Goodnight Sweet Prince (Lord Francis Powerscourt)

by David Dickinson (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  2002

  $3.36

  England, 1892, and Victoria, Queen and Empress, is in the 54th yaer of her reign. The reign of Lily Langtry as mistress to the dissolute Prince of Wales is over, while that of Mrs Keppel is shortly to begin. The prince's unfortunate wife, the long-suffering Alexandra, is the most popular woman in Britain, feted and adored, yet sadly her son, Albert Victor - Eddy to his family and second in line to the throne - has taken after his father and is also renowned for his scandalous lifestyle. Then Prince Eddy is found slaughtered in his bed. Terrified of this new scandal, the Prince of Wales and his spindoctors decide on a cover-up. The murder is disguised as death by influenza. Lord Francis Powerscourt, an Irish investigator, is asked to find the killer. The Royal Family and even the Government are not above suspicion for Eddy would have been a singularly unsuitable monarch. Powerscourt's quest takes him through the Prince's unsavoury past, on a journey of discovery through the crumbling palazzos and misty waterways of Venice. And it takes him on a love affair that starts in front of Turner's Fighting Temeraire in London's National Gallery. Through a web of scandal and suicide, vice and revenge. Powerscourt unravels the mystery of the prince's last goodnight.

• Used

  Paperback
  2007

  $4.31

  Mystery surrounds the death of Queen Victoria's grandson England, 1892. Victoria, Queen and Empress, is in the 54th year of her reign, when her grandson Prince Eddy, eldest son of the Prince of Wales, is found slaughtered in his bed at Sandringham. Terrified of more royal scandal, the Prince of Wales and his spindoctors decide to cover up the facts and the murder is disguised as death by influenza. Lord Francis Powerscourt, an Irish investigator, is privately asked to find the killer. His quest takes him on a journey through the prince's debauched and dissolute past, across Europe to the misty waterways of Venice where, amidst scandal and suicide, Powerscourt finally unravels themystery of the sweet prince's last goodnight. PRAISE FOR THE BOOK 'In this excellent novel, Dickinson weaves a tale of blackmail and murder among the royals late in Victoria's reign& [his] knowledge of the arts, history and literature is nothing if not exhaustive, and adds enormously to the overall background& One hopes to see more of Lord Powerscourt and his friends in the near future.' - Publishers Weekly 'This is detective fiction in the grand style; the characters and the plot soar upwards and carry us in their wake. Powerscourt's debut in this intoxicating book is the start of a gilded life in the archives of crime.' - James Naughtie