Mrs Holmes tells the incredible story of Grace Humiston, the lawyer and detective who solved the famous cold case of Ruth Cruger, an 18-year-old girl who disappeared in 1917. Grace was an amazing lawyer and travelling detective during a time when no women were practising in the legal profession. She focused on solving cases no one else wanted and advocating for innocents. Grace became the first female US District Attorney and made ground-breaking investigations into the practice of modern slavery. In the Ruth Cruger case, Grace followed a trail of corruption that led from New York to Italy. Her work changed how the country viewed the problem of missing girls. But the victory came with a price: she learned all too well what happens when one woman upstages the entire Establishment. In the literary tradition of Truman Capote's In Cold Blood and Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City, this is a true crime tale told in spine-tingling fashion. Gruce Humiston is a figure whose work was so impressive that the papers gave her the nickname of fiction's greatest sleuth, dubbing her 'Mrs Holmes'. With important repercussions in the present about kidnapping, the complicit role of the media and the truth of crime stories, the great mystery of the book - and its haunting twist - is how one woman can become so famous only to disappear completely.

About the Author
Brad Ricca, author of Super Boys, earned his Ph.D. in English from Case Western Reserve University where he currently teaches. He has spoken on comics at various schools and museums, and he has been interviewed about comics topics by The New York Daily News, The Wall Street Journal, and All Things Considered on NPR. His film Last Son won a 2010 Silver Ace Award at the Las Vegas International Film Festival. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

Reviews
'Spellbinding... ranks right up there with the most absorbing novels. Mrs Holmes exposes police indifference, newspaper sensationalism, and sexist attitudes. A first-rate story' -- Sandra Dallas, New York Times bestselling author
'An express train of a story ... Rapid, compelling storytelling informed by rigorous research and enlivened by fecund imagination.' -- Starred review, Kirkus Review
'In Mrs Holmes, Brad Ricca paints the picture of Grace Humiston, a soft-spoken yet persistent woman investigator determined to solve the disappearance of an 18-year-old girl - this in the midst of both the suffragist and white-slavery movements. Where the police leave off, Humiston, undaunted by naysayers, picks up clues and doggedly follows them. Ricca lays out this fascinating whodunit with a novelist's skill, making Mrs Holmes a suspenseful winner.' -- Cathy Scott, award-winning journalist and bestselling author of Murder of a Mafia Daughter and The Killing of Tupac Shakur
'A fascinating account of Grace Humiston ... Her incredible life story, superbly portrayed by Ricca, is more proof that truth is stranger than fiction.' -- Publisher's Weekly



Book Information
ISBN 9781445682884
Author Brad Ricca
Format Paperback
Page Count 456
Imprint Amberley Publishing
Publisher Amberley Publishing
Weight(grams) 368g