Author Description

To escape the unsuitable marriage plans arranged by her staunch grandfather, lovely Francine Ewell elopes with her lover, Baron Rudolph. they flee to the Grand Duchy of Bruxenstein in the Bavarian Alps where Rudolph is heir to the throne. Younger sister Pippa is left alone with her grandfather whose grim presence dominates the English estate of Greystone. Francine's letters are Pippa's only source of joy. They describe a wonderful new life, a devoted husband and a young son. When the letters suddenly stop, Pippa learns that Francine and her husband have been murdered. The newsclipping describing their deaths suggests that the woman involved was Rudolph's "mistress." But surely the "mistress" of the article was not a mistress at all - but Francine! Pippa feels that she must unravel the puzzle of her sister's mysterious fate. So she sets out for Bruxenstein where the path to the truth leads to danger. --Book jacket.