An e book bargain-blog tour: The Queen of Fives by Alex Hay-an e book bargain

I am excited to share The Queen of Fives with readers. This author’s last book was so enjoyable and this new one will, I think, also offer readers a good escape.

Many thanks to the team at HTP for this opportunity.

The book:

The Queen of Fives

Author: Alex Hay

Publication Date: January 21, 2025

ISBN: 9781525809859

Graydon House Hardcover 

About the book:

“Bridgerton meets The Sting in this effervescent offering…. Hay has conceived of a wholly original take on Victorian London and populated it with a gallery of colorful underworld types. The plotting will have readers on the edges of their seats as one twist after another sets the stage for a series of jaw-dropping revelations. This literary confection is a delectable treat.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

A confidence scheme, when properly executed, will follow five movements:

I. The Mark II. The Intrusion. III. The Ballyhoo. IV. The Knot. V. All In.

There may be many counter-strikes along the way, for such is the nature of the game; it contains so many sides, so many endless possibilities…

Nothing is quite as it seems in Victorian high society in this clever novel set against the most magnificent wedding of the season, as a mysterious heiress sets her sights on London’s most illustrious family

1898. Quinn le Blanc, London’s most talented con woman, has five days to pull off her most ambitious plot yet: trap a highly eligible duke into marriage and lift a fortune from the richest family in England.

Masquerading as the season’s most enviable debutante, Quinn puts on a brilliant act that earns her entrance into the grand drawing rooms and lavish balls of high society—and propels her straight into the inner circle of her target: the charismatic Kendals. Among those she must convince are the handsome bachelor heir, the rebellious younger sister, and the esteemed duchess eager to see her son married.

But the deeper she forges into their world, the more Quinn finds herself tangled in a complicated web of love, lies, and loyalty. The Kendals all have secrets of their own, and she may not be the only one playing a game of high deception…

Try it:

THE QUEEN OF FIVES

By ALEX HAY

A confidence scheme, when properly executed, will follow five movements in close and inviolable order:

I. The Mark.

Wherein a fresh quarry is perceived and made the object of the closest possible study.

II. The Intrusion.

Wherein the quarry’s outer layers must be pierced, his world peeled open…

III. The Ballyhoo.

Where a golden opportunity shall greatly tempt and dazzle the quarry…

IV. The Knot.

Wherein the quarry is encircled by his new friends, and naysayers are sent gently on their way…

V. All In.

Where all commitments are secured, and the business is happily—and irrevocably—concluded.

A coda: there may be many counterstrikes along the way, for such is the nature of the game; it contains so many sides, so many endless possibilities…

Rulebook—1799. 

Day One

The Mark

1

Quinn

Five days earlier

Here was how it began. Four miles east of Berkeley Square, a few turns from Fashion Street and several doors down from the synagogue, stood a humble old house in Spitalfields. Four floors high, four bays across. Rose-colored shutters, a green trim to the door. A basement kitchen hidden from the street, and a colony of house sparrows nesting in the eaves, feasting on bread crusts and milk pudding scrapings.

On the first floor, behind peeling sash windows, stood Quinn Le Blanc.

She changed her gloves. She had a fine selection at her disposal, per her exalted rank in this neighborhood—chevrette kid, mousquetaire, pleated gloves for daytime, ridged ones for riding, silk-lined, fur-edged. All shades, too—dark, tan, brandy, black, mauve. No suede, of course. And no lace: nothing that could snag. The purpose of the glove was the preservation of the skin. Not from the sun, not from the cold.

From people.

She pulled on the French kid—cream-colored with green buttons—flexed her fingers, tested the grip. For she was the reigning Queen of Fives, the present mistress of this house; the details were everything.

“Mr. Silk?” she called from the gaming room. “Have you bolted the rear doors?”

His voice came back, querulous, from the stairs. “Naturally I have.” Then the echo of his boots as he clumped away.

The gaming room breathed around her. It was hot, for they kept a good strong fire burning year-round, braving incineration. But now she threw cold water on the grate, making the embers hiss and smoke. She closed the drapes, which smelled as they always did: a tinge of tobacco and the sour tint of mildew. Something else, too: a touch of cognac, or absinthe—one of the prior queens had enjoyed her spirits.

Quinn examined the room, wondering if she should lock away any valuables for the week. Of course, she had no fears of not returning on schedule, in triumph, per her plan—but still, she was venturing into new and dangerous waters. Some prudence could serve her well. The shelves were crammed with objects: hatboxes, shoeboxes, vinegars, perfume bottles, merino cloths, linen wrappings. But then she decided against it; she despised wasting time. The most incriminating, valuable things were all stored downstairs, in the bureau.

The bureau contained every idea the household ever had, the schemes designed and played by generations of queens. It stood behind doors reinforced with iron bolts, windows that were bricked up and impassable. It was safe enough, for now.

“Quinn?” Silk’s voice floated up the stairs. “We must be punctual.”

“We will be,” she called back with confidence.

Confidence was all they had going for them at the Château these days.

The Château. It was a pompous name for a humble old house. But that was the point, wasn’t it? It gave the place a sense of importance in a neighborhood that great folk merely despised. There were tailors and boot finishers living on one side, cigar makers and scholars on the other, and a very notorious doss-house at the end of the road. Quinn had lived in it nearly all her life, alongside Mr. Silk.

Quinn descended the creaking staircase, flicking dust from the framed portraits lined along the wall. They depicted the Château’s prior queens, first in oils, later in daguerreotype, with Quinn’s own picture placed at the foot of the stairs. Hers was a carte de visite mounted in a gilt frame, adorned with red velvet curtains. In it, Quinn wore a thick veil, just like her predecessors. She carried a single game card in one hand, and she was dressed in her inaugural disguise—playing the very splendid “Mrs. Valentine,” decked in emerald green velvet, ready to defraud the corrupt owners of the nearby Fairfield Works. She was just eighteen, and had already secured the confidence of the Château’s other players—and she was ready to rule.

That was eight years ago.

Quinn rubbed the smeared glass with her cuff. The house needed a good spring clean. She’d given up the housekeeper months ago; even a scullery maid was too great an expense now. Glancing through the rear window, she caught her usual view of the neighborhood—rags flapping on distant lines, air hazed with smoke. The houses opposite winked back at her, all nets and blinds, their disjointed gardens tangled and wild. She fastened the shutters, checking the bolts.

Silk was waiting by the front door. “Ready?” He was wearing a bulky waistcoat, his cravat ruffled right up to his chin. His bald head shone in the weak light.

Quinn studied him, amused. “What have you stuffed yourself with?”

“Strips of steel, if you must know.”

“In your jacket?”

“Yes.”

“For what reason?”

“My own protection. What else?”

Quinn raised a brow. “You’re developing a complex.”

“We’re living in a violent age, Le Blanc. A terribly violent age.”

Silk was forever clipping newspaper articles about foreign agitators, bombs being left in fruit baskets on station platforms.

“Stay close to me, then,” Quinn said, hauling open the front door, squinting in the light.

Net curtains twitched across the road. This was a quiet anonymous street, and the location of the Château was a closely guarded secret, even among their kind. But the neighbors kept their eyes on the Château. Nobody questioned its true ownership: the deeds had been adulterated too many times, sliced out of all official registers. In the 1790s, it was inhabited by an elusive Mrs. B—(real name unknown). Some said she’d been a disgraced bluestocking, or an actress, or perhaps a Frenchwoman on the run—a noble comtesse in disguise! She caught the neighborhood’s imagination; they refashioned her in their minds. B—became “Blank,” which in time became “Le Blanc.” Her house was nicknamed le Château. Smoke rose from the chimneys; queer characters came and went; the lights burned at all hours. Some said Madame Le Blanc had started a school. Others claimed it was a brothel.

In fact, it was neither.

It was something much cleverer.

The Queen of Fives. They breathed the title with reverence on the docks, down the coastline. A lady with a hundred faces, a thousand voices, a million lives. She might spin into yours if you didn’t watch out… She played a glittering game: lifting a man’s fortune with five moves, in five days, before disappearing without a trace.

The sun was inching higher, turning the sky a hard mazarine blue. “Nice day for it,” Quinn said, squeezing Silk’s arm.

Silk peered upward. “I think not.” He’d checked his barometer before breakfast. “There’s a storm coming.”

Quinn could feel it, the rippling pleasure down her spine. “Better and better,” she replied. “Now, come along.”

They made an unassuming pair when they were out in public. An older gentleman in a dark and bulky overcoat, with a very sleek top hat. A youngish woman in dyed green furs, with a high collar and a sharp-tilted toque. He with his eyes down, minding his step. She with her face veiled, gloves gripped round an elegant cane. Always listening, watching, rolling dice in their minds.

Silk and Quinn had a single clear objective for the day. Audacious, impossible, outrageous—but clear. He showed her his appointment book: Three p.m.—Arrive in ballroom, Buckingham Palace, en déguisé.

“In disguise? Doesn’t that go without saying?”

“You tell me. Has your costume been delivered?”

“Not yet. But we have a more serious impediment.”

“Oh?” he asked her.

“I’ve still not received my invitation card to the palace.”

They turned into Fournier Street. Silk tutted. “I’ve dealt with that. Our old friend at the Athenaeum Club will oblige you.”

“You’re quite sure? We’ve never cut it so fine before.”

“Well, you might need to prod him a little.”

“Just a little?”

“The very littlest bit, Quinn.”

Unnecessary violence was not part of their method. But persuasion—well, that was essential. Let’s call a spade a spade: the Château was a fraud house, a cunning firm, a swindler’s palace ruled by a queen. It made its business by cheating great men out of their fortunes. In the bureau stood the Rulebook, its marbled endpapers inscribed with each queen’s initials, setting the conditions of their games.

And this week the Queen of Fives would execute the most dangerous game of her reign.

Quinn paused outside the Ten Bells. “Very well. We can’t afford any slips. I’ll go to the Athenaeum now. Anything else?”

Silk shook his head. “Rien ne va plus.” No more bets.

They gripped hands. He gave her his usual look: a fond gaze, then a frown. “Play on, Le Blanc.”

She grinned at him in return. “Same to you, old friend.”

They parted ways.

And the game began.

Excerpted from THE QUEEN OF FIVES by Alex Hay. Copyright © 2025 by Alex Hay. Published by Graydon House, an imprint of HarperCollins. 

The author:

ALEX HAY grew up in the United Kingdom in Cambridge and Cardiff, and has been writing as long as he can remember. He studied history at the University of York, and wrote his dissertation on female power at royal courts, combing the archives for every scrap of drama and skulduggery he could find. He has worked in magazine publishing and the charity sector and lives with his husband in London. His debut, The Housekeepers won the Caledonia Novel Award, and was named a Best Book of the Summer by Reader’s Digest, The Washington Post, Good Housekeeping, Harper’s Bazaar, and others. His second novel, The Queen of Fives, publishes in January 2025. Alex lives with his husband in South East London.

Links:

Buy Links:

HarperCollins page: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-queen-of-fives-alex-hay?variant=42418202050594 

BookShop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-queen-of-fives-original-alex-hay/21448543?ean=9781525809859 

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-queen-of-fives-alex-hay/1145522986 Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1525809857/keywords=historical%2Bfiction?tag=harpercollinsus-20 

Social Links:

Author Website: https://alexhaybooks.com/ 

X/Twitter: https://x.com/alexhaybooks?lang=en 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexhaybooks/?hl=en 

The Dying Light by Ann Cleeves

#TheDyingLight #NetGalley

Mystery & Thrillers

384 pages

Five stars *****

Pub date: 29 September 2026

My thoughts:

Ann Cleeves is absolutely one of my favorite authors. I have read all of the Vera Stanhope and Jimmy Perez novels. The Matthew Venn books are the ones in her newest series and this title is the fourth of these. I think that it is the very best so far. I was completely absorbed in this novel from start to finish.

Matthew is a complex character, in part because of his experiences when he was growing up. He is now married to Jonathan who has something significant happening in his life over the course of this story.

And, of course there are murders. Two young girls have been killed as the story opens. There are a plethora of suspects.

The settings are vividly described. The political rise of one character was interesting as were the stories of other wealthy incomers to the neighborhood. There is also a visiting American couple, and those who have lived in the community for far longer. Readers also spend time with the police officers who will be known to readers of the series.

I so enjoyed this book. Matthew Venn come back soon!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur for this title. All opinions are my own.

Post first published on 29 July 2026

Description:

from the publisher

“Everything Ann Cleeves writes is incredible.”—Richard Osman

DI Matthew Venn peels back layer upon layer to discover the dark secrets one family is keeping in this searing new novel, brimming with energy and taut with claustrophobic tension.

A scorching heatwave marks the start of the summer in Devon. Detective Matthew Venn is called in to investigate a puzzling death, when the body of a young woman, Lottie, is found in the swimming pool of a luxurious holiday home. The girl’s best friend, Hannah, whose family owns the house, is missing. The girls had arrived a few days earlier to celebrate the end of their school exams, quickly stirring unrest in the small community with incendiary social media videos mocking the place as parochial.

When further tragedy strikes, Venn and his team begin questioning a community filled with secrets. The fact that Hannah’s father, Paul Armstrong, is a rising political star with powerful enemies draws intense media scrutiny to the case.

With the summer heat come holidaymakers, and it emerges that some of them may have stronger connections with the Armstrong family than first thought. Venn knows all too well that the real answers lie not in what people say, but in the silences that they keep.

Taut, atmospheric, and brimming with suspense, this searing new novel finds DI Matthew Venn caught between a powerful family’s secrets and a powder keg of local tensions.

From the Ann Cleeves website:

The deadliest truths are those in the shadows…

Detective Matthew Venn is called in to investigate a puzzling death. The body of a young woman has been found in the swimming pool of Tide House, a luxurious holiday home in North Devon, and her best friend is missing. The property belongs to rising political star Paul Armstrong and the case quickly draws intense media scrutiny.

As a scorching heat wave rages and further tragedy strikes, Venn and his team begin questioning a community brimming with secrets. The dead woman and her friend had been spotted at a nearby music festival the day before, an event which brought locals and outsiders together – some of whom may have been more connected with the Armstrongs than first thought.

Caught between a powerful family’s secrets and a powder keg of local tensions, Venn must navigate a treacherous path. Knowing that the real answers lie not in what people say, but in the silence that they keep …

Try it:

Prologue

THE TWO GIRLS CLIMBED OUT OF the car and there it was, in all its glory. Tide House, so white in the morning sun that it hurt their eyes to look at it. The pool blue and glittering. The sea below them partly hidden by trees. Lundy Island on the horizon. They’d driven overnight on Thursday to avoid the traffic on the M5, so they’d arrive as soon as possible after the exams were over, and in time for the weekend. Hannah had needed to be in Millscombe for the weekend. For the festival. For Jake. They’d told their parents that it would be more comfortable to set off late in the evening. After all, the country had been in the middle of a tarmac-melting, climate-emergency heatwave for weeks.

‘Wow!’ Lottie was impressed and it was hard to impress Lottie, super-cool, with her place at St Hilda’s, Oxford, and her model good looks. Her string of super-cool boyfriends. Her sporting prowess. ‘We could be in the Mediterranean.’

Soon, Hannah thought, they’d separate, head off to different universities, different lives. The thought gave her an unexpected and overwhelming sense of relief.

She was dizzy and light-headed after the drive, grateful to have arrived safely. She’d had to persuade her mother that of course she’d be fine coming down early with Lottie. She’d passed her driving test first time, and though the car her parents had given her wasn’t new, it was perfectly reliable. Her father had winked and reminded her mum of their reckless youth, the miles they’d travelled in their crappy minivan. The festivals and the squats.

‘I think we can trust this lovely lass to make it from London to North Devon in one piece. She’s far too sensible already,’ he had said.

So here she was, the stress of A levels over, with her bestie, her saviour, in her parents’ holiday home in North Devon. Three days of freedom, of sunshine, of independence, before the olds turned up with her younger brothers.

Hannah opened the boot and began to pull out the bags. There was a splash, and she turned to see that Lottie had already stripped off and was in the pool, her blonde hair dripping, her face just above the water, grinning.-from Criminal Elements website

Editorial reviews:

Det. Insp. Matthew Venn investigates a murder and a disappearance connected to a prominent British politician in Cleeve’s effective sequel toThe Raging Storm. Venn and his team are called to Tide House, the Devon vacation home of well-known MP Paul Armstrong, where Armstrong’s daughter, Hannah, and her friend, Lottie, had been staying ahead of a family vacation. Armstrong found Lottie dead in the pool, with Hannah nowhere to be seen. His public profile means the U.K.’s ministry of the interior watches and weighs in on every move Venn makes as he searches for answers, which come via observations from local villagers and conversations with the girls’ parents and friends. As always, Cleeves is strong on atmosphere, and she crafts well-rounded characters whose overlapping secrets form an engrossing puzzle—developments in the personal lives of Venn’s investigators land with the same sense of occasion as bombshells about the victims’ lives. By the time Cleeves has narrowed her large list of suspects to a guilty few, readers will be eager to see where Venn goes next. (Sept.)–Publishers Weekly

A series ends: The Last Hope (Susan Elia Macneal)-an e book bargain

#TheLastHope #NetGalley

As a reader, I have been on quite a journey with this author and her character Maggie Hope, sometimes known as Paige Kelly. This title is the last and eleventh in the series that began with Mr. Churchill’s Secretary. Over the course of the novels, Maggie has taken on new jobs, new relationships, new challenges and also has experienced risks and loss. She feels like a friend to me and I will miss her. (or maybe I will just begin again with book one and keep going).

In many of these titles, real people intersect with the fictional ones in the story. This time, Coco Chanel is just one of those real people along with her German lover. Anyone who watched the Apple series on Chanel and Dior will recognize the way that she is portrayed here. How will her life intersect with Maggie’s this time? The two have history from an earlier book.

Maggie is tasked with going to Spain by none other than Kim Philby. People who know their history may have some idea about what this might mean. Maggie is told to assassinate a prominent German scientist to prevent his work on atomic bombs going forward. Will she do what is expected of her?

Just one person Maggie meets along the way is a famous bullfighter. There are people from the embassy and a rich and full cast of characters here.

In addition, there are developments in Maggie’s personal life in this story. No spoilers so no more to be said.

All in all, the author has ended the series in a most satisfying way. Nonetheless, I am sorry to say good-bye.

I recommend this title highly but note that readers may want to enjoy some of the earlier titles first.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 21 May 2024

Spotlight on: City of Promise by Victoria Thompson with Ellen Thompson

#CityofPromises #NetGalley

Many thanks to Berkley for the invitation to this blog tour.

Historical fiction-Mystery & Thrillers

328 pages

Pub date: 28 July 2026

About the book:

from the publisher

Elizabeth Bates must use everything she knows about the art of the con to stop a fellow scammer in his tracks in this first-ever thrilling crossover in the Victoria Thompson universe, featuring characters from her bestselling Gaslight Mysteries.

Famed former police detective turned private investigator Frank Malloy and his wife, Sarah, come to Gideon Bates desperate for legal guidance. The Malloys’ adopted daughter, Catherine, a burgeoning star of the stage, has announced her engagement to a man she barely knows. Catherine has recently gained access to her trust fund, and Sebastian Talbot appears very eager to marry her as quickly as possible.

As Gideon and his wife, Elizabeth, investigate, it becomes all the clearer that Talbot may not be who he says he is. As a former con artist herself, Elizabeth suspects one may be in their midst. Undeterred by her pregnancy, she must pull out all the stops to out swindle a swindler and save another woman from ruin.

About Victoria Thompson:
Victoria Thompson is the USA Today bestselling, Edgar® and Agatha Award–nominated author of the Gaslight Mysteries and the Counterfeit Lady novels. She became enchanted by New York City, and Greenwich Village in particular, while one of her daughters attended New York University. After reading many books about the history of the city and spending many pleasant hours dining, shopping, and wandering the streets of Greenwich Village, she was permanently hooked on New York City.

About Ellen Thompson:

Ellen Thompson is an award-winning screenwriter, a musical playwright, and the daughter of bestselling author Victoria Thompson. Ellen earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from New York University Tisch School of the Arts. She lives in Los Angeles and advocates for Lyme and other tick-borne disease awareness.

My thoughts:

I have long been a fan of Victoria Thompson’s Gaslight Mysteries. As I live in New York, I loved how the books featured many familiar neighborhoods. I also enjoyed watching Sarah and Frank’s relationship evolve over the course of the series. It was a bonus to spend time with their daughter. I had not read any of the books in her second series but here is one title that has characters from both. I suspect that I will now go back and read that other series.

This book will, I think, be enjoyed by those who like historical mysteries with good characters and interesting plots. Fans of either series will be delighted to see the two joined.

Many thanks to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for this title. All thoughts are my own.

Editorial reviews:

CITY OF PROMISES

by Victoria Thompson with Ellen Thompson ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 28, 2026

A delightfully amusing story of competing cons with some socially relevant historical tidbits adding depth.

Combining two of her popular series, Gaslight Mysteries and Counterfeit Lady Novels, produces a fitting valedictory for Victoria Thompson, who died in 2024. Her daughter Ellen finished writing the book for her.

Frank Malloy is a former New York City detective who inherited money and formed his own agency. His wife, Sarah, is from an old money family who went her own way to become a midwife and now runs a women’s clinic. They approach upper-crust lawyer Gideon Bates—whose wife, Elizabeth, comes from a much different background—to help them with a difficult personal problem. After she lost her first love in World War I, Frank and Sarah’s adopted daughter, Catherine, a well-known actress with money of her own, is set on marrying a man she hasn’t known for long. Malloy has operatives tracking Sebastian Talbot and digging into his background, but so far they’ve found nothing on the man. Though Frank and Sarah hope Gideon knows of a way to legally protect Catherine’s money, he has to disappoint them. Instead, Gideon discusses the matter with his mother and Elizabeth, whose father is the supreme con artist of New York. Elizabeth recognizes a con when she sees one, as she’s run a few herself, and she and Gideon visit the Malloys to discuss the problem. The Malloys suggest they all meet in Catherine’s dressing room after her performance the next night; they can go out for dinner afterwards and get to know Catherine and Talbot. Convinced that Talbot is indeed a con artist, Elizabeth decides they must run a con of their own to unmask him, and they all pitch in to help. A delightfully amusing story of competing cons with some socially relevant historical tidbits adding depth. –Kirkus Reviews

Cozy Case Files Volume 28

#CozyCaseFilesVolume28 #NetGalley

180 pages

Mystery & Thriller

Five stars *****

Pub date: 28 July 2026

My thoughts:

Much like the Minotaur Sampler, the Cozy Case Files offers information on forthcoming books and authors. There are generous excerpts for each title as well as a chance to see all of the covers.

I am especially excited about reading the latest book by Carolyn Haines. This is a series that I have enjoyed ever since the first title was published. Sarah Booth is a wonderful character as are Jitty and many others. But, that is just one of many excellent choices here.

This is a wonderful and free resource for those who enjoy traditional mysteries. It has been quite successful as can be seen by the number of volumes in the series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur for this title. All opinions are my own.

Description:

from the publisher

Looking for a new cozy series? In the new edition of Cozy Case Files, Minotaur Books compiles the beginnings of six charming cozy mysteries publishing in Fall 2026 for free and easy sampling.

The twenty-eighth edition of Cozy Case Files features cozies from the following authors: Ellie Alexander, M.C. Beaton, Donna Andrews, Carolyn Haines, Mindy Quigley, and PJ Nelson.

Investigate the mysterious death of a wedding planner amidst an upcoming baby shower and fast-approaching wedding in The Pumpkin Vice Cafe. Help save the locals’ favorite pub by uncovering the dark secrets of a brewery in Dead Before Tea Time. Come to Meg’s house for Christmas to solve the attempted murder of her mother in their new playhouse – all while hosting the family Christmas and fixing the playhouse in Jay to the World. Unravel Sarah Booth’s parents’ murder, and get wrapped up in a mysterious abandoned mansion in town in Joy to the Bones. Attend a wellness retreat with a deep dish pizza chef and help her unfold a mystery when someone’s found dead during guided meditation in Murder in the Upper Crust. Crack two murder cases when a man, after confessing to murder, suddenly dies in Madeline’s bookshop in Murder Unabridged.