Second Sons Inquiry Agency

Historical Mysteries

Every mystery series has an underlying concept and Second Sons is no exception.  Second Sons, Discreet Inquiries, is a fictional Regency-period inquiry agency, founded by Knighton Gaunt in 1814.  Knighton is a “second son” who elects to become an inquiry agent rather than choosing one the more acceptable careers in the church or military after his Knighton is nearly hung for his father's murder. The experience left him determined to find the truth for others facing similar, horrific circumstances. 

And he is not the only “useless second son” who decides that making inquiries is more a more interesting choice.  The agency continues to grow as new inquiry agents are hired and their adventures are added to the series.

As a unifying element, The Second Sons inquiry agency allows for a broader mixture of characters, while still maintaining a common thread throughout this series and even connects it to the Archer Family Regency Series on occasion.  The combination of familiar characters such as Knighton Gaunt and the Archer family,  creates a Regency milieu with interconnected, familiar faces across a broad spectrum from high-born dukes to commoners.

Since the stories take place before Peel’s revision of the laws and official formation of a modern police force in the U.K., the use of private inquiry agents in a murder investigation would not have been out of the question.  And there is the element of conflict with society for the high-born men who chose this line of work, and perhaps women, as well.  The agents elect to “lose their place” in polite society in order to dedicate their lives to finding the truth—but every such decision carries with it a personal cost the characters must reconcile.