Waiting on Wednesday: 1.20.10

Thanks to El Nino we've been hit with a never-ending series of storms. That's why I haven't been around the past few days. The wind is blowing at a constant 40 mph around here, and it's possible I could lose power at any moment. So why drop in to do a WoW post? Well, you know what they say: "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays this blogger from waiting on more books." (Or something like that...)

The Agency 1: A Spy in the House by Y. S. Lee

About the Book (from Amazon.com): "Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn is surprised to be offered a singular education, instruction in fine manners — and an unusual vocation. Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls is a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency, and at seventeen, Mary is about to put her training to the test. Assuming the guise of a lady’s companion, she must infiltrate a rich merchant’s home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships. But the household is full of dangerous deceptions, and there is no one to trust — or is there? Packed with action and suspense, banter and romance, and evoking the gritty backstreets of Victorian London, this breezy mystery debuts a daring young detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets — including those of her own past."

I love the title treatment of this cover. I do like the bright colors of the UK one better, but overall this is a better cover in my opinion. The plot description reminds me of an Ann Rinaldi book I read once. She's one of my favorite historical fiction authors, but for the life of me I can't think which one it was. Oh well, time to reread them I guess. :) Either way, I'm not a big fan of most mysteries, but I LOVE historical mysteries. So I'm excited for this one.

Apparently this is already out in the UK. So for any of you UK readers out there, have you read it? What did you think?

The Agency 1: A Spy in the House will be released (in the US) on March 9th. You can currently pre-order it from Amazon.com. If you don't want to wait that long, you may be able to find a copy of the UK version online too: