy in the House , the first of Y.S. Lee's The Agency novels, is pure confection, an historical romp through England at the height of The Great Stink that imagines a secret spy ring for women tucked away where few notice but powerful factions clamor for their services. Mary Quinn was rescued from the gallows at the age of twelve, allowed to grow up in The Agency's cover, aka Miss Scrimshaw's School For Girls, and at seventeen, is tasked with her first assignment: disguise herself as a lady's companion and determine the whereabouts of a rich merchant's missing cargo ships. With pacing con brio and a perpetual sense of fun, Lee evokes the sights, sounds and smells of Victorian London and creates, in Mary, a capable heroine prepared for almost anything, even budding romance with a young engineer - but not for jarring reminders of her true, mixed-race heritage and the key to her permanent belief she will never belong in either world. Lee returns to this theme of displacement in The Body at the Tower , the even-better second volume that will be published in August. Mary is a year older, more experienced, yet still vulnerable, prone to mistakes and in much need of all her wits and years of espionage training. The capper to the trilogy can't come fast enough -- and will cause great sadness when it brings an end to this exciting series. --Sarah Weinman Introducing an exciting new series! Steeped in Victorian atmosphere and intrigue, this diverting mystery trails a feisty heroine as she takes on a precarious secret assignment. Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn is surprised to be offered a singular education, instruction in fine manners -- and an unusual vocation. Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls is a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency, and at seventeen, Mary is about to put her training to the test. Assuming the guise of a lady's companion, she must infiltrate a rich merchant's home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships. But the household is full of dangerous deceptions, and there is no one to trust -- or is there? Packed with action and suspense, banter and romance, and evoking the gritty backstreets of Victorian London, this breezy mystery debuts a daring young detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets -- including those of her own past. Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn is more than surprised to be offered a singular education, instruction in fine manners-and a most unusual vocation. Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls is in fact a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency, and at seventeen, Mary is about to put her training to the test. Assuming the guise of a lady's companion, she must work against time as she infiltrates a rich merchant's home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships. But it soon becomes clear that the Thorold household is full of dangerous deceptions, and there is no one to trust-or is there? Packed with action and suspense, banter and romance, and evoking the gritty backstreets of Victorian London, this breezy mystery debuts a daring young detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets-including those of her own past. First in a riveting detective trilogy! Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan and thief Mary Quinn is offered a place at Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls where she is trained to be part of an all-female investigative unit called The Agency and, at age seventeen, she infiltrates a rich merchant's home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships. A colourful, action-packed Victorian detective novel centred around the exploits of Agent Mary Quinn. At a young age, Mary is rescued from the gallows by a woman masquerading as a prison warden and taken to Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls. There, she discovers, the school is a front for a private investigation agency.