The Pompadour Necklace and Theft in Sleepy Hollow (Sophie’s Adventures) by Nupur Tustin | Author Post

Guest Post from Nupur Tustin

The Birth of a Sleuth
Sophie’s Adventures

Nupur Tustin

Meet Sophie Fisher—or Jeanne Sophie Poisson, which is the name on her birth certificate. She’s French, she’s Catholic, and she sets out on covert missions—disguised as a tourist—to recover stolen artifacts. But she was neither born nor made to be a sleuth. In fact, the role was thrust upon her.

And believe it or not, her birth as a character was quite unplanned. I was in the middle of my fifth Joseph Haydn Mystery, Death of a Soprano, when I decided to take a little detour into Sophie’s world. This year, I was working with Celine Skye, my psychic sleuth who’s investigating the Gardner Museum heist, when I abandoned her to travel once more with Sophie.

It all began on a Friday last October. I was helping my kids with their writing assignments. We homeschool, and Friday is the day reserved for story-writing. The assignment was to write a story set in London. The story needed to include certain sights and attractions—the London Eye, the Tower Bridge, and the Big Ben.

As we researched these, I felt a deep yearning to visit London and see the sights for myself. I thought of how much I both enjoyed and envied Jessica Fletcher’s travels. On the spur of the moment, I decided to write a story set in London.

I couldn’t travel; but my character could, and through her I’d vicariously enjoy a cruise on the Thames; I’d ride the London Eye; and I’d go all the way up to the Clock Tower. And so Sophie was born.

I needed a reason for Sophie to travel to England. Why does she go from one attraction to another? Well, she’s tracking down a man she suspects of having stolen a valuable necklace that has been passed down from Madame Pompadour—mistress of Louis XV—to her descendants.

So Sophie is an inadvertent sleuth. But a rather good one. She’s not entirely without help, though. Her Cousin Pierre, a detective, isn’t too happy about her impromptu undercover trip but puts her in touch with his Scotland Yard contacts. Still, it’s Sophie’s wit and her ability to gain information and put together clues that leads to an arrest and results in the Pompadour necklace being recovered.

Sophie’s first undercover mission goes so well that Detective Superintendent Ben Norris, who specializes in art recovery, wonders if she’d like to work with him again should the opportunity arise.

Naturally, Sophie agrees. But when her Commandant—she works at a police station in Calais—calls her in, asking her to take her vacation in Sleepy Hollow rather than in Paris, Sophie isn’t too pleased.

Is Cousin Pierre—disapproving of her plans for some harmless flirtation and romance—behind this unexpected turn of events?

But then when she realizes she and D.S. Ben Norris—aka Uncle Arthur—are going to be chasing a brazen art thief, Sophie can’t wait to take on her new undercover role: as a tourist to Sleepy Hollow and an attendee of the art workshop the thief will be conducting in the legendary village.

If you enjoy traveling, you’ll love Sophie’s Adventures. I love accompanying her on her clandestine missions abroad. What better cover than innocent tourist?

And added to the excitement of armchair travel is the thrill of unearthing secrets, bringing down art thieves and conmen, and recovering priceless works of art!