Praise for Under a Veiled Moon
“An exceptional sequel to Down a Dark River … Odden never strikes a false note, and she combines a sympathetic lead with a twisty plot grounded in the British politics of the day and peopled with fully fleshed-out characters. Fans of Lyndsay Faye’s Gods of Gotham trilogy will be enthralled.” –Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
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Under a Veiled Moon
Praise for Karen’s Books
Odden’s literary brushstrokes vividly portray the misogyny and gender bias experienced by women in Victorian society, especially a woman battling to exercise her artistic talent.
A Trace of Deceit
Enter a world of teeming and dangerous cities portrayed in vitality and amazing detail. Meet characters with tremendous courage and appetite for life, and be glad you can return at will to the present. Vivid Literary Brushstrokes
2021 Best Mystery Shortlist
Portrayed in Vitality and Amazing Detail
Karen’s Previous Novels
About Karen
Karen Odden received her Ph.D. in English from New York University in 2001, writing her dissertation on Victorian literature. Subsequently, she taught at UW-Milwaukee and edited for the academic journal Victorian Literature and Culture. When she finally turned to writing fiction, she set all her novels in her beloved 1870s London. Her first mystery, A Lady in the Smoke, was a USA Today bestseller. Her fourth, Down a Dark River, was an Oprah Daily pick; and the sequel, Under a Veiled Moon was nominated for the Lefty, Agatha, and Anthony Awards for Best Historical Mystery. Her sixth novel, An Artful Dodge, about an all-women thieving gang in 1879 London, is forthcoming from Soho Crime in June 2026.
Since 2019, Karen has offered over 40 writing workshops for libraries, professional groups, and conferences, and she has received awards and grants for her work to promote literacy and support the writing community. Karen serves on the national board of Sisters in Crime, reviews books for Publishers Weekly, and divides her time between Arizona and Utah, where she loves to hike while plotting crimes. Read More
Latest Blog
- My New Writing Practice: Poetry as Pre-GameA few weeks ago, I was looking over a new manuscript I’m working on (a literary murder mystery mashup of the Victorian novel Vanity Fair, which I’m co-writing … Continue reading “My New Writing Practice: Poetry as Pre-Game”