A botanist's guide to rituals and revenge

In 1924 England, Saffron Everleigh, an adventurous student botanist who's solved several mysteries, finds her latest case dangerous for those she loves. Saffron--together with her boyfriend, Alexander Ashton, and her best friend, Elizabeth Hale--is visiting her grandparents, Lord and Lady Easting, after a long time apart. None of them are thrilled about the idea. On arrival, they're greeted by Saffron's cousin John, who'll inherit Ellington Manor but prefers living in Paris with his French wife and their son, Benjamin. Saffron's grandparents wanted her to marry well, not go to university to follow in her father's scientific footsteps, and they're still at odds with her. Her biggest surprise of the evening is meeting her grandfather's cardiologist, Dr. Bill Wyatt, who may not even be a real doctor. Wyatt, a crook who also deals in government secrets, presses Saffron to find her late father's papers, which contain a valuable discovery in the pharmaceutical field. Elizabeth's parents, who live nearby, have invited everyone to a dinner filled with tension since she hasn't seen them since refusing to marry the man they chose. Meantime, medium Madame Martin and her assistant, Bernard Fischer, claim to have summoned Elizabeth's brother, Wesley, whom Saffron had loved before he was killed in the war. As Wyatt threatens her family, Saffron desperately searches for her father's work, but she gets no help from her mother, who hasn't left the house since his death. When Saffron does uncover secrets, Benjamin is kidnapped by Wyatt, which is only the first problem before Saffron can untangle them all from the dangers Wyatt presents. A brave and clever heroine toils in a time when women earned little respect. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.