A day in my life?
Oh, dear reader, I could tell you what it used to be! Studying the displays at the British Museum. Perusing the news of the world in the museum’s newspaper reading room. Learning to navigate London and discovering its hidden treasures and secret places.
It seems those days are behind me. They disappeared when my dear aunt revealed that she is the writer behind the celebrated Dear Miss Hermione advice column that appears in A Woman’s Place magazine. Not only did she disclose that surprise, she left me with the responsibilities of the job when she hared off to the Continent.
Henceforth, my days became quite different, and not simply because I was obliged to answer letters about manners and proper dress, what to serve at tea parties and how to handle difficult mothers-in-law. Some of the letters I received were far more ominous, and before I knew it, I was investigating murders. I do realize this reality would make some swoon, but I soon discovered that I love to unravel a mystery! It was on one such adventure I met Eli Marsh, an enigmatic American who has the annoying habit of insinuating himself in my investigations. A day in my life? On the day I am thinking of, a particularly chilly day in December, it was supposed to include leaving for Venice where I was to meet Eli and celebrate Christmas.
Yes, an assignation! And though I have always been immeasurably logical and have carefully guarded my heart since it was broken when I lived in India, I felt myself prepared to take the chance. It was madness, surely, and I was eager for the journey—and the thrill that was sure to come along with it – – to commence.
That day did not go as planned. But then, I had not thought to open my front door and find Ash Kumar on the doorstep. Ash, you see, was the young man I was in love with in India, and I had no idea he was in London. He had even more surprises for me including the gift of an ancient statue, news that he was a father, and the sad fact that his wife, Ishani, had recently died.
Could anything more have upset my equilibrium?
As it turns out, yes, because just as Ash was leaving, the police arrived and arrested him—on suspicion of the murder of Ishani Kumar.
A day that had begun with high anticipation nearly ended in despair until I met with Sephora, my half-sister, and our doughty housekeeper, Bunty, and devised a plan. I knew Ash well and I knew he was not capable of murder. I knew one other thing as well, I was going to prove it.
Venice would have to wait.
OF DEVOTION AND DEATH
Series: A Miss Hermione Mystery, Book 3
Genre: Historical Mystery
Release: August 2026
Format: Print, Digital
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org
A cozy Victorian historical murder mystery full of wit and unforgettable characters.
Violet Manville knows everything about manners—and murder.
Violet is looking forward to taking some time away from the advice column she writes under the nom de plume Miss Hermione. She can’t wait to head off to Venice to spend some time with Eli Marsh, a mysterious, annoying, and extremely attractive American.
Little does she suspect that the specter of death will come calling at her front door in the person of Ash Kumar, a man she once knew—and loved—when she lived in India. She certainly doesn’t expect Ash to be arrested for his wife’s murder on her front door step.
As Violet tries to unravel the murder, she is pulled between between the two men. As the past and present become blurred, she soon discovers that the truth can be deadly.
About the author
Over the course of a thirty-year career, Anastasia Hastings has written more than 70 novels in a number of different genres and using a number of names—Miss Hermione would approve! “Of Devotion and Death” is the third book in the Dear Miss Hermione mystery series that follows the adventures of Violet Manville, a reluctant agony aunt (advice columnist) in Victorian England whose career as the Empire’s most celebrated columnist is a closely guarded secret. Previous books in the series have been called “captivating” (Publishers Weekly), and The Wall Street Journal said “Of Manners and Murder” (book #1 in the series), “Evokes the shocking revelations of Wilkie Collins, the social acuity of Jane Austen and the comic melodrama of Oscar Wilde.” That book was a nominee for the Mary Higgins Clark award. Writing as Kylie Logan, Anastasia is also the author of a contemporary mystery series about a cadaver dog handler. One of those books has been made into a movie, “Jazz Ramsey: A K-9 Mystery.” Anastasia lives outside of Cleveland, Ohio with her husband and two dogs. When she’s not writing, she enjoys digging into family history, working with fiber, and in the summer, watching the hummingbirds—all while she plans her next murder.