The Cliff House Strangler by Sarah Woolson - a Good Historical Mystery

She's at it again, that woman who thinks she's a lawyer. A woman's place is in the home, not in the office and certainly not in some of the places an active attorney needs to go in order to help her clients-especially when those clients are women and the law is less than sympathetic.

But Sara Woolson in this new mystery "The Cliff House Strangler" by Shirley Tallman comes from a long line of individuals who serve. Her father is a judge, her eldest brother Frederick, a senator, another is a doctor and her favorite brother writes for a newspaper-under an assumed name. The problem with Sara is that she's a woman! Perish the thought of a woman becoming a lawyer in 19^th Century San Francisco. But, of course, she does, she is and after a few high profile cases, she is now on her own.

Only business hasn't been crowding her door. At the instigation of her reporter brother, Sara Woolson, along with Robert, a lawyer friend, attends a Séance of the celebrated Madame Karpova at Cliff House. To her surprise, the séance at Cliff House is attended by several well-known officials and socialites along with a muck-raking journalist who makes veiled threats as he takes his seat.

Will Sara Woolson discover whether Madame is for real or just the usual fake? Evidence mounts toward the latter as things float and voices sound, though Sara Woolson finds it difficult to totally dismiss the woman who does seem to have some insight.

None of that matters, for a murder takes place in the dark. Who at Cliff House had the audacity to strangle someone, even in the dark, in front of a table filled with potential witnesses? Worse, Sara Woolson finds herself caught up in a web of murder and lies that goes right to the top. Does that include members of her own family? Add to the growing danger to Sara is her attempt to help an abused wife not only divorce her husband, but, somehow, gain custody of her sons under laws geared to deprive her of them-especially in the face of her husband's carefully crafted lies. Worse yet, Sara finds herself up against her friend Robert.

Will Sara Woolson be able to unravel the truth before lies destroy justice, a murderer goes free as all the wrong people are under indictment, and Sara's own life is in the balance?

This new book in the Sarah Woolson Mystery series "The Cliff House Strangler" by Shirley Tallman is every bit as well constructed as the earlier books. The characters live and breathe in 19^th century San Francisco. You can almost feel the heat, hear the bells, smell the ocean.

In Sara Woolson beats the heart of a woman of passion and determination, willing to make a difference in a world that suffers her ambition but certainly does not embrace it. Sara is that reformer who doesn't have to stop being who she is, or stop being a woman as she seeks to change the perceptions of what a woman is capable of doing-like being a lawyer.

The mystery in "The Cliff House Strangler" is compelling with layer upon layer of twists and turns that keep the reader invested and reading. The ending is surprising, satisfying and well wrapped up.

While, I do not in any way endorse going to séances or mediums (fact is, I think it best to stay clear), the author Shirley Tallman handles the spiritism aspect with both healthy skepticism and the realization that we don't know everything.

The reader will find it difficult to come to the same conclusions as Sara-for those of us who like to figure out the mystery before the main character-because a key piece of information is withheld from the reader. Despite that, this is a fun, intriguing read and I recommend it.