"Daisy and Frederica Linden have tracked their missing father to Bodie, the most dangerous town in the Wild West, where bad men murder without guilt and single ladies are as rare and valuable as gold. Here they must depend upon the help of the society of absent friends, that secret network of boardinghouse keepers who know everyone's business—and make secrets their stock in trade.
But some secrets are fatal, and when the local matchmaker pays the price with her life on the night of the Autumn Ball, the ladies of the society beg Daisy and Freddie to help them find the killer of their fallen sister. Aided by Miss Peony Churchill, an intrepid family of aeronauts, and a Rocky Mountain Detective, the Linden sisters must see justice done and unmask a deadly conspiracy. But in a town where murder is more common than spiked absinthe, will they find themselves in the killer's sights instead?"
"This box set contains four novellas in the bestselling Magnificent Devices steampunk series.
Carrick House: Married eight months, Lady Claire Trevelyan and Dr. Andrew Malvern are blissfully working together on a new invention, and providing a home for a collection of street sparrows. Then Claire's mother, the redoubtable Lady Jermyn, arrives with her family in tow and expects to stay indefinitely . . . Peony Churchill turns up on the doorstep with valise in hand . . .
Selwyn Place: When Lady Emilie Selwyn invites Andrew and Lady Claire Malvern to her very first country house party, Claire is delighted to offer her help—until she discovers that Peony Churchill is also on the guest list.
Holly Cottage: Maggie Polgarth astonishes everyone at Carrick House when, in a bid for independence, she buys a plot of land and a cottage near Vauxhall Gardens. From one decision, change ripples outward in the flock.
Gwynn Place: The winds of change are blowing—Lady Claire is a big sister again with the arrival of little Caroline, and eight-year-old Nicholas is preparing to go to Eton."
"Daisy Linden and her sister Frederica arrive by airship in Santa Fe, capital of the Texican Territories, determined to search for their missing father. But two surprises await them—the authorities' baffling refusal to help, and a not-so-chance meeting with snake-oil salesman William Barnicott.
To their joy, the Lindens find that their father has indeed been seen in Santa Fe. To their horror, it was an assignation with a cancan dancer in the dead of night. Now the dancer is missing—and their father seems to be the only suspect. There is nothing for it—Daisy and Freddie must find the girl, for only she can clear his name, and tell them where he might be now.
But there are forces arrayed against them in Santa Fe . . . men in the shadows who have bet too much on a dancer's disappearance to let two young ladies interfere and raise the stakes . . ."
"Margrethe Amelia Linden (Daisy to her friends) is a young woman of gentle upbringing, some talent as a watercolorist, and firm opinions that often get her into trouble. Determined to find her missing father, in the summer of 1895 she sets out for the last place he was seen: the Wild West. It's a rude shock when her younger sister stows away on the airship—such behavior no doubt the result of her unsuitable friendship with Maggie Polgarth and the Carrick House set.
On the journey, friendship blooms between Daisy and Miss Emma Makepeace, who is traveling to the Texican Territories as a mail-order bride. When Emma begs the girls to delay their search by a day or two in order to stand with her at the altar, Daisy is delighted to accept.
But the wedding day dawns on a dreadful discovery. Within hours the Texican Rangers have their man—but even in her grief, Daisy is convinced he cannot have killed her friend. She must right this terrible mistake before he hangs . . . and before the real culprit realizes that two very observant young ladies are not going to allow him to get away with murder . . ."
