A compulsively entertaining historical YA novel that playfully blends dark academia with
scandal murder mystery and queer romance - like If We Were Villains meets Lex Croucher. In
Regency England Cascabel Gray dreams of freedom - and disguises herself as a boy to secure a
place at Oxford University. After all she's as comfortable in breeches as she is in
ballgowns. Her plans are upended however when she receives a blackmail letter from Charles
Lafleur a member of infamous secret society the Rogues Club threatening to expose her.
But when Lafleur is found dead the plot thickens... and Cascabel becomes a prime suspect in
his murder. She joins the Rogues Club to conduct an investigation of her own and her life
soon begins to spiral out of control. To survive she must switch between her male and
female personas attracting both fellow student William Grenville and a chambermaid known as
Mouse - and even attending a ball with an Austrian prince. Can she find a way to balance her
double life and clear her name before she loses everything? This book combines the genius
ingredients of cosy crime queer romance and dark academia all wrapped up in a fast-paced
entertaining plot - perfect for fans of Agency for Scandal Laura Steven and Lex Croucher.
A fierce determined and irresistible protagonist who slips fluidly between two identities and
genders as Cascabel and Pom. All the period-drama appeal of a historical Regency setting
with a vibrant modern sensibility and a sensitive handling of prejudice. Joe's first novel
The Rules of Seeing won the Romantic Novelist Association's Debut Novel Award. "
Utterly absorbing... compellingly blending historical mystery and queer romance. " - The
Guardian
