Loosely based on events that took place aboard the ship Rajah in 1841, Dangerous Women tells of a Victorian-era sea voyage from London to present-day Tasmania. The passengers are convicted criminals preparing to begin a new life in the penal colonies; nearly all of them are women. The brutal stabbing of a young mother, Hattie Matthews, leads to a Poirot-style murder investigation in which suspects are interrogated and terrible secrets brought to light. Employing the making of a real quilt as a framing device, Hope Adams deftly melds historical fiction with the conventions of the Golden Age whodunit, as she examines the lengths to which women will go to protect themselves in a world governed by men. Part of our Summer Reading Collection: Novels