Word of an upcoming engagement that will join two prominent families has tongues wagging among San Francisco society, but Celia worries the bride-to-be may be making a serious mistake. Her intended, a controlling man and a known womanizer, has recently been linked to a violent attack on a former mistress. When a hapless maid is poisoned at the party where the engagement was to be announced, Celia discovers that the fiancé was the intended victim.Detective Nick Greaves is called to the scene to investigate the grim death and finds once again that Celia has already unearthed valuable clues. Teaming up to track down the would-be murderer, they soon determine that any number of people had reason to do away with the man. And when another young woman is found dead, Celia realizes that cornering the killer may expose a cruel truth at the heart of a wealthy family's deceptions . . .Praise for the Mysteries of Old San Francisco:"Nancy Herriman gives us another...

When yet another fire destroys a struggling business in the heart of San Francisco, Detective Nick Greaves is fairly certain they've got an arsonist on their hands and that lucrative insurance claims are the motive. But before he can act on his suspicions, Celia Davies alerts him that a notorious loan shark has been found murdered—and left on the doorstep of the very insurance agent Nick suspected of fraud.Reluctant to involve Celia in another of his investigations but certain she has information crucial to both cases, Nick agrees to team up with her once again. As they pursue their few murky leads, they discover a shadowy network that counts some of San Francisco's most prominent businessmen as members—as well as a connection leading to Celia's estranged and always menacing husband. And when a local policeman at the center of it all is found dead, Celia and Nick must sort through the ashes of a conspiracy to bring down a ruthless killer . . .Praise...

In a new Mystery of Old San Francisco, Celia and Nick must look for answers among the dead to stop a killer among the living . . . "Skillfully brings 1867 San Francisco to life . . . intriguing!" —Anna Lee Huber, bestselling author of the Lady Darby Mysteries With the city's Fourth of July celebrations in full swing, Celia Davies has stolen a moment away from her nursing duties to take in the festive spectacle, but is stunned when she spots the one person she thought she'd never see again—her supposedly dead husband, Patrick. Moments later, the investigator who had confirmed Patrick's death is killed when he suspiciously falls from a high window, and Celia begins to fear that the roguish man she married has returned to haunt her life once again. Joining forces with Detective Nick Greaves to get to the bottom of the mystery, Celia is soon drawn into a murky séance group, where the voices of the dead...

Detective Nick Greaves has always been haunted by the death of his younger sister, and that pain is brought vividly to the surface when a dead body fished out of the bay turns out to be her former beau. Certain that the man was murdered to cover up what he knew about his sister's tragic end, Nick is determined to find the man's killer. And when Celia turns up information that could be crucial to his investigation, he reluctantly agrees to accept her help.But no sooner do they begin their search than it becomes clear that powerful forces are at work to stop them. First Celia is threatened when she looks into the shady dealings of a wealthy family's fashionable auction house, and then an innocent man is killed when he's hit by a bullet intended for Nick. With mounting evidence pointing to high-end smuggling and police corruption, Celia and Nick must face down San Francisco's elite to catch the killer—and to find answers that may finally let Nick put his demons to...

Few in San Francisco were troubled by the news that Ambrose Shaw had been found dead at a local health institute—the prominent banker had recently turned to politics and was reviled by many for his incendiary views. But when Celia Davies learns that his death is considered suspicious by the police and that a damning piece of evidence points to a patient of hers as the culprit, she feels compelled to prove the woman's innocence.Teaming up with Detective Nick Greaves, Celia soon discovers there's no shortage of suspects, including the victim's many political enemies, his disaffected stepson, who may have been too eager to receive his inheritance, and even the dead man's fellow patients at the institute, whose founder promises miracle water cures but has been covering up numerous burglaries of his well-to-do clients.As Celia and Nick struggle with their feelings for each other as well as the many murky aspects of the case, they'll have to navigate an endless...

Perfect for fans of Charles Todd and Susanna Calkins, comes Nancy Herriman's second bewitching tale of herbalist Bess Ellyott who uncovers the sinister underbelly of Elizabethan England.The dark shadows of Elizabethan England envelop a bucolic village when a brutal murder reveals a viper's nest of resentment, fear—and the haunting specter of black magic.Autumn has fallen on the small English village of Wiltshire, but as the air grows crisp and the trees turn a resplendent gold, a sinister presence arrives in the form of a horrifying murder. Bartholomew Reade, a player in a traveling troupe, has been found stabbed, sprawled on a low mound outside the village, a reed pen jabbed into his throat.On the night of the murder, a bleeding woman collapses at the doorstep of herbalist Bess Ellyott desperately seeking help. Could she have a connection to the dead man? As Bess seeks answers, Constable Kit Harwoode is busy assembling his own lengthy list of...

The author of No Comfort for the Lost returns with a new mystery of Old San Francisco...British-born nurse Celia Davies runs a free medical clinic to assist the poor women of San Francisco. Aided in her endeavors by her half-Chinese cousin Barbara and feisty housekeeper Addie, Celia has earned the trust and friendship of many of the city's downtrodden, including a young orphan named Owen—who's just confided to her that he's stumbled upon a corpse. Owen recently started working for the ruthless real estate and development group, Martin and Company, and discovered a dead body in the office's basement. Celia turns to Detective Nick Greaves for help, only to learn that one of the main suspects—the husband of Celia's dearest friend—is an old enemy of Nick's. Now, Celia and Nick must put aside their personal feelings about the case—and each other—if they're going to bring a killer to justice...

Accused of murdering a child under her care, Irish healer Rachel Dunne flees the ensuing scandal while vowing to never sit at another sickbed. She no longer trusts in her abilities-or God's mercy--though when a cholera epidemic sweeps through London, she feels compelled to nurse the dying daughter of the enigmatic physician she has come to love. James Edmunds, wearied by the deaths of too many patients, has his own doubts about God's grace. Together, they will have to face their darkest fears . . . and learn what it means to have real faith.Review"Vivid characters, tender romance and enduring themes... a perfect read."-Margaret Brownley, best-selling authorAbout the AuthorNancy Herriman received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Cincinnati. After 20-plus years in Arizona, she retired from a career in the high-tech industry, returned to Ohio, and took up the pen. She hasn’t looked back. The Irish Healer is Nancy’s debut novel. When she isn’t writing or gabbing over lattes about writing, she is watching history shows on cable TV or performing with various choral groups. She lives in central Ohio with her husband and two teenaged sons, and wishes there were more hours in the day.

Herbalist and widow Bess Ellyott tries to escape the loss of her husband in Elizabethan London only to find that death is following her, and she may very well be next in Searcher of the Dead, the first in a new historical mystery series by Nancy Herriman.Living amid the cultural flowering, religious strife, and political storms of Tudor England, Bess Ellyott is an herbalist, a widow, and a hunted woman. She fled London after her husband was brutally murdered, but the bucolic town in the countryside where she lands will offer her no solace. She still doesn't know who killed her husband, but she knows one thing: The murderer is still out there. This becomes all too clear when Bess's brother-in-law, a prosperous merchant, is himself found dead—dangling from a tree, an apparent suicide.But Bess doesn't believe that for a moment, and nor do her neighbors. Competition is cutthroat in the 17th century, and word around the town holds that the dead man is a...

In this atmospheric historical mystery series debut, a courageous nurse and a war-scarred police detective in 1860s San Francisco champion the down-trodden and fight for justice ...After serving as a nurse in the Crimea, British-born Celia Davies left her privileged family for an impulsive marriage to a handsome Irishman. Patrick brought her to San Francisco's bustling shores but then disappeared and is now presumed dead. Determined to carry on, Celia partnered with her half-Chinese cousin Barbara and her opinionated housekeeper Addie to open a free medical clinic for women who have nowhere else to turn. But Celia's carefully constructed peace crumbles when one of her Chinese patients is found brutally murdered...and Celia's hotheaded brother-in-law stands accused of the crime.A veteran of America's civil war, detective Nicholas Greaves is intent on discovering the killer of the girl, whose ethnicity and gender render her as powerless in death as they did in life....

A feisty young female artist with a secret past battles to establish her own gallery in Gold Rush-era San Fransico.