"Fans of historical mysteries should be delighted...Loan-Wilsey
is adept at detailing the best and worst of this era...Davish is an intriquing
character, clever but proper, and the eccentrics who give the mystery its
fevered piquancy are well-fleshed out and reflective of the period."
-Mystery Scene

"This historical cozy debut showcases the author’s superb research. Readers will be fascinated by the volatility within the 1890s women’s temperance movement and by the Victorian obsession with healing spas...this is a warm beginning."
-Library Journal

“Loan-Wilsey’s delightful debut introduces Hattie Davish… Cozy fans will
eagerly await Hattie’s next adventure.” –Publishers Weekly 

Hattie Davish is delighted to be ably assisting her wealthy employer, Sir Arthur Windom-Greene, an English scholar who is fluent in Civil War history and hard at work putting together a definitive biography of General Cornelius Starrett.  Their research takes them to Galena, Illinois, where they quickly learn that time has done little to heal old battle wounds.  Distrust and betrayal seem to linger in everyone's minds, none more so than the General's pompous son Henry.  And Hattie is certain he has something to do with a string of bizarre incidents in town-especially when he turns up dead...
Between her work for Sir Arthur, preparing for Christmas, and unscheduled visitors from her past, Hattie hardly has time to investigate a murder, but soon she is lost in a labyrinth of secrets and deceit that leads to more questions than answers.  Henry had a knack for finding trouble and making enemies, and there's no shortage of suspects-including Sir Arthur.  Now, Hattie must uncover the truth while maintaining her civility in a most uncivil situation...