Kate Westbury's witty, elegant debut mystery, The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies, plunges readers into a whirl of intrigue and espionage in post-World War II Oxford. When the death of an elderly librarian turns out to be no accident, two university students join forces to find his killer and uncover potential ties to the growing Communist threat.
Redheaded, clever socialite Ginevra "Gin" Bishop is desperate to prove herself more than a pretty face at Oxford, while ex-serviceman (and ex-spy) Sidney Braithwaite is determined to distance himself from his wartime experiences. The two cross paths and clash in the Bodleian Library early on but are thrown together when Sidney's former handler asks them to investigate the librarian's death and its connections to a local bookshop that may be a front for socialist activities. Complicating matters is the highly inconvenient mutual attraction between Gin and Sidney, which gives rise to plenty of entertaining, wry banter.
Westbury's plot zips along at a brisk pace as Gin and Sidney attend lectures, sneak into--and out of--college at all hours, and engage in such activities as tailing suspicious professors (Sidney) or taking them on in a series of chess matches (Gin). They also go undercover at a few lavish Oxford events, leading to dramatic personal and professional revelations. This satisfying series launch will delight Anglophiles, fans of wartime intrigue, and those who like their mystery mixed with a dash of romance and a soupçon of style. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams