Jackie McMahon - "The Cloak And Dagger Club"
Dear Reader:
Like many other mystery fans, my love for the genre started with Agatha Christie. As a high school student, I read And Then There Were None and never looked back. Years later, a Google rabbit hole led me to the Detection Club, a crime-writing organization in 1930s London to which Christie and many other Golden Age novelists belonged.
And I couldn’t help but think…what if a murder happened there, among the people who know murder best? That idea inspired my debut novel, The Cloak and Dagger Club.
The Cloak and Dagger Club is my love letter to the mystery genre. It contains references and Easter Eggs to many popular authors of the Golden Age, ranging from Dorothy L. Sayers to Josephine Tey to my beloved Christie, with a Nick and Nora or Tommy and Tuppence style sleuthing duo who must both solve a crime and confront their lingering romantic feelings. At the same time, I wanted to subvert some of the stereotypes found in classic mysteries by creating a more diverse group of characters whom I hope you’ll enjoy spending time with.
The main protagonist that anchors The Cloak and Dagger Club is Lucy Hubbard, a debut crime novelist. She is invited to the titular club by Horace Hazelmoor, the so-called “King of Crime Fiction.” The club’s members also include Frank Murray, a rising star in the mystery world—and Lucy’s ex-fiancé—but the chance to join the prestigious group, she thinks, is worth the awkward run-in with an ex.
Horace proves to be a tyrannical leader, and when he’s murdered, Frank becomes the prime suspect. Despite their complicated romantic past, Lucy knows he’s not capable of murder. Thus, she decides to use all her mystery writer’s knowledge to solve the crime and prove he’s innocent.
If you love a good fair play mystery, grab a pen and your notebook, and see if you can crack the case. I invite you to join The Cloak and Dagger Club this July.
- Jackie McMahon
BIO
Jackie McMahon writes murder mysteries with history, twists, and perhaps a romance (or two). She currently resides in Florida with her two cats, and in her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, and sharing obscure historical facts she has recently learned.
Visit Jackie’s website and follow her on Instagram and YouTube.