The Millionaire Waltz

by Anthony Quinn

London in the 1920 a young woman treads the path between danger and desire.

Against a backdrop of thuggish blackmail, constricting high society and a London still fragile from the war, Edie Greenlaw is trying to decide what she wants from the world. The closer the prospect of marriage with her handsome war hero fiance becomes, the less fulfilling it seems. Defying caution she goes to the aid of a friend and entangles herself in a dangerous demi-monde of sexual extortion and violence.

Praise for Anthony
'A dark, unsettling, completely addictive mystery' Jonathan Coe


'A beguiling real-life crime thriller' Chris Brookmyre
'Quinn blends his history, his plot and his characters elegantly, with the pace of a thriller ' Daily Telegraph
'Brings to the fore all of Quinn's talents - gripping storylines, plot twists, thorough research and elegant prose' The Times

Genres: Historical Fiction

376 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication August 6, 2026

About the author

This is the disambiguation profile for otherwise unseparated authors publishing as Anthony Quinn

See also:
Anthony Quinn, author of the Inspector Celcius Daly series
Anthony Quinn, author of Curtain Call, and other biographies.

Reviews

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Millionaire Waltz was not quite what I expected based on the book description. Edie’s entanglement with the ‘dangerous demi-monde’ doesn’t take place until quite far into the novel although, to be fair, the seeds are sown when Edie becomes friends with a man, who like many others at that time, must hide his sexuality.

Much of the book focuses on Edie’s relationship with her fiance David, a successful solicitor from a wealthy family. She loves him but has growing misgivings about the prospect of marriage and what it will mean for her theatrical ambitions. Her solution is to repeatedly defer the date of the wedding, unaware of what will ensue as a result.

I admired Edie’s feisty spirit, sense of adventure and determination to retain her independence but I’m afraid I found her a largely unsympathetic character mainly because of her treatment of David. Okay, so he has rather conventional views about marriage but I didn’t think he deserved how things turned out. Rather mean-spirited of me, I know, but I wasn’t altogether unhappy about how things ended for Edie.

For me, the most enjoyable part of the book was the vivid depiction of theatre life. The struggle to get an audition, the disappointment of being turned down for parts, the succession of dismal digs when part of a touring production, the demanding directors, the petty rivalries. On the other hand there are the lifelong friendships formed, the sense of satisfaction of delivering a line perfectly, and the excitement of opening nights.

Those who’ve read the author’s previous novel, Curtain Call, will welcome the appearance of theatre critic for the Chronicle newspaper Jimmy Erskine, renowned for his often waspish reviews of West End theatre productions. The 2023 film The Critic starring Sir Ian McKellen was the author’s own adaptation of Curtain Call and I found it impossible not to picture Sir Ian whenever Jimmy appeared in the book. Another character from Curtain Call, which is set a decade or so after this book, also features in The Millionaire Waltz, and there are walk-on parts for notable figures of the period such as Ivor Novello and Noel Coward.

Edie mostly moves in privileged circles, a seemingly endless round of cocktail parties, soirees and weekend house parties. But just occasionally she gets a glimpse of the realities of life for those less fortunate than her, or those for whom the impact of the First World War is a burden they will carry for the rest of their lives.

If I’m honest I was hoping for more of the suspense and ingenuity of the author’s previous book The Mouthless Dead. Having said that The Millionaire Waltz is an engaging story, full of colourful characters which effortlessly captures the milieu of 1920s London. (3.5 rounded up)

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in London during the 1920’s this is Edie Greenlaw’s story. Edie is engaged to wealthy David, a war hero and considered quite a catch. However, Edie is not ready to give up her single life and wants time to see if she can make a success of her dreams of treading the boards. David agrees to her wishes.

Briefly, with her theatre jobs drying up Edie gets a job as a fashion model, which has the added benefit of travel and free samples from the clothing ranges. Her jobs bring her into contact with many different people and lifestyles and she can’t bring herself to just look away when she finds out that a friend is being abused and blackmailed by a man he is in a casual relationship with.

I wanted to like Edie but I found her quite self obsessed and verging on cruel in her treatment of David. She is happy spending his money, and accepting money from her father, but tries to give the impression of independence, which she really isn’t. She is a product of her era where her life choices are limited, wife and mother or independent working woman, very few women at this time were able to achieve both. The plot is quite light with the book being more character driven, but still a compelling read. Entertaining (no pun intended) read.

[Greville Waterman · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a mark of an author's quality when he can switch between themes and subjects between books and still remain fascinating and hard to put down.

I have read books by this gifted author on subjects as varies as the second world war and football and he never fails to entertain and this book is no different.

I was delighted to become immersed in the world of post world war 1 Edwardian London and the life of Edie Greenlaw, a determined and modern young lady in her unwillingness to subside into a favourable marriage with a scion of the aristocracy and become subservient to her husband's will and the mores of the time. Instead she is determined to continue and develop her budding career as an actress and maintain her independence.

Much happens, some of it unsavoury as she becomes immersed in the demimonde of London but she comes through although not with an unhappy twist in the tail right at the end of a wonderful book which engrossed me from the very start.

[Peter Willoughby · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book, centred upon life in the upper classes and life on the stage. Clearly the author has a lot of knowledge and insight into the acting profession and it comes over very well. Brilliant characters, excellent storyline. I liked the humour. The only downside for me was that some of the storylines went on a bit too long. I received a review copy of this book free of charge and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Dogeared · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars rounded down. I think this was another of those books where the blurb hooks me in, but then doesn’t really resemble the plot of the book I read - I don’t remember much that would fit “a dangerous demi-monde of sexual extortion and violence”. I thought I’d reviewed this soon after reading, but somehow missed that I hadn’t… but I still don’t remember anything that would fit the quote above.

I do like historical crime and drama, and this is set in 1920s London, which is normally perfect for me. I remember the descriptions of the time being good, and the writing as a whole well done as I’ve found with Quinn’s books. Perhaps I just started it expecting one thing and was slightly thrown to read something different, and that affected my enjoyment a little.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.