A Bride of a Summer’s Day

The marriage of Ida Culvers to her first cousin Sefton seems like an opportune match: she receives his title, and he gets access to her fortune. But before setting out on their honeymoon, Ida asks for some time alone at her mother’s grave—and then promptly disappears. The only clue is a letter delivered to her father saying that she’s safe and with friends. That does little to assuage the worries of the family, and when a brooch of Ida’s shows up broken and missing gems, the hunt is definitely on. First published in 1891 in Charles Dickens’ All the Year Round magazine, A Bride of a Summer’s Day sees Catherine Louisa Pirkis continuing to develop her catalog of mystery stories, which would reach its height with Loveday Brooke, Lady Detective. Pirkis here focuses on the worries of the upper class: while a detective does make an appearance, he’s only begrudgingly engaged for fear that the scandal would cause a loss of social standing; and when an explanation arrives, the Culvers’ telling first thought is to immediately stop the investigation.