What Ngaio Marsh Book Should Golden Age Crime Fans Read First?

William hated the mafia more than anything. Haunted by the brutal death of his sister, the young officer accepts a dangerous mission to infiltrate the notorious Tiger Fangs gang and steal a file that could bring the entire mafia empire crashing down. He disguised himself as the secretary to the gang’s ruthless leader, Dante Gordiano. But nothing prepares William for Dante himself. He was mesmerising, ruthless, and far too captivating. William had imagined an ugly beast for such a reputation as Dante’s. Every stolen glance, every heated exchange chips away at William’s resolve. The deeper he goes, the more he risks losing not just his mission… but his heart also. Yet Dante has his own game to play as he lures William into the little stage he has prepared. Enemies close in from every side with traitors hiding in plain sight and allies with knives behind their backs. Lies and deceit weave the chains tighter and William finds himself trapped in a deadly dance of power, passion, and betrayal. In a world where love is a weapon and trust is a luxury, William must decide. Was Dante his ruin, or the only one who could save him?

I quit and dipped. City threw a parade. Only Jenna Blake—my oh-so-gifted junior who claimed she could "see through killers' eyes"—lost it. At her celebration banquet, she went full drama queen: "I owe everything to Kate Mercer. Please, bring her back!" I laughed. Cold. Not happening. Last time around, I was the hotshot detective. But every clue I found? She dropped it first like she read my mind. People started saying I was washed. So I went all in—three months, no sleep, cracked a massive trafficking ring. Led the raid myself. She beat me there. Again. Place was cleaned out. Boom. She's the city's golden girl. I'm the clown with no game. Pressure got ugly. My head snapped. I died chasing the last scumbag. Then—bam. I woke up. Same day. Raid morning. Round two.

Meet Esmerelda Sleuth. Sleuth is her name and investigating is her game. (Paranormal Investigating, that is.) Esmerelda makes a good living as an investigator in a rather progressive firm. She lives a stable and sensible life until she meets Lance; an old money "hottie" who works for a real estate firm next to her building. After accepting an invitation for a weekend getaway party, she quickly discovers that Lance has a secret. He is wealthy. That part is true. And, yes, he's procured a job as a realtor in the building next door. His secret is that he belongs to an underground society of humans who didn't abandon their connection to magic centuries ago when religion declared it evil and he has traveled through time specifically to find her and bring her back to his time to marry him. If that isn't enough of a far fetched tale to absorb, he informs her that she was born in his time to a family belonging to that same secret society and was promised in marriage to him as an infant. When enemies who didn't want to see the union of families take place made attempts on her life, her parents sent her into the future and erased her memories of them as a precaution. Possessing virtually no belief in magic, ghosts, psychics, time travel, etc., it takes some doing on Lance's part to convince her to believe his story and go back with him. When she does, the lies, deceit and attempts on her life start all over again. Will she escape emotionally and physically unscathed? "The Other Side Of the Mirror" is a steamy-paranormal-romance- mystery-thriller and book one of the Esmerelda Sleuth series.

With her enemies in pre-civil war Virginia still seeking her death, Esmerelda is forced to return to the future only days after wedding Lance. Because it was necessary to fake her death in order to stop her enemies from following her to the future, her new husband, Lance, was forced to stay behind. He’d placed a magic box for them to communicate until he found a way to safely be with her beneath the floorboards of the house. Now, she must find it. A task that is easier said than done! “The Magic Box” is book two of the exciting paranormal-romance-mystery-thriller Esmerelda Sleuth Series

Ama West had to step up and raise herself and her sister after their father abandoned them when she was just 16, leaving their mother lost in her own depression. Faced with the daunting prospect of survival, Ama accepted a high-stakes job to steal a neck piece from the formidable Blackwood family. However, when she was caught by the merciless Grayson Blackwood, she found herself at a crossroads. Grayson offered her a stark choice: either become his personal spy or face an excruciating end. The decision was clear; she would fight for her survival and take control of her fate. She gets thrown into the complicated Blackwoods family, where she unfolds secret that were never meant to be reviewed. And when her heart gets involved she's left to make difficult choices that could either make or break her.

When Clara Davis accidentally switches suitcases at the airport, she expects an awkward exchange— not a gun, stacks of cash, and a stranger calling her Mrs. Vale. Lucien Vale, a cold, beautiful man with blood on his hands, insists she’s his wife—and that men are hunting her. Dragged into a world of covert missions and deadly secrets, Clara must live under an alias to survive. But the longer she stays by his side, the more she questions everything: Is Lucien her captor or her protector? Is this marriage fake—or fate? One suitcase, one lie, one love that could cost them both their lives.