Miss Aldridge Regrets

I’m delighted to share with you the news that today acclaimed British novelist Louise Hare delivers the first in an all-new series: MISS ALDRIDGE REGRETS (Berkley Hardcover; on sale July 5, 2022), a twisty, locked-room mystery set in 1936 aboard the Queen Mary.

In her US debut, Louise introduces readers to a delightfully flawed protagonist, Miss Lena Aldridge, a bold, brave, and clever multiracial jazz singer and actress who is never afraid to speak her mind or bend the rules, and who passes for white in a society that rarely celebrates Black women.

Despite her best efforts, Lena’s career hasn’t taken off as she has hoped. She’s mourning the loss of her beloved father and just scraping by, singing in a dull basement club in London, recently dumped by her married lover. So, Lena is thrilled when she’s approached by an American businessman who offers her a chance to cross the pond on the Queen Mary and become a Broadway star in New York.

Lena accepts the opportunity without a second thought. Just imagine—Lena, under the shining lights of Broadway! She’s never been to America, and after all, her life in London is hardly extraordinary. And an escape sounds even more appealing after she’s witnessed a brutal crime in the night club. But it never occurs to Lena that she may well be crossing the Atlantic alongside a killer.

Miss Aldridge sets sail alongside her new agent and a wealthy American family, who invite her to dinners and take her under their wing, never suspecting Lena’s true heritage. But when members of the family begin to drop dead, and the family doctor goes missing, Lena once more finds herself at the center of a murder investigation—and it’s looking more and more like the opportunity of a lifetime may in fact turn out to be her swan song.

Meet the Author: Louise Hare

Louise, a multiracial British woman like her protagonist, was inspired to pen MISS ALDRIDGE REGRETS by the works of Agatha Christie and Patricia Highsmith. While unfolding a well-executed mystery perfect for fans of Jacqueline Winspear and Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Louise takes on issues like class, race, and women’s equality that continue to resonate almost 100 years after the action in the novel.

Louise’s debut novel, This Lovely City, was published in the UK to wide acclaim, and was a Between the Covers Book Club Pick on BBC Two. She has an MA in creative writing from the University of London. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today. This sounds like a great summer read. Doesn’t this synopsis just draw you in making you want to know what happens next?