The Queen’s Accomplice by Susan Elia MacNeal is the sixth book in the “Maggie Hope” mystery series. Publisher: Bantam, October 2016

Spy and code-breaker extraordinaire Maggie Hope returns to war-weary London, where she is thrust into the dangerous hunt for a monster, as the” New York Times” bestselling mystery series for fans of Jacqueline Winspear, Charles Todd, and Anne Perry continues.

England, 1942. The Nazis relentless Blitz may have paused, but London s nightly blackouts continue. Now, under the cover of darkness, a madman is brutally killing and mutilating young women in eerie and exact re-creations of Jack the Ripper s crimes. What s more, he s targeting women who are reporting for duty to be Winston Churchill s spies and saboteurs abroad. The officers at MI-5 quickly realize they need the help of special agent Maggie Hope to find the killer dubbed the Blackout Beast. A trap is set. But once the murderer has his sights on Maggie, not even Buckingham Palace can protect the resourceful spy from her fate.

This was a solid mystery that was well-written and the portrayals of the characters are so realistic, that I felt myself wrapped up in the trials and tribulations that were taking place. I like how the author set-up this multi-plot tale giving us enough information to decipher all that is going on in this drama, which includes the murder mystery, family issues and the struggle of women’s lives as they take on added roles. The author does a great job in telling a story where the narrative brings it all together in an exemplary tale.