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The Cloak and Dagger Club
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Expected 14 Jul 26Win a free print copy of this book!
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15 copies available
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Inspired by Agatha Christie's real-life Detection Club, a murder among a group of golden age mystery writers meets a second chance romance in this debut novel from author Jackie McMahon.
London, 1930. Lucy Hubbard is on the cusp of achieving her dreams. With her first mystery novel debuting with strong sales and glowing reviews, she's been invited by Horace Hazelmoor, the king of crime fiction, to join his elite group of writers—the Cloak and Dagger Club.
Thrilled at the opportunity, Lucy finds herself swept up into Horace's glamorous world at the Ritz hotel. She's even willing to put up with the inconvenient presence of her former fiancé, Frank Murray, the club's rising star who is on track to eclipse Horace as Britain's most popular crime writer.
But when Horace is found with a knife in his back, Frank is the police's prime suspect. Despite their complicated history, Lucy knows he's not capable of murder. With suspects galore and the danger rising, these two mystery writers must race to solve the crime—and fight their lingering feelings for each other—before the murderer strikes again.
London, 1930. Lucy Hubbard is on the cusp of achieving her dreams. With her first mystery novel debuting with strong sales and glowing reviews, she's been invited by Horace Hazelmoor, the king of crime fiction, to join his elite group of writers—the Cloak and Dagger Club.
Thrilled at the opportunity, Lucy finds herself swept up into Horace's glamorous world at the Ritz hotel. She's even willing to put up with the inconvenient presence of her former fiancé, Frank Murray, the club's rising star who is on track to eclipse Horace as Britain's most popular crime writer.
But when Horace is found with a knife in his back, Frank is the police's prime suspect. Despite their complicated history, Lucy knows he's not capable of murder. With suspects galore and the danger rising, these two mystery writers must race to solve the crime—and fight their lingering feelings for each other—before the murderer strikes again.
368 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication July 14, 2026
3 people are currently reading
3317 people want to read
About the author
Jackie McMahon
1 book22 followersJackie McMahon writes murder mysteries with history, twists, and perhaps a romance (or two). She currently resides in Florida with her two cats, and in her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, and sharing obscure historical facts she has recently learned. You can find her on Instagram and YouTube at @jackiereadsandwrites.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
"The Cloak and Dagger Club" is a romance set in 1930 in England. Frank and Lucy met as children, became best friends, and fell in love. Lucy supported Frank's writing, but when he made it big as a published crime novelist, he neglected his now-fiancée in his craving for the praise and approval that he'd never gotten from his abusive father. Lucy broke up with him and wrote her own best-selling mystery novels. Three years later, they meet again at a crime writer's club meeting, investigate a murder, decide they're still in love, and we end with the details of their wedding. This is romance genre. While the characters were engaging and mildly developed, the mystery simply existed to help us get to know the characters better.
While some of this might be fixed by the final version (as I read an Advanced Reader Copy), I wasn't particularly impressed with the mystery aspect. Yes, there were clues, but it was a pretty simple mystery. Lucy was observant, but she failed to put clues together and only solved the crime because whodunit was convinced Lucy had it figured out and basically prompted her to reason it out. Frank at least had a burst of brilliance in which he put clues together and came to rescue Lucy.
Anyway, the main problems: One, the workers at the hotel where the victim lived had motive, means, and opportunity, but Frank and Lucy immediately decided the murderer must be someone from the writer's club. No one, not even the police, once suspected the barman who could have easily done the whole thing. Two, the police don't appear to do any detective work beyond providing time of death and a mention that both poison and a knife were involved. The detective simply harassed Lucy to pressure her into accusing Frank. Three, even though it was extremely obvious when the poisoning occurred, that death took some time, and that the knife didn't kill the victim, Frank and Lucy asked for alibis for when the death occurred. This was meaningless information.
They also spent most of their investigation digging up secrets on their fellow club members in the hopes of finding a motive. This should have messed up their friendships but somehow everyone's the best of friends by the end. Somehow along the way people forgot to even question how the knife got into the victim's back, and we only learned the answer in the final few paragraphs because we're in the thoughts of that attempted murderer. But we're supposed to pass attempted murder off as okay because it was
There was no sex. There was a fair amount of bad language.
I received a free ebook review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
While some of this might be fixed by the final version (as I read an Advanced Reader Copy), I wasn't particularly impressed with the mystery aspect. Yes, there were clues, but it was a pretty simple mystery. Lucy was observant, but she failed to put clues together and only solved the crime because whodunit was convinced Lucy had it figured out and basically prompted her to reason it out. Frank at least had a burst of brilliance in which he put clues together and came to rescue Lucy.
Anyway, the main problems: One, the workers at the hotel where the victim lived had motive, means, and opportunity, but Frank and Lucy immediately decided the murderer must be someone from the writer's club. No one, not even the police, once suspected the barman who could have easily done the whole thing. Two, the police don't appear to do any detective work beyond providing time of death and a mention that both poison and a knife were involved. The detective simply harassed Lucy to pressure her into accusing Frank. Three, even though it was extremely obvious when the poisoning occurred, that death took some time, and that the knife didn't kill the victim, Frank and Lucy asked for alibis for when the death occurred. This was meaningless information.
They also spent most of their investigation digging up secrets on their fellow club members in the hopes of finding a motive. This should have messed up their friendships but somehow everyone's the best of friends by the end. Somehow along the way people forgot to even question how the knife got into the victim's back, and we only learned the answer in the final few paragraphs because we're in the thoughts of that attempted murderer. But we're supposed to pass attempted murder off as okay because it was
There was no sex. There was a fair amount of bad language.
I received a free ebook review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
October 19, 2025
The idea for this novel first came to me in 2022, after I learned about the Detection Club, a real-life crime writers’ club founded in London in 1930. Its members included Dorothy L. Sayers, G.K. Chesterton, Anthony Berkeley, Agatha Christie (one of my all-time favorite writers), and many more.
One thing I didn’t realize at the time is that Christie herself once considered writing a novel about the Detection Club. In one of her notebooks, she jotted down an idea to write a mystery surrounding her humorous self-insert, crime author Ariadne Oliver, who would solve a murder at the club. She also wrote down the names of several of her clubmates, indicating fictionalized versions of them might’ve appeared. While I would’ve loved to see how Christie would’ve written this book, I am also glad she saved the idea of a murder at a mystery club for me.
Ultimately, this book is a love letter to Christie and the Golden Age of Crime Fiction—a murderous love letter, perhaps, but a love letter all the same. I hope you'll enjoy it.
One thing I didn’t realize at the time is that Christie herself once considered writing a novel about the Detection Club. In one of her notebooks, she jotted down an idea to write a mystery surrounding her humorous self-insert, crime author Ariadne Oliver, who would solve a murder at the club. She also wrote down the names of several of her clubmates, indicating fictionalized versions of them might’ve appeared. While I would’ve loved to see how Christie would’ve written this book, I am also glad she saved the idea of a murder at a mystery club for me.
Ultimately, this book is a love letter to Christie and the Golden Age of Crime Fiction—a murderous love letter, perhaps, but a love letter all the same. I hope you'll enjoy it.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Do you love the queens of mystery’s Golden Age—Christie, Sayers, Tey, and Marsh? Jackie McMahon surely does. She’s written a perfect homage to those greats in her debut series novel, THE CLOAK AND DAGGER CLUB (July 2026). She polishes off a delightfully slimy villain, gathers a great cast of possible killers (all with secrets to hide), and pairs two appealing sleuths: mystery writers and former lovers. You root equally for them to solve the mystery and resolve their estrangement. I love it that McMahon plays fair with the reader: the clues are there in plain sight: the Golden Age grandes dames would applaud her clever plotting. Thank you, Jackie McMahon and Berkley Mystery, for the advance reader copy.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for a chance to review The Cloak and Dagger Club by Jackie McMahon ✨️✨️✨️
I did not sleep the night I started The Cloak and Dagger Club. That should tell you everything. 😄😅
Jackie McMahon had me convinced I'd figured it out at least three times and I was wrong every single time. The characters got under my skin in the best way, the atmosphere is chef's kiss, and that ending? I actually gasped out loud. If you're looking for your next can't-put-it-down read, this is it. I'm already recommending it to everyone I know. I wish this would be a series 😪
I did not sleep the night I started The Cloak and Dagger Club. That should tell you everything. 😄😅
Jackie McMahon had me convinced I'd figured it out at least three times and I was wrong every single time. The characters got under my skin in the best way, the atmosphere is chef's kiss, and that ending? I actually gasped out loud. If you're looking for your next can't-put-it-down read, this is it. I'm already recommending it to everyone I know. I wish this would be a series 😪
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
The Cloak and Dagger Club is an sparkling mix of mystery and romance that immerses readers in the world of 1930s London and Golden Age detective fiction. Jackie McMahon’s impressive knowledge of the genre and its notable writers inspire a rich setting and even richer characters, with a bittersweet second-chance romance and a mystery that evokes the elegance of Agatha Christie and kept me guessing. This was a delightful read, and I can’t wait for the next!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Jackie McMahon's The Cloak and Dagger Club is a meticulously crafted fair-play mystery set against a richly drawn 1930s London that glitters off the page. With a charming, witty heroine, a second-chance romance as compelling as the whodunit itself, and a brilliant conceit inspired by the real-life Detection Club, this is a stunning debut and I'll be first in line for whatever McMahon writes next. Fans of Deanna Raybourn's Veronica Speedwell series will find plenty to love here.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews