Private Inquiries

The Secret History of Female Sleuths

Caitlin Davies

$49.99

Hardback

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English

The History Press Ltd
01 December 2023

Biography: historical, political & military; True crime; Gender studies: women; Criminal investigation & detection

The history of the UK's real-life female detectives told for the first time.

The female detective has been a staple of popular culture for over 150 years, from plucky Victorian lady detectives, to busy-body spinster Miss Marple and fearless modern investigators like Mma Ramotswe and Lisbeth Salander. But what about the real-life women behind these fictional tales what crimes did they solve, and where are their stories?

In Private Inquiries, Caitlin Davies traces the history of the UK's female investigators for the first time, uncovering the truth about their lives and careers from the 1860s to the present day. Women like Annie Betts the 'Lady Sherlock Holmes' one of the first shop detectives and Annette Kerner 'the woman of a hundred faces' who opened The Mayfair Detective Agency in the 1920s.

In a uniquely immersive approach the author will follow in the footsteps of her subjects, undertaking a professional qualification to become a Private Investigator and shadowing modern PIs to find out what it's really like to be paid to spy on people's lives.

AUTHOR: Caitlin Davies is a novelist, non-fiction writer, award-winning journalist and teacher. She is the author of six novels, six non-fiction books, and several short stories. She has written for The Independent, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday. Her books include 'Bad Girls: a History of Rebels and Renegades', a history of Holloway Prison, and 'Queens of the Underworld' about female crooks. She lives in London.

30 b/w illustrations

By: Caitlin Davies
Imprint: The History Press Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9780750998888
ISBN 10: 0750998881
Pages: 320
Publication Date: 01 December 2023
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Unspecified

Caitlin Davies is a novelist, non-fiction writer, award-winning journalist and teacher. She is the author of six novels, six non-fiction books, and several short stories. She has written for The Independent, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday. Her books include 'Bad Girls: a History of Rebels and Renegades', a history of Holloway Prison, and 'Queens of the Underworld' about female crooks. She lives in London.

Reviews for Private Inquiries: The Secret History of Female Sleuths

'Intriguing and informative, Private Inquiries is a fascinating piece of detective work.' Martin Edwards, President of the Detection Club 'Davies is a great storyteller and this is feast of true crime and women’s place in history. Fascinating and utterly riveting.' Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, KC