This book is a fantastic story, full of adventure, secrets and murder. I love a good murder mystery, especially one steeped in history. I have always wanted a house with secret rooms and hidden passages. The author took care to really research the area and the time this is set in, drawing from true stories to create this one and its wonderful.
The story is set in the late 1800s. I love this time period. So much innovation and excitement happening after the Civil War. Inez Stannert is a single woman from Leadville, Colorado who now lives in San Francisco with her young ward, Antonia. Inez owns a successful music shop and a loan business to female entrepreneurs. Antonia is a strong willed, adventure seeking girl who loves pirate stories and spy mysteries, When Inez goes into a business venture with Moira Krause to buy the adjacent property to hers things go awry. They decide to bust open the wall between the properties where the pantries are to connect them. As they do a skeleton and a bag of gold tumbles out. Everyone is taken aback by the discovery and Inez and Moira set out to discover just who this man was.
The house is locked tight and the body removed. Harris and son, the local locksmith, having the only keys. One night The older Harris is murdered and the keys stolen. Inez cannot figure out why this would happen unless someone knew more about the supposed treasure that was found there. Inez hires a lawyer, and enlists the help of a private detective to help find out the identity of the skeleton. I love the descriptions of the setting as well. You can really tell how much research the author did on the time period. Including the Palace Hotel, Alcatraz, and the SF Mint.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story and if you enjoy fictional historical mysteries, I suggest you check this one out. It is a page turner that will not disappoint. Inez is apparently a character from another series called The Silver Rush Mysteries and now I must read those as well. I very much look forward to more from this author.
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