1876. Nineteen-year-old orphan Esperanza Gorst arrives at the great country house of Evenwood to be interviewed for the position of ladys-maid by the 26th Baroness Tansor, the former Miss Emily Carteret. But Esperanza is no ordinary servant. She has been sent by her guardian, the mysterious Madame de lOrme, to uncover the dark and dangerous secrets that her new mistress has sought to conceal, and to set right a past injustice in which Esperanzas own closest interests are bound up. Gradually those secrets are revealed, and with them the truth of who Esperanza really is, forcing agonizing obligations on her, and enmeshing her in a complicated web of intrigue, deceit, and murder that culminates in betrayal by those she trusted most. A sequel to the widely praised The Meaning of Night, The Glass of Time is both a page-turning period mystery and a gripping study of identity, the nature of secrets, and what can happen when past obsessions impose themselves on an unwilling present.

About the Author

Michael Cox was born in 1948. After graduating from Cambridge, he avoided working for a living by becoming a singer-songwriter. In 1989 he joined Oxford University Press as a Senior Commissioning Editor. His widely praised biography of the ghost-story writer M. R. James was followed by a critical edition of Jamess stories and several highly successful Oxford anthologies of short fiction. His first novel, The Meaning of Night", published in 2006 to wide critical acclaim, was shortlisted for the 2007 Costa First Novel Award and he was nominated for Waterstones Newcomer of the Year at the 2006 Galaxy British Book Awards. He lives in rural Northamptonshire with his wife Dizzy.

Reviews

When orphaned 19-year-old Esperanza Gorst is hired as a lady's maid by Baroness Tansor of Evenwood in 1876, she does not understand her role in a complex plan to restore the Duport family succession. Lady Tansor, the former Emily Carteret, still mourns for her fiance, Phoebus Daunt, murdered two decades earlier. Through clever spying, Esperanza uncovers information about the murders of Emily's father and Daunt and about Emily's marriage and children. Letters and documents from Esperanza's guardian and others reveal the stories of her own parents and how she had been cheated of her inheritance. Yet, despite realizing that she cannot trust Emily or her unscrupulous associates, Esperanza feels affection and sympathy for the beleaguered Lady. Jealousies among Emily's sons and Esperanza fuel more misunderstandings. Speculations and explanations fill the pages of this novel, which is depicted as Esperanza's secret notebook discovered and annotated by the same editor who presented The Meaning of Night, Cox's debut, which was written from the perspective of Daunt's killer. Cox neatly incorporates the discovery of that manuscript into Esperanza's account, one of myriad connections of plot and characters that make this book an essential read for fans of the first novel. But this atmospheric and engrossing work also can stand alone as a treat for anyone who enjoys Victorian thrillers. Strongly recommended. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/08.]--Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State Univ., Mankato Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.

Set in 1876, Cox's gripping second gothic thriller (after The Meaning of Night) follows the fortunes of 19-year-old orphan Esperanza Gorst, whose guardian charges her to go undercover as a lady's maid. Without knowing precisely why she's doing so, Gorst insinuates herself into the inner circle of Baroness Tansor, the fiancEe of the preceding volume's villain, Phoebus Daunt. The fake maid soon learns that her mistress has many secrets, and may, in fact, have been complicit in the death of a former servant. Cox excels at conveying his heroine's conflict over deceiving her employer, especially after learning the role the lady played in her own difficult personal history. While readers unfamiliar with the first book will find themselves deeply engaged by the elegant descriptive prose, those with the benefit of the full context and nuances of The Meaning of Night will better appreciate this sequel. (Oct.) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.