The Problem of the Missing Miss

An unlikely pair of rescuers, Charles Dodgson and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle unite forces to save the kidnapped daughter of Lord Richard Marbury, a liberal stalwart in Parliament who has made many enemies.

Dastardly doings in the England of 1885, where some well-organized criminals are using dirt-poor, preteen girls to stock their brothels in England and France. In London, Sir Richard Marburg, M.P, has mounted a campaign for the passage of the Criminal Amendment Bill, which would outlaw the practice. Meanwhile, Marburg and his wife are sending their spirited ten-year- old, Alicia, to seaside Brighton for her school vacation, accompanied by her maid, Mary Ann. The two are to be met at the train station by Sir Richards old Oxford professor the Reverend Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll)all three to stay with Rector and Mrs. Barclay. A careful plan, but sinister forces are at work, and Alicia is met by an impostor who takes her to the quiet but notorious house run by Julia Harmon, a woman with her own vengeful agenda. Mary Ann is found dead under the train, and Sir Richard receives an ultimatum to stop passage of the bill if he wants to see his daughter returned. Meanwhile, Dodgson is frantically looking for Aliciagetting little help from the Brighton police but joined in his search by the energetic young Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle, honeymooning in Brighton with his wife. When the body of the impostor is washed up on the sand, Scotland Yard is called in, even as Dodgson and Doyle are nearing a successful end to their search and closing in on a killer. A lively look at the innocent boardwalk pursuits and not-so-innocent fleshpots of Victorian Brighton, in the very good company of Dodgson and Doyle. A fresh, imaginative debut. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

First novelist Rogow pairs an aging Charles Dodgson (a.k.a. Lewis Carroll) and a youthful, impetuous Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle (willing to pursue a mystery at the expense of his honeymoon). They meet in late 19th-century Brighton, where Lord Marbury's daughter, meant to spend some time with Dodgson, is abducted by opponents of the upcoming Criminal Amendment Bill. The abduction spawns murder, but Doyle and Dodgson have difficulty convincing police that the daughter is in danger. Part of the fun here lies in the reluctant partnership, but there are other spunky characters to watch as well. A good Victorian historical.
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