Murder at Broad Street Station (A Clara Shaw Railroad Mystery)

In 1903 Philadelphia, new technologies and modes of transport are turning the city into an industrial powerhouse. Clara Shaw, a paid companion for wealthy ladies, is transforming too—and discovering a surprising aptitude for solving murder . . . Clara Shaw is uniquely equipped both by disposition and connections to flourish as a lady’s traveling companion. Her late father was a yardmaster for the Pennsylvania Railroad, and she is a distant relative of the prominent Biddle family, which gives her just enough pedigree to satisfy high-society mamas. And though she’s a confirmed spinster at 30, Clara is still young enough to be a trusted confidante for their daughters. She’s also shrewd and observant, qualities that come to the fore when a detective appears at her door early one morning. A woman has been found strangled in a second-class passenger car in the rail yard. Clara’s name and address were on a piece of paper clutched in her hand. Clara recognizes the victim—a young woman named Sophie whom she encountered at the Horn and Hardart Automat, arguing with a gentleman.