VANISHED IN THE CROWD

A former detective is inspired by the suffragist movement to return to the job she loved.

Molly Murphy Sullivan and her husband, Daniel, the newly created FBI head in 1909 New York, live with their adopted daughter, Bridie, and two younger children on Patchin Place, a dead-end street in Greenwich Village. Across the street live Molly’s closest friends, Elena "Sid" Goldfarb and Augusta “Gus” Walcott, both from society families, both with independent means, both lesbians, suffragists, and socialists who are paying for Bridie to attend private school. Now Sid and Gus, who are hosting a Boston Walcott cousin and a fellow Vassar graduate, are concerned because Willa Parker, a third expected guest who’s a scientist from Philadelphia, hasn’t arrived. Even though they suspect Willa may not want to be found, Sid and Gus hire Molly to find her. Willa is far smarter than her husband, but because she’s a woman, his name is on their scholarly papers and he’s in control of their research at Penn University. Molly is especially inclined to take the case because she’s peeved with Daniel, who hasn’t told her that he hasn’t been paid by the FBI and is using their savings to pay his men. Meanwhile, the city is getting ready for a celebration of the 300 years since Henry Hudson sailed up the river now named for him and 100 years since Robert Fulton invented the commercial paddle steamer; Bridie’s school is decorating a float in one of the parades that have all New York and many foreign guests involved. Molly’s friends are working on another float sponsored by wealthy suffragist Alva Belmont, and Molly suspects they’re planning a protest. The case will lead to Willa’s shooting on the float and her friends’ arrest for their protest. As Daniel labors to provide security for the foreign dignitaries involved, Molly follows up on a tangled mess of clues to find the truth.

A colorful mystery based on historical events that focuses on the status of women.