How to describe this book? A brief summary might be: a reserved young English archivist and an intrepid noblewoman chase family secrets, buried betrayals, and a hidden traitor across an alternate-history Europe and North Africa, from the ruins of Carthage to the icy ports of the Baltic—armed only with wit, courage, and the power of the written word. Oh, and a sword-stick.

That only scratches the surface though. In longer form: Caught in Amber is set in an alternate Europe, where Britain would have been, technologically at least, in 1900.  However, politically and socially things are very different, as the Roman Empire only finally faded away two centuries ago.  The remnants of Roman order still shape society, travel, and politics. Edric Mayberry, a shy, detail-obsessed English researcher, is recruited to assist the independent and enigmatic Lady Cordelia Blackwood. Ostensibly, their mission is to trace her family’s lineage through the labyrinthine archives of Europe.

But Edric carries a secret: he has been tasked with uncovering a traitor in the English Senate—a person whose true name and ancestry have been deliberately hidden. As they travel through Vienna, Milan, Venice, Kraków, Carthage, and Petra, Edric and Lady Cordelia face bureaucratic obstacles, bandit attacks, and the icy hostility of authorities. They encounter rival agents, secret societies determined to keep the past buried, and clues hidden in ancient trade records and marginalia—especially concerning the amber trade that once connected the Baltic to the Mediterranean.

Their journey is both external and internal: Edric struggles with guilt, fear, and a sense of inadequacy, while Lady Cordelia navigates the expectations of her class and the dangers of being a woman alone in foreign lands. Together, they survive an airship crash in the Alps, imprisonment in North Africa, and the suspicions of those who would rather see the truth remain hidden. Their friendship deepens, and Edric’s unspoken affection for Lady Cordelia becomes a quiet source of strength.

If you want to know more, you will have to wait for the publication of the book.