The Traitor in the Tunnel

The Traitor in the Tunnel
By Y.S. Lee
Candlewick Press, 2012. 373 pgs. Teen fiction

Mary Quinn is on assignment as a private detective for the Agency on what initially seems to be a relatively simple case--a thief is snatching small items from Queen Victoria's Buckingham Palace. However, things quickly get complicated when the Prince of Wales is caught up in a scandal: when he and a friend visited an opium den, an opium-addicted Chinese sailor killed the prince's friend. The sailor is arrested and the royal family tries to uncover what truly happened and how to handle the scandal--and Mary has to figure out what to do about the sailor who has the same name as her long-dead father. To make matters more complicated, Mary has run into James Easton, the young engineer who she thinks wants nothing more to do with her, as he is working on a top-secret project in the sewers below the palace, and Mary must resolve the turmoil of her own heart.

This third book of the Agency series is just as much fun as the first two. The simmering romance between James and Mary takes a satisfying turn, and Mary's struggle to decide how to handle issues with the Chinese opium addict who just might be her father and her own future provide just the right amount of character development and growth. I think this is my favorite in the series and am eagerly awaiting the fourth book in the series.

4.5 stars. A little bit of language and some making out, or "animal passion" as James jokingly refers to it.