Instruments Of Darkness

Shadows Over Georgian London

Imogen Robertson’s Instruments of Darkness immerses readers in the murky world of late eighteenth-century London, where intrigue and superstition conspire to blur the line between science and sorcery. Newly retired naval officer Daniel Kind delivers a rare botanical specimen to the prestigious Linnean Society, only to discover that the plant’s arrival has coincided with a string of inexplicable deaths among the Society’s fellows. As gaslit streets and candlelit laboratories become hunting grounds for unseen forces, Kind enlists the aid of his wife, Lady Harriet Harcourt—whose sharp intellect and clandestine network of informants prove invaluable. Together, they navigate the city’s secret alleyways, uncovering whispers of clandestine meetings between scholars and shadowy confraternities devoted to arcane experimentations.

Alchemical Conspiracies

Robertson weaves a tapestry of deception in which respected physicians and apothecaries may be as culpable as itinerant charlatans. When a prominent anatomist collapses during a public lecture, clutching a vial of phosphorescent powder, the investigation unearths journals filled with cryptic formulas and references to a vanished occult treatise. Lady Harcourt deciphers coded entries that hint at a spectral catalyst—a substance rumored to grant unnatural vitality at unspeakable cost. Meanwhile, Kind’s naval experience proves crucial as they trace smuggled shipments of exotic minerals to a clandestine workshop beneath the city’s crowded docks. With every revelation, the conspirators’ web tightens, and the stakes escalate from scholarly rivalry to mortal peril.

Reckoning in the Fog

In a climactic confrontation within the mist-shrouded courtyard of an abandoned asylum, Kind and Harcourt must confront not only the human mastermind orchestrating the chaos, but also the seductive allure of forbidden knowledge. As midnight bells toll and phantasmagoric lights dance across cracked walls, the couple faces a choice: destroy the Instruments of Darkness and ensure the Society’s safety, or risk unleashing a power that could upend the natural order. Robertson’s vivid descriptions and meticulously researched period detail lend authenticity to every lantern-lit pursuit and whispered confession.

Author’s description.