By Karen Witemeyer
When Grace Mallory's father uncovers evidence that a rich silver mine owner isn't actually his father's true heir, he is determined to give the evidence to the Pinkertons. Before he can, however, he's murdered and Grace has to find a way to hide herself--and figure out what evidence her father possessed. She finds safe harbor in Harper's Station, a women's colony, and sets up her life there working as a telegraph operator. Through her work, she becomes "friends" with a fellow operator, Mr. A. Although she has never met him in person, their after-hours telegraph conversations are dear to her. And when word comes down the line, Mr. A--Amos Bledsoe--shows up in Harper's Station to help the woman he's never met. Drawn to "Miss G" through their conversations, Amos has wanted to meet her--and when he realizes she's in danger, he heads out immediately to help her. Meeting her in person, he finds she's everything he hoped and more, and he'll do anything to keep her safe.
I love all of Karen Witemeyer's books, and my favorite tends to be whichever one I just read, but this one might be hard to top. There are so many wonderful things about this book. I love the fact that Amos isn't the typical hero--he's not the strongest, handsomest guy around, but he just might be the sweetest. I love how he uses his strengths to help Grace. Grace is a terrific protagonist. I loved seeing their growing relationship and their friendship as they work to solve the mystery and try to keep Grace safe. The plot kept moving quickly and was very interesting, with twists and action and suspense; I love how the telegraph played such a big role. (Side note: one cool thing about the Harper's Station series is seeing women in their professions.) I also really, really, really loved the side-story with Helen. I can't say more without spoilers, but it was a great subplot. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and wholeheartedly recommend it.
Although this is the second book in a series, you don't have to read the first one for this to make sense...but you should read the first one because it's a great book, too.
