For as long as she could remember, Gertrude Kueshner had never wanted anything but to create beautiful hats that would one day be worn by the high society ladies of New York City. She endured the teasing of her four brothers and the lectures of her disapproving father, an immigrant who published a small socialist newspaper and thought little of the rich and fashionable society people of the big, bustling city. That was until she had the misfortune to meet a handsome, cynical detective. Alexander Marshall was the most exasperating man she had ever met, and Gertrude wanted nothing more to do with him despite the strange fluttering sensations she felt when he was near. But then two murders occur near Gertrude's father's print shop, and she finds herself once again in the company of the determined detective. When the happiness of Gertrude's large, loving family is threatened, Gertrude makes up her mind to find whoever was responsible for the murders, even if it means risking her own life, as well as her heart.

Julie Wack has worked as a sculptor and a painter, and has an MFA in Visual Art. She also has a long-standing love of the theater, which led her to study playwriting and to direct a number of plays over the years. One of the tasks of a director is to assist the actors in exploring the characters they are portraying onstage. When she decided to begin writing, she found that creating characters in her books and taking them through the twists and turns of the story was the most fulfilling act of creativity she had ever engaged in, and it led her to concentrate solely on writing.