THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) * Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England * Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.) * Penguin Group (Australia), 707 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3008, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.) * Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India * Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.) * Penguin Books (South Africa), Rosebank Office Park, 181 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parktown North 2193, South Africa * Penguin China, B7 Jiaming Center, 27 East Third Ring Road North, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100020, China
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
INDIA BLACK AND THE RAJAH’S RUBY
A Berkley Prime Crime Special / published by arrangement with the author
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Berkley Prime Crime Special edition / January 2013
Copyright © 2012 by Carol K. Carr.
Excerpt from
India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy
by Carol K. Carr copyright © 2012 by Carol K. Carr.
Cover photos:
Woman
and
London
© Conrado;
Ruby
© Boykung.
Cover design by Jason Gill.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ISBN: 978-1-101-59490-2
BERKLEY ® PRIME CRIME
Berkley Prime Crime Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
BERKLEY ® PRIME CRIME and the PRIME CRIME logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Having acquired a reputation as one of London’s most successful madams, I’m frequently asked by young tarts for advice on plunging into the cutthroat world of brothel ownership. I assume a professorial air and give them a stern lecture on the virtues of thrift and sobriety, warning them of the incessant scrutiny of the local plod and the endless battles with drunken, thieving sluts. Halfway through my performance, I can see the doubt creeping into their eyes and before I’ve even gotten to the part about deviant customers, the girls are slinking off with their tails between their legs. Then I laugh and pour myself a glass of first-rate whisky and return to counting sovereigns.
You didn’t expect me to tell them the truth, did you? I wouldn’t dare reveal to these fillies how the Turkish rugs, the fine silver and the gleaming crystal that adorn my brothel, Lotus House, just fell into my lap. For one thing, I’ve a reputation to keep up and it would do it no good at all if word got around that it wasn’t India Black’s financial acumen and superb management skills that enabled her to purchase Lotus House and turn it into the preferred destination of the minor aristocracy, military officers and the senior civil servants who frequent the place. Let the girls think I’m a superior breed; it discourages competition.
Of course, it
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) * Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England * Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.) * Penguin Group (Australia), 707 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3008, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.) * Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India * Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.) * Penguin Books (South Africa), Rosebank Office Park, 181 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parktown North 2193, South Africa * Penguin China, B7 Jiaming Center, 27 East Third Ring Road North, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100020, China
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
INDIA BLACK AND THE RAJAH’S RUBY
A Berkley Prime Crime Special / published by arrangement with the author
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Berkley Prime Crime Special edition / January 2013
Copyright © 2012 by Carol K. Carr.
Excerpt from
India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy
by Carol K. Carr copyright © 2012 by Carol K. Carr.
Cover photos:
Woman
and
London
© Conrado;
Ruby
© Boykung.
Cover design by Jason Gill.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ISBN: 978-1-101-59490-2
BERKLEY ® PRIME CRIME
Berkley Prime Crime Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
BERKLEY ® PRIME CRIME and the PRIME CRIME logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Having acquired a reputation as one of London’s most successful madams, I’m frequently asked by young tarts for advice on plunging into the cutthroat world of brothel ownership. I assume a professorial air and give them a stern lecture on the virtues of thrift and sobriety, warning them of the incessant scrutiny of the local plod and the endless battles with drunken, thieving sluts. Halfway through my performance, I can see the doubt creeping into their eyes and before I’ve even gotten to the part about deviant customers, the girls are slinking off with their tails between their legs. Then I laugh and pour myself a glass of first-rate whisky and return to counting sovereigns.
You didn’t expect me to tell them the truth, did you? I wouldn’t dare reveal to these fillies how the Turkish rugs, the fine silver and the gleaming crystal that adorn my brothel, Lotus House, just fell into my lap. For one thing, I’ve a reputation to keep up and it would do it no good at all if word got around that it wasn’t India Black’s financial acumen and superb management skills that enabled her to purchase Lotus House and turn it into the preferred destination of the minor aristocracy, military officers and the senior civil servants who frequent the place. Let the girls think I’m a superior breed; it discourages competition.
Of course, it
Similar Books
