London, 1855. A young and eager Charles Lenox faces his toughest case yet—his 13th, after The Vanishing Man—a murder without a single clue. Slumped in a third-class car at Paddington Station is the body of a handsome young gentleman, with no sign of identification on his person. Putting together the clues only raises more questions, when Lenox discovers that the crime has a significant connection to America. As he seeks to solve this impossible case, the young Lenox must confront an equally troublesome problem in his personal life. Kitty Ashbrook, beautiful and cultured, appears to be his soulmate—but love comes with obstacles of its own, and both of these challenges will shape the brilliant detective and thoughtful gentleman Lenox is destined to become.