Dorcas Dene, detective: Her adventures (second series)

"Dorcas Dene, detective" by George R. Sims is a collection of detective stories written in the late 19th century. It follows the resourceful private investigator Dorcas Dene—often narrated by her friend Mr. Saxon and occasionally working with Scotland Yard—as she unravels high-stakes mysteries involving royalty, anarchists, and fashionable society. Expect clever ruses, swift reasoning, and cases that blend London nightlife with Continental intrigue.

The opening of the collection launches with a crisis: a foreign crown prince vanishes in London, and Dorcas swiftly deduces an Anarchist hostage plot meant to force reprieves abroad. A midnight stakeout in Kennington Lane confirms the scheme, an attempt to shadow the conspirators misfires, and Dorcas promptly enlists Scotland Yard for a stealth entry into a Regent’s Park villa, where they rescue the drugged prince and discover the Countess Elstein murdered, while the ringleader, Jean Vossche, escapes. The narrative then pivots to a new scandal: at Brighton, Saxon encounters Count von Phalsdorf, notorious co-respondent in a sensational divorce, while Dorcas—convinced the wife is innocent despite damning evidence—begins a fresh inquiry. Disguised as a flower-seller, she maneuvers the Count into revealing a telltale scar for a witness to identify, and hints that a “handkerchief sachet” may yield the key, ending the opening with her about to explain this crucial clue.