Changes

|title=London Calling: a Mirabelle Bevan Mystery

|author=Sara Sheridan

|publisher=Polygon Books

|date=March 2013

|website=http://www.sarasheridan.com

|video=

|summary=It is 1952 and Britain is slowly recovering from World War Two. Jazz is in the air, but the desire for frenzied pleasure and extravagance clashes with the constraints of rationing. When a girl goes missing, a young black musician is accused of her abduction and murder. Is he really guilty, or is this just one more example of the casual and overt racism of the time?

}}

Mirabelle Bevan is an intriguing character. Warm, resourceful and extremely clever, she spent her war years in intelligence (though not active duty) and then, as the war ended and her long-time lover died, she withdrew to the coast and the dubious joys of running a debt-collection agency. Accidentally getting involved in solving a major crime with her vibrant young companion Vesta gets her noticed, however, and it isn't long before she finds herself knee-deep in another mystery. A childhood friend flees London and an accusation of murder to beg Vesta and her employer to help him prove his innocence. This leads the intrepid pair into the world of smoky, music-filled basements and the black market, where they encounter criminals from all across the social spectrum.